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You probably know that walking is a great exercise to support your overall health, from improving your blood sugar levels to bolstering your heart health. But can it help you achieve your weight loss goals?
Research has shown that walking can help promote weight loss. But how much is enough to help you lose weight? And how can you fit walking into your hectic schedule? Here, we’ll share a 7-day walking plan designed by certified personal trainers that you can easily incorporate into your weekly routine while helping you achieve your weight loss goals.
How Walking Supports Weight Loss
So, what makes this low-impact exercise a great weight-loss tool? Like other types of exercise, walking increases your heart rate and helps your body utilize and burn calories more efficiently.
Additionally, walking can also help reduce appetite. Research has shown that regular physical activity like walking can help improve your sense of fullness, helping you make nutritious food choices and support healthy weight management. Additionally, walking outdoors in nature has been shown to help reduce stress levels. High levels of stress may increase emotional eating and weight gain.
“Walking increases your energy expenditure from baseline, helping to create a calorie deficit, which is essential for weight loss,” says Mike Masi, a certified personal trainer at Garage Gym Reviews. “Additionally, walking may reduce stress for some people and lower cortisol levels.” Consistently high cortisol levels may increase abdominal fat, which increases your risk of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
How Much to Walk for Weight Loss
So, how much walking do you need to do to lose weight? The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommend 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, like walking, per week, which can be broken down into shorter sessions spread across the week.
However, Masi explains that the amount of walking required for weight loss can vary depending on individual factors such as age, fitness level and diet. “For those with an irregular schedule, it may be easier to track your walking minutes throughout the week,” says Masi. “Be sure to brisk walk at a pace that’s fast enough to raise your heart rate while still being able to carry on a conversation. If you have access to a treadmill, consider manipulating variables such as the elevation to increase the intensity.”
7-Day Walking Plan to Lose Weight
Ready to put on your walking shoes and get in some steps to help you achieve your weight loss goals? Try this 7-day walking plan, designed by TJ Mentus, CPT, a certified personal trainer at Garage Gym Reviews.
“To lose weight, I recommend walking at least 30 minutes straight every day,” says Mentus. “This approach will help burn an extra 100 to 200 calories when combined with a healthy, well-balanced diet. This would lead to at least 210 minutes of walking a week and an extra 700 to 1,400 calories burned.” However, when it comes to exercise, it’s important to focus not only on burnt but also on how regular movement benefits your overall health.
Day 1
Start with a 5-minute, easy-paced walk to warm up your muscles. Then, increase your pace for 1 minute to a fast walk, followed by 4 minutes at a comfortable pace. Repeat this pattern for 5 sets, including the warm-up. During the fast-paced intervals, push yourself to maintain a challenging speed, using the following four minutes to recover.
Day 2
Do a 5-minute easy-paced walk to warm up. Then, increase your pace for 90 seconds to a fast walk, followed by 3 minutes at a comfortable pace for 5 sets. After completing the sets, return to a leisurely pace for three to 5 minutes as a cool-down. Aim to match or exceed the intensity of the previous day’s fast-paced intervals.
Day 3
Walk continuously for 30 minutes, aiming to cover as much distance as possible. Maintain a consistent pace throughout the entire walk. If walking outdoors, consider finding a track or path where you can complete laps to track your progress.
Day 4
After a 5-minute easy-paced warm-up walk, alternate between a fast-paced walk for 1 minute and a comfortable pace for two minutes for 7 sets. Finish your walk with a 3 to 5-minute cool-down walk at a slower pace to gradually lower your heart rate.
Day 5
Start with a 5-minute, easy-paced warm-up walk. Then, walk fast for two minutes, followed by a comfortable 4-minute pace for 5 sets. End your session with a 3 to 5-minute cool-down walk to reduce your heart rate gradually.
Day 6
Challenge yourself to walk as far as possible within 30 minutes, aiming to surpass your performance from Day 3. Maintain a brisk pace throughout the entire walk, pushing yourself to sustain the intensity without slowing down.
Day 7
Begin with a 5-minute, easy-paced warm-up walk. Then, alternate between a fast-paced walk for 1 minute and a comfortable 1-minute pace for 10 sets. Finish with a 5-minute cool-down walk to gradually ease your heart rate.
The Bottom Line
Walking is a fantastic form of exercise to support your weight loss journey. When combined with a well-balanced, calorie-conscious diet, walking can help you burn calories, increase your heart rate and reduce stress, all of which support good overall health. The recommended amount of walking to lose weight is 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week, or about 30 to 60 minutes daily, five days a week. However, walking even 15 minutes daily can help improve your health and support your weight loss goals.