One of the easiest ways to exercise is by walking. You can do it anywhere, from strolling through your neighborhood to walking on your treadmill in the living room, and it has little impact on your joints. Walking can also burn a lot of calories, which can ultimately help you lose weight if that’s your goal.
According to Nicole Glor, a fitness instructor and the creator of the NikkiFitness YouTube Channel, “walking is one of the best exercises for weight loss.” Shana Maleeff, M.A., R.D., adds, “Walking can definitely help with weight loss efforts when paired with a healthy diet and lifestyle, including stress management, adequate sleep, and exercise.”
Why is walking a great way to lose weight?
There are numerous health advantages to this straightforward method of movement. According to Maleeff, “walking increases your body’s demand for energy, which boosts your metabolism.” To put it another way, it helps you lose weight. She explains that “anything that moves your body burns calories.” Food provides us with energy, which we then burn passively by breathing, digesting food, and actively moving (walking or exercising).
Walking lowers stress hormones like cortisol, which can cause weight gain, in addition to increasing metabolism. According to Maleeff, “high cortisol levels can lead to belly fat.” Walking not only burns calories but also reduces stress, which can help you lose weight.
Walking may also help you sleep better. Maleeff says that when we don’t get enough sleep, we tend to eat unhealthy foods and crave foods with more salt and sugar. Walking can help you burn off extra energy and calm your mind, which can make you feel better and help you sleep better.
Walking also helps with “cardiovascular endurance, muscular and bone strength, and helps you maintain a healthy weight and shed fat,” according to Glor.
How many calories do you burn when walking?
Your age, height, and weight, as well as the intensity, duration, and pace of your walking workout, all influence how many calories you burn. According to Glor, burning calories increases with weight.
An average 150-pound A 120-pound person will burn approximately 100 calories per mile at a moderate pace (2.5 miles per hour). According to Glor, a person will burn approximately 85 calories per mile at the same pace. You can burn slightly more calories if you want to speed up. A 150-lb. On average, a person walking at a speed of 3 miles per hour will burn 115 calories per mile, whereas a person weighing 120 pounds “Glor explains that a person may burn an average of 100 calories per mile.
To burn more calories while you walk, you can also experiment with additional equipment or terrain.
While walking definitely burns calories, which can help you lose weight, a lot of genetic, demographic, dietary, and lifestyle factors also help. According to Maleeff, there are a plethora of different factors that influence weight loss, some of which are within your control (such as diet and lifestyle choices) and others of which you are not (such as age, gender, and metabolic rate).
For instance, some people are born with a faster metabolic rate, which means that they burn calories at a faster rate. According to Maleeff, men also typically have a faster metabolism because of their size and muscle mass. As we get older and become less active, our ability to burn calories may also slow down.
How to Increase the Calories Burned While Walking
Increasing your speed while walking is the simplest way to burn more calories. According to Glor, increasing the intensity of your workout raises your heart rate, which in turn burns more calories and requires more energy. To increase your endurance, you can also walk a greater distance than you normally would.
Adding an incline to your workout can also help your heart beat faster, burning more calories. Look for hills when you go outside to walk, “Glor advises. Additionally, Glor recommends increasing the incline on your treadmill to 1.5 or higher when walking. She explains that the treadmill is made to push your feet away, so it does some of the work. Adding an incline makes it easier to walk outside, which takes more effort.
incline walking helps tone the glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, and core in addition to burning more calories. When walking on an incline, Glor recommends engaging your core, keeping your shoulders back, and avoiding hip hinging.
You can also strengthen while you walk by adding resistance bands, dumbbells, and even backpacks. According to Glor, this helps you strengthen your muscles and burn more calories by targeting more muscle groups.
Are you getting enough calories burned?
It can be difficult to determine whether you are burning enough calories while walking unless you are using a tracker. The good news is that your body can tell you if you’re working hard enough by looking at it.
Have you ever lost your breath while working out? That’s a pretty good sign that you’re putting in a lot of effort. If you were to talk while you were walking, according to Glor, you should aim for a thin layer of sweat and to be slightly out of breath. According to Glor, the ideal rate of perceived exertion (RPE) for a slower, longer endurance walk is six out of ten.
On a scale of one to ten, the rate of perceived exertion is a method for determining how hard an individual is working while engaging in physical activity. Your RPE should be at least seven if you’re doing dumbbell work, incline hills, or lunges during a high-intensity walking workout, according to Glor.
You can’t outwork a poor diet, and diet is another important part of losing weight. “Unfortunately, people overemphasize exercise when it comes to nutrition,” Maleeff asserts.
You can use a weight loss calculator or talk to your doctor or physical therapist to find out exactly how many calories you should be eating and burning each day. Your age, height, and body weight all play a role in determining how many calories you need to burn.
However, Maleeff asserts that you can begin by making healthier choices right away. She says, “A good rule of thumb is to aim for 40% carbohydrates, 30% protein, and 30% fat on your plate.” Lean proteins, healthy fats, vegetables, and fiber-rich foods like fruits and whole grains should all be a part of your diet. Additionally, avoid sugary beverages, excessive alcohol consumption, refined sugars, and coffee creamers to avoid hidden calories, particularly around the holidays.
How to Keep Track of Calories Burned While Walking
Fortunately, you can estimate how many calories you burn during any given workout or day by using fitness trackers and weight loss apps. According to Maleeff, goals, levels of activity, and medical conditions all influence the percentages of macronutrients, micronutrients, and calories consumed. Because they help you become aware of your food choices and comprehend what you’re looking at in terms of macronutrients and micronutrients, which can have a significant impact on weight loss, trackers are fantastic tools.
Glor suggests using an Apple Watch or a FitBit, which both monitor various health metrics like the number of steps taken, the amount of water consumed, and calories burned. Map My Run, MyFitnessPal, Strava, and RunKeeper are additional useful apps for tracking steps and calories.
In the end, according to Glor, you shouldn’t worry too much about how many calories you burn while walking. You’ll reap the numerous physical and mental benefits of walking if you get up and move your body, she says.
At home, try this beginner-friendly walking routine.
If you want to step up your walking routine, try Glor’s basic and progressive walking program, which you can perform outside or on a treadmill. All you’ll need for extra toning is a set of 3 to 5 lb. weights.
- Week 1: Walk 12 miles or 10 minutes every day from Monday to Friday. Rest on Saturday and stretch on Sunday.
- Week 2: Walk 1 mile or 20 minutes every day from Monday to Friday. Rest on Saturday and stretch on Sunday.
- Week 3: Walk 2 miles or 30 minutes every day from Monday to Friday. Rest on Saturday and stretch on Sunday.
- Week 4: Monday through Friday, walk 3 miles or 40-45 minutes, rest Saturday, stretch Sunday.
Curl and kick the biceps: To work the biceps, step forward with the right leg, raise the left knee, and extend the leg into a powerful kick in the front with the left foot flexed. Lift the weights up to shoulder level to work the biceps. While lowering the weights, kick with the right leg and lower the left leg. For 30 seconds, do the kicks and biceps curls again.
Triceps kickbacks with a step: With a slight knee bend, place the left foot on the ground and pivot to the side. With the right leg behind you, perform a slight lunge. With your elbows raised, pull the weights into your rib cage (starting position). Engage the triceps by bringing the right knee closer to the other knee and “kicking back” the weights with extended arms. Perform a 30-second interval by pulling the weights and your right leg back to the starting position. Repeat on the opposite side before changing the direction of your face.
Knee-to-shoulder press: While holding weights by your hips, step forward with your left foot. Lift the right knee up to hip level as you raise the loads simply over your chest. As you lift your left knee and lower your right foot, lower the weights. For 30-second intervals, repeat.
Lunge and shoulder lateral raise: With weights in your hands and a right leg lead, march for a count of four. Lift the weights to the sides while bending your elbows slightly with your right leg bent forward. Keep your torso directly over the hips and lunge far enough so that your right knee is directly over your right ankle, not near or past the toe.) Lower your arms as you push off your right foot back to standing. Lift the weights laterally while engaging the shoulders once more while lunging forward on your left leg. Push off the left leg back to the starting position as you lower the weights. For a total of 60 seconds, march for four counts.
Biceps cross inside: Make your march into a toe tap with the weights in front of you, palms facing away from you, and arms pointing down. Curl the left hand in toward your right shoulder and across the middle of your body when the right toe taps, keeping the left elbow close to your waist. Reduce your left hand. Tap the left toe with your right hand while bringing your weight toward the left shoulder. For 30-second intervals, repeat.
Overhead triceps press with march: Lift both weights overhead while dragging your feet back to the original walking pace. In the starting position, the elbows should be pointing upward and bent so that the weights are directly behind the neck and the hands are touching at the knuckles. Straighten the arms and continue to march to the right and left, lifting the weights to the sky. Right, left, and lower arms should be marched (one arm count for every two feet). For a 30-second interval, repeat.