You burn additional calories after a workout session without even trying — which is sort of like a buy one, get one free deal at the supermarket. This concept of continuing to burn extra calories long after you’ve left the gym is called “afterburn.” The amount of calories you burn depends on how long and how hard you work out in the first place.

You’re likely to get the greatest afterburn from a long, hard weight-training workout. In one study, fit men who completed a super-high intensity, 90-minute strength workout, performing 60 sets with little rest in between, experienced an 11 percent metabolism increase for about two hours after the workout. The next morning, 15 hours after the workout, their metabolism was still elevated by a substantial 9 percent, which translated into about 150 extra calories burned. While these numbers are impressive, the workouts were far longer and more strenuous than most people can handle or tolerate on a regular basis without injury or burnout. During a more typical workout — say, three sets of ten exercises — researchers say a generous guesstimate for afterburn add up to no more than 50 to 75 calories total.

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