Walking For Weight Loss: How Many Calories Does It Burn?

People who walk daily have a lesser incidence of cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and other killer diseases. Not only does walking make you healthier but it also burns calories, creates psychological well being, increases metabolism, strengthens muscles, increases flexibility, improves respiratory function and helps concentration and memory.

This should give you plenty of reasons to try and walk a little each and every day. Besides that, simple physical inactivity is one of the leading causes of ill health.

7 Days Weight Loss

Walking not only benefits you but it also benefits the Earth. By learning to walk rather than driving a car you are doing your part to help the environment by not releasing toxins into the air, which hurts the long-term stability of the planet. A short four-mile trip you take walking keeps about fifteen pounds of pollutants out of the air we breathe.

Walking For Weight Loss: How Many Calories Does It Burn?

Walking also saves you money on gas and other expenses associated with your vehicle. Every time you start your car it costs you about five cents considering current gas prices. Needless to say driving anywhere adds to this enormously. Yet, most people still use their vehicles to make short trips, which could easily be made by walking. If you can even make the simple choice to walk once a week when you would normally drive you will go a long way toward making a difference both in your pocket book as well as in your life.

Walking is also a stress reducer. Stress has been proven to contribute more than any other factor to the reduction of longetivity. Walking can help reduce that stress and increase your longetivity.

One of the primary reasons people decide to walk is to lose pounds.

There are some simple formulas you can use to determine how many calories are being burned according to your weight and how fast you are walking.

3.0 miles/hour (20-minute mile): Burns .027 calories/pound/minute.

3.5 miles/hour (17 minute mile): Burns .033 calories/pound/minute.

4.0 miles/hour (15 minute mile): Burns .042 calories/pound/minute.

4.5 miles/hour (13 minute mile): Burns .047 calories/pound/minute.

Take the number of calories/pound/minute you burn and multiply it by your weight and then by the number of minutes you walk.

For example, if you weigh 150 pounds and walk a 20-minute mile for 60 minutes, you multiply 150 by .027, then multiple the result (4.5) by 60. You burn 270 calories.

It is important that when you do walk that you walk at a moderate pace. Walking will do you no good if it is so leisurely that you exert no effort. A good walk should leave you moderately perspired. This ensures that you are working at an ideal intensity.

Walking is a habit like anything else. If you can create a habit of walking everyday it will contribute to a new and healthy you in the long term.

Walking For Weight Loss: How Many Calories Does It Burn?

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Dog Walking and Weight Loss

Everything I needed to know about losing weight, I learned while walking my dog. Okay, I was walking lots of people's dogs. About five hours a day. In half-hour increments. But I lost weight and you can too!

When I left corporate America and started my own pet-care business in 2003 I had a few nagging pounds that I wanted to lose.

7 Days Weight Loss

Those pounds were there, in no small part to the amount of 'quick food' I was grabbing between meetings, deadlines and work. You know, the doughy-sugary crumb-covered goodie you pick up when you head out for your skim latte? How about the 2 bags of chips from the vending machine when you're cranking out yet another client proposal at the expense of lunch?

I started my own business and within a month I was down nearly 5 pounds. In two months it had doubled and I was breathing easy in my 'skinny jeans.'

Why?

I was working as hard (or harder) than I had when I worked for someone else. My time was still at the mercy of the clients, proposals and all the office work that accompanied my new venture but...my business FORCED me to exercise!

I started Peggie's Pet Service focused on walking big dogs - the dogs that some folks can be intimidated by - just by the name of their breed - American Staffordshire Terriers (more commonly referred to as "Pit Bulls"); Rottweilers; Dobermans; German Shepherds and Chow Chows. As a new business owner, I was (and still am) happy to walk any dog that wants to spend part of his or her day out of the house and on a leash. I also made the commitment that there would be no 'pack walks.' What this meant was that in order to make money I needed to be walking. Every day. From 10 am to 4 pm. There were a lot of miles logged on my walking shoes that year and the payoff was a healthier body and more comfortable clothing.

Somehow all that fresh air and walking (in 100 degree humidity, torrential downpours and snow) had me hankering for quick foods that gave me energy rather than depleted it. I no longer had time for that 'after lunch lull.' As a matter of fact lunch-time was always spent on the road or on my feet - with a wagging tail beside me.

Here's what I learned about weight loss while walking dogs:

1. Have fun;

2. Every dog has his own pace (and you can too);

3. When something interesting happens along your path, stop and investigate;

4. Vary your routine (or route);

5. Meet new people;

6. Be in the moment;

7. Look forward to the walk and make the most of it;

8. Stick to your commitment - no matter the weather (I admit, there were plenty of days I didn't 'feel' like walking, but it was my JOB at the end of the day I always felt better)

9. Look forward to the treats (reward yourself when you do well!)

Wow! I was onto something! Why didn't everyone do this I wondered?

So, all of you who have added "get in shape," "lose 10 pounds" or "get fit" to your annual resolutions - think about adding dog-walking to your regimen. Even if you don't have 6 hours a day to dedicate to walking - add one or two extra walks into each day and you'll be amazed at the difference it makes. I guarantee your attitude will improve (it's virtually IMPOSSIBLE to NOT have fun with a dog on a walk!); you'll get some great cardio and you'll be creating a habit that will last a life time!

Don't have a dog of your own? Volunteer at the local animal welfare league or with a rescue group. Foster a dog in need of temporary housing ... Or work with a local pet-care company!

(c) 2005-2006 Peggie Arvidson-Dailey

Dog Walking and Weight Loss

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Get Moving After Weight Loss Surgery With a 12-Week Walking Program

Patients who undergo bariatric surgery for weight loss are instructed to exercise daily as part of their lifestyle changes for weight loss and improved health. A walking program is a great way to accomplish daily exercise and may be started as soon after surgery as the doctor will allow. This 12-week program gets patients moving, one step at a time, to better health and happier living.

Week 1: Take two 5-minute walks every day. Week one begins as soon as you are released from the hospital. Because of your recent major surgery and your past sedentary habits you may have poor endurance. By starting with 5-minute walks you will not become exhausted or discouraged, you will begin to build strength.

7 Days Weight Loss

Week 2: Take two 7-minute walks every day. Go at your own pace. If at the end of 7 minutes you feel like walking further continue, but no more than 10-minute intervals. You are getting stronger, congratulations!

Week 3: Take two 10-minute walks every day. Your abdomen will be healing now, concentrate on your posture. Good posture allows muscles to be used more efficiently. Enjoy the scenery and your improving health during your 10-minute walks.

Week 4: Take two 15-minute walks every day at your own pace. Congratulations! You are meeting the goal of 30 minutes of exercise each day. Doesn't it feel great?

Weeks 5-8: Gradually shift from two daily 15-minute walks to one walking session of 30 minutes each day! Make sure as you transition from two short walks to one long walk that your total walking time for the day equals 30 minutes. For example, one 20 minute walk and one ten minute walk. Walk proudly, swing those arms and applaud yourself! You are doing an excellent thing for your physical and mental health.

Weeks 9-12: By now you have healed from your surgery, you are experiencing great success with your weight loss. It is time to pick up the pace and cover more distance in your 30 minutes of daily walking. Try each day to walk just a little bit further. Step proudly and get moving - you are going to love how good you feel!

Still not convinced walking is for you? Have some excuses you are using to deny your body and mind the pleasure of physical motion? Read on!

Not enough time to walk? I don't think so! Not when in the beginning you only need to walk 10 minutes a day - and by week twelve you are spending one-half hour a day walking! That's a half-hour sitcom, surely you can squeeze that amount of time into your day to make your life healthier and more meaningful. One walking group claims time is all we have and walking for exercise will probably extend your time on earth! Bottom line: You don't have time not to walk! Afraid you might injure yourself walking? Probably not. Walking is about the safest form of exercise around - in fact, walking injuries are slight such as blisters, mild cramping, or sore knees and joints. If you follow the program above and build up your endurance and strength you are at slim risk for injury. A cautionary word, pedestrians are killed by motor vehicles. Outdoor fitness walkers can avoid this fate by using walking trails or sidewalks. Walk facing traffic, wearing light colors and reflective clothing and double-check both ways before crossing streets. Too embarrassed by your size to be seen "exercising" in public? Admittedly, this is my personal favorite excuse, and I don't think I'm alone. I'm lucky enough to have a treadmill in the basement, and even at a healthy weight, I prefer the privacy of my home to walk for fitness. If you don't have a treadmill another option is a walking fitness video that will have you marching about in front of the TV building cardiovascular supremacy in the privacy of your own world. Try Leslie Sansone's "Walk Away the Pounds" video.

Exercise may be the most difficult change to incorporate into your lifestyle after weight loss surgery. Unlike the food restrictions necessary to affect weight loss, exercise does not come with surgically achieved tool to help you. Exercise is entirely up to you. Times have changed. Consistent moderate exercise has replaced the no-pain, no-gain torture of decades past. Exercise and fitness has become more pleasurable and less injurious. Daily exercise improves our physical appearance, our health and our overall sense of well being. We must not cheat ourselves the innumerable positive benefits exercise brings to living. Start slowly, set reasonable goals. Reach and surpass those goals. Your life now, after weight loss surgery, is about health and wellness. This can only be achieved with a commitment to physical movement.

Get Moving After Weight Loss Surgery With a 12-Week Walking Program

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Walking For Weight Loss

It is a generally well accepted fact that exercise burns calories and can increase the overall health of both body and mind. Most of us also recognize that walking is one of the simplest and most effective exercises for weight loss and health. What many people don't realize is that they might not be getting the most effective returns on their efforts. It actually requires just a little tweaking of a simple walking program to make it more effective as a weight loss program.

Many experts recommend a minimum of 30 minutes of sustained physical activity every day for health. However, 30 minutes of walking a day, while it may initially cause some welcome and valuable weight loss for an overweight individual, is often not going to be the final answer. The initial weight loss results will probably not be sustained as the body makes adjustments and learns to accept the new demands made on it.

7 Days Weight Loss

Rest assured, walking (or participating in other activities) for a sustained 30 minutes a day WILL result in better health, a greater level of energy and well-being, as well as producing SOME weight loss. However, anyone seriously overweight will probably not create the sustained, permanent weight loss they seek with only 30 minutes a day.

It's a matter of time.

Due to the manner in which the body draws on stored fat vs. other stored energy reserves, the first, and most valuable step, once you have gotten in the habit of walking, will be to increase the amount of time the activity is performed. Forty-five minutes is better than 30, and 60 is better than 45 minutes.

Admittedly, walking an hour a day, six or seven times a week may be difficult for some to fit into their schedules. However, simply increasing the time to 45 or 60 minutes of activity two or three times a week will produce more weight loss than keeping all walks at 30 minutes.

Another technique is to increase the speed with which you walk on the days that you do not walk more than 30 minutes. This also has the benefit of conditioning the body in a slightly different manner than the slower paced, longer walks. Remember, no walk should introduce extreme difficulty in breathing. A rule of thumb is that if you cannot talk and walk, you are attempting to either go too fast or too far. Always build up slowly to new levels of exertion.

You may also want to consider adding resistance training, such as with free weights, or equipment such as a Bowflex or Total Gym, or similar exercise apparatus. This builds muscle tissue which will burn more calories even in a resting state. Additionally, walking exercises only certain muscles and muscle groups. A resistance training program can be used to train muscle groups generally not included in walking.

Although the extended 45 and 60 minute walks will be somewhat more effective if done at one time, two 30 minute walks in a day will be more beneficial for fitness and weight loss than only one. In fact, many experts recommend getting a pedometer and simply trying to make sure you get 10,000 steps every day.

I would like to take a moment to address walking vs. running as a weight loss program.

Certainly, if you train to the point where you can run certain distances in certain times, you will almost certainly experience a major weight loss if that is what your body needs. However, you can get just as fit as a runner by walking with a great deal less danger of injury. A beginning walker in particular is more likely to experience less discomfort during and after an exercise period than a beginning runner.

Once you have built up muscles and stamina, you may wish to move into a running program. Also, in the beginning of any exercise program, whether for weight loss or physical fitness, extreme demands on the body and one's physical, mental, and motivational resources may result in the program being dropped. It is generally easier to slip into a permanent walking program from a sedentary lifestyle than a running program.

One last argument for at least beginning with a walking program is that you can sneak into a walking program without any special equipment or preparation, and no one but you needs to know that the shopping trip to the mall was actually your secret walk for the day. My mother is going to be 90 this year. She often drives to a nearby store and shops for a while, putting things in her basket as she walks around the store. Then she walks around the store some more and puts it all back. That way, she gets in the walk, is stabilized by the cart, and has to reach, stretch, lift, and bend in a safe, comfortable, air-conditioned setting. It's an added bonus that my son-in-law is one of the managers in that store.

There's an old saying that the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step...so does a successful weight loss program.

Walking For Weight Loss

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