You’ll get healthier if you walk more, but you may need to add more to your walking program to hit your walking and fitness goals. If you’re trying to hit your minimum recommended activity goals you’re in luck – walking is the most recommended form of cardio. Walking can get you a long way towards weight loss as well, but if you’re having trouble losing weight or you want to become an athlete you’ll probably need to do a bit more.
We’ll cover whether walking is enough for getting healthier (hint – walking is great for it!), plus what you may need to add if you’re looking to lose weight or get super fit.
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Getting Healthier – Is Walking Enough?
The answer is yes. The American Heart Association recommends walking as a great and simple way to keep your heart healthy. It can fit into your schedule whether that be first thing in the morning, during your lunch, or even at night when the temperatures are cooler. It can be done indoors or outdoors, with friends or alone. The very versatility of walking makes it the perfect exercise for anyone looking to get healthy.
For those suffering from depression, walking is also an excellent mood booster. It lowers stress levels, so you feel better after your walk. Add in a little Vitamin D from the sunshine, and you’ll be feeling better in no time!
Losing Weight – Is Walking Enough?
The not so simple answer is yes and no. You can absolutely lose weight walking, but if you aren’t eating the right foods, it’s all too easy to consume more calories than you burned. If you’re eating far too many calories, walking is still better than not walking as it will burn calories to offset some of the food you’re taking in. It’s very difficult to overcome a bad diet by walking alone, however. Walking faster or getting in more steps will help you meet your goal of losing weight, but if you aren’t able to get in all your steps every day or you’re not seeing the progress you’d like, you may need to do more. Remember, you may be burning 300 calories in an hour by walking, but a small cheeseburger at a fast-food restaurant is probably more than 300 calories.
Eating healthy foods works in conjunction with walking and is an important part of losing weight that should not be overlooked. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute recommends replacing full-fat foods with items that are low fat or fat-free. Depending on your health needs and personal preferences, there are a large variety of diets that will work for you. Talking to your family doctor will help you narrow down the best diet for you.
Adding in strength training can help you meet your goal by toning your muscles, increasing your metabolism and burning calories as well. If the thought of gym membership fees, having to lift heavy weights, or trying to find even more time to hit the gym, don’t panic. Strength training doesn’t necessarily have to use equipment. You can also try Pacer’s bodyweight workouts at home, or you can find a variety of other workouts that you can do in your own home using only your own body weight. Start out with the basics, and if you find you like strength training and want to increase your workout the gym is always an option.
Getting Super Fit – Is Walking Enough?
Probably not. If becoming an athlete is your goal, then you need to focus on exercises that get your heart rate up even more. Workouts such as HIIT, martial arts, running, strength training, yoga, or any other exercise routine that gets you breathing harder and your heart pumping will help you become super fit. This isn’t a goal for everyone, and you can get pretty fit through walking or jogging alone.
Even if you want to get super fit, it doesn’t mean that you should stop walking. After a hard workout, you’re likely to be sore for the next day or two. Even on “rest” days, leisurely walking is a great, low impact exercise that you can do so you keep moving. It can also help work out some of the soreness you may feel in your muscles. Just be careful not to overdo it if you’re really sore. You don’t want to cause yourself to become burned out and stop exercising completely.
Why You Should Still Walk More Anyway!
Maybe you’re in decent shape and eat well. Work may be more than enough to get your steps in, but you’re wondering if there are other reasons you should walk when outside of work.
Meet new people
Walking is a great way to meet new people or just spend time with friends you never have time to see. You can skip the coffee shop and meet up with your friends at your local park.
Spend time outside
Walking outside makes people feel happier, and it’s also a great way to get out and smell the flowers. Or if you’re allergic to pollen like many people are, you can admire the scenery from the inside of a mall where the windows protect you from allergies.
Get inspired
Walking outdoors is also a great way to become inspired if you are an artist. Even if you aren’t interested in trees, flowers, or grass, you may find inspiration from children laughing, dogs chasing butterflies, or a couple who just enjoys each others’ company.
Think and relax
If you just a need a little alone time to think, walking may be the perfect outlet for you. The exercise will help boost your spirits while you relax. You may not solve the world’s problems, but as long as you meet some of your own personal goals, you’ve accomplished a lot.
Get Pacer
If you haven’t downloaded the Pacer app yet, download Pacer for free (on mobile)! You can also check out our website (mobile or desktop) or follow our blog for more great walking and healthy lifestyle tips.
I’m a cancer survivor 2 x and just trying to stay in shape and eating right
We’re happy to hear that you were able to overcome your health issues. Walking more and eating right is definitely great for your health. Keep up the walking!
Hi, I usually walk at least 5 times a week in the evening for average 2.5 miles every day at a speed of 17.21 miles/min. But my belly fat doesn’t seem to reduce. Can you please advise what other changes I need to make?
My diet is – I take carbs only in Lunch; dinner is usually proteins. Breakfast is banana milk shake/ oat meals milk shake. Thanks!
Hi Sam. I’m going to assume that’s 17 minutes/mile, which means you’re walking about 45 minutes per night. That’s great for your health, so keep it up. Belly fat is often the last thing to go when we lose weight, so keep at it!
Remember that you’re probably only burning around 200-300 calories in that 45 minutes depending on your size. To compare, a latte is around 200 calories and a small cheeseburger is around 300 calories.
I would recommend talking to a doctor or nutritionist if possible to get a good healthy eating plan for yourself. Drinks and snacks also count, so it’s sometimes good to record what you eat for a few days to understand just what you’re taking in. Hope that helps!