Is Walking Good For Weight Loss
Activity performed consistently and with an eye to flexing all the muscles in your body leads to heat generation and several other cellular functions, which together burn fat from muscle and get you a few steps closer to your weight loss goals. Walking may not compare to more vigorous exercises done at a gym, but it still sheds fat quite efficiently.
How Walking Promotes Weight Loss
Different people need different times to lose weight. Not all body types are the same. There has been plenty of debate about walking speeds and how that influences fat loss. If two people walk the same distance, one slower and the other faster, they both are thought to lose the same number of calories. However, the speed-walker loses more. There are specifics to this observation…
- Shorter walks done at speed (three such walks per week, according to a University of Virginia study) can burn a lot of belly fat (five times more compared to those who strolled moderately five days a week).
- The same number of calories were observed to have gone; about 400 calories at 4 miles per hour. But one burned it faster than the other.
- Aside from slicing three times more thigh fat and two inches more off the waistline, speed-walking also got rid of four times the total body fat.
- The study spread over sixteen weeks and found speed-walkers losing eight pounds without dieting.
As long as your walking is intense not ‘lethargic’, you are looking at keen results like how such walkers also lost three times the visceral body fat, which envelops organs like liver and kidneys and has confirmed links to high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.
Walk Your Way To Health
Your body is still burning fat even after exercise. This is called ‘afterburn’, when your body is shedding calories during the natural recovery period that follows vigorous exercise or activity.
- Whether you choose longer distances at moderate paces or shorter distances at faster paces, you can see a good walking workout regimen stretched over eight weeks.
- Your lifestyle needs to change, no excuses, no exceptions. Get rid of those sweets, candies, and chocolates. Trash sodas and any high-calorie food items, no matter how much you like them.
Don’t go making things harder for yourself. It’s a small sacrifice to help you shed kilos.
Tools That Help
Walking is a simple exercise. You need the right gear and additional tools to help get you from point A to the finish line. Aside from reliable walking shoes, here are some suggestions.
- Pedometer – Lightweight, it can be attached to your belt or pant-lining. It counts the number of steps you take every day, with little to no margin for error. By paying attention to how much ground you cover daily, you can plan your weight loss to a T. By observing the difference in the scale, you can increase your steps and distance accordingly.
- Wrist Band – This can do almost everything a pedometer can. The one advantage is that it can be strapped around your wrist.
Based on the number of calories you wish to burn, you can increase your steps accordingly. You need to start simple; be reasonable and never overdo a walk session. Start small, finish big.
How Not To Get Bored While Walking To Lose Weight
There are several ideas but not all of them can be effective. Find the one that works for you. Here are a couple of suggestions.
- Walking is better with friends and family. Get the right people together and you will end up being inspired to pursue new walking challenges every day.
- Walk in different locations. The fresh scene will be stimulating, and open opportunities for you to do better each day not to mention meet like-minded people.
Walking is an immensely fruitful exercise and, if done right, can help you shed weight in almost magical ways. The harder it gets the closer you are to perfection.
