Questions on walking as part of a fitness plan

SRP

SRP

Cathlete
Hey everyone -
I'm just kind of trying to gather opinions and experiences here.

As some of you already know, I've been trying to find an alternative to replace the running in my workout schedule. For various reasons, ellipticals and other equipment are out. I checked into our fitness center at work, and I just can't imagine using the equipment there. I'd get claustrophobic and go crazy, everything is packed in there so tightly. Anyhow....

I love walking, just for relaxation and the enjoyment of it. Sometimes I power walk, but I can't get over the feeling that it's just not as cardiovascularly beneficial as the more intense workouts.

So what I'm asking is:
Do any of you incorporate walking into your regular workout routine? Have you noticed benefits from it? Do you feel that it burns enough calories? On and on....

Any info is appreciated. Thanks!
 
Don't know if this will help or not, but I've been powerwalking for more than 5 years as my cardio. My normal speed is 5 mph; I do intervals up to 6 mph. It's worked really well for me--has kept my weight down a lot without knee injuries, which were a problem for me with running. However, I walk on a treadmill--don't know if I could do that speed outdoors or not. I *think* it burns enough calories, but that's just me. Also, I walk a bit at lunch, and I'm always walking all over town, so it might be cumulative.
 
Thanks, Bunbun - how much ground do you cover at 5 mph, approximately? Does your treadmill tell you in miles?
 
Walking is great exercise whether you are just strolling along and enjoying the sites and taking in the fresh air...or making it a cardio workout and powerwalking. I walk a couple of times a week and sometimes my teen DD will go with me also. It's good quality time together. :D

Years ago I knew a gal who powerwalked at 9 mph. She competed in the sport when it first came on the fitness scene back in the 80's. She had a great walking style.

Somethings you could do to up the burn is walk for x minutes and then do a set of jumping jacks, walk for x minutes and do a set of lunges, etc. I like to do segments of skipping also.

It's your workout, make it whatever you want it to be.


:D
 
One thing that you said really jumped out at me, "I love walking." To me one of the most important factors for incorporating a form of exercise into your plan is that you enjoy it!

Personally, I've been walking since about 1991, and I continue to do it, always accompanied by fun, exergizing music. That is very individual because everyone like different music. Good music acts like a shot of adrenaline (I hope I spelled that right!)to me - I can be draggin' my *ss, and suddenly a favorite song come on and it's like I got a burst of energy. I also vary my route all the time.

I feel walking can be very cardiovascularly beneficial but you must keep challenging yourself. Add intervals, add hills. Do whatever you have to do to keep you sweating. Recently I added golf course walks to my routine. A hilly golf course is VERY challenging!

I walk now about 2 or 3 days a week (alternating it with step aerobics and circuit training), and I've NEVER been injured while walking in all that time - 15 years now. I'm going to walk this afternoon, and I must say that I look forward to it mainly because I will be listening to fun music.

"It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt." Mark Twain ;-)
 
I have mostly replaced running with road-biking. It takes longer, but has really helped me cardiovascularly, my knees are no longer achy, and I've lost a couple of pounds (I'm 130 and 5'8" so any weight I lose is rather challenging at this point).

I don't feel that walking is quite enough of a challenge to replace running, but it's fine in its own right. What I do is run a 5 mile loop, and instead of running all the time, I run on the flat and downhill, and walk FAST on the uphills. This helps my knees also, varies the muscle groups I'm using, and my heart rate stays high. But walking on flat or downhill just doesn't cut the mustard for me.

I just wanted to tell you about the bike. I look forward to two 25-40 mile rides a week. My bike computer says I ride an average of 15 mph, and I live in a rolling hills area, the NC Piedmont.
 
Hi All,
I 3-5 miles walk everyday since I walk home from work. I think walking is excellent, but I've been doing it for so long that doesn't burn too many calories for me anymore. I usually have workout for 1 1/2 hours in additon the walking. However, nothing helps to lose inches more that walking. I stopped walking last summer and my jeans got tighter ( I continued the daily exercising). When I resumed walking, I lost those inches in two weeks. For me, walking is an essential part of weightloss.
Lorrie
 
Oh, I meant to add that I do walk a lot on campus, to campus, from campus, and whenever it's possible to walk for an errand or instead of driving. It makes a huge difference, but it's not a workout. It's just "activity".
 
Hey, if walking doesn't burn as many calories, how do you explain the weight loss?
 
Shannon,
Walking has been my only cardio now for almost 20 years, and it's been fabulous for me. The most important thing is to wear a heart rate monitor, so you can be sure that your workout is truly cardiovascular. These days I do most of my walking on a treadmill, where I vary the incline and speed depending upon the song I'm listening to. For me, it's all about the music.

I'm petite and fairly light, so my inclines can get pretty high sometimes. My speed ranges from 2.4 mph to 4.0 mph, and my incline ranges from 6-18. If you're bigger than me, you can get your heart rate up at lower inclines and speeds. The most amazing thing is that I have never had an injury of any kind! Sometimes I feel like the tortoise who just keeps chugging past all of the hares I know who wind up injured. I have no knee pain, no hip pain, nothing. Anyway, I'm here to tell you that at age 50, I sure am glad that I've been walking all these years! :D

Like Bunbun, I also do a lot of walking around town, and I think that helps to control my weight as well.
-Nancy
 
mogambo...talk to me about road-biking. This is a sport I have been getting interested in but when I went to a store to price bikes...HOLY COW...had no idea it would require that kind of an investment. The salesman was talking at me but I was so dazed by sticker shock I couldn't even ask coherent question's. What type of bike would you recommend for someone who is beginning the sport? What features are important?

And most importantly...have you ever gotten a flat tire when you're far from home?
 
> Sometimes I feel like the tortoise who just keeps
>chugging past all of the hares I know who wind up injured. I
>have no knee pain, no hip pain, nothing. Anyway, I'm here to
>tell you that at age 50, I sure am glad that I've been walking
>all these years! :D
>
LOL! I can attest to that. Not that I'm saying I'm the "hare" by any means. I love high impact, but I think for me I just wasn't stretching enough.

Shannon,

When I first got hurt I had to switch my cardio up to walking on the treadmill. I used to think, this is for the birds! I definitely had to go longer to even get close to the amount of calories I used to burn with running, step, etc. I feel like my body has adjusted to some degree. Of course, I've really tightened up on the calories going in. Doing more of the higher impact I could cheat a little more. ;-) Anyway, I can do incline walking on my treadmill for an hour and get a decent workout. Adding in the elliptical and stairmaster has helped with the boredom. Once I can do high impact again, I think I'll still keep in a couple of incline walking days. Don't hold me to that though. ;-)

Sorry so long. HTH!

Dallas
 
I just wanted to bump this up so I can hopefully collect a few more comments. Thanks a bunch to all of you so far!!!
 
Shannon,
I walk alot and love it. I run, too, but walking is a good calorie burner, IMHO. I have a treadimll and walk outside. If I am walking to get a workout, I like the treadmill better. Cathe posted a running treadmill workout awhile agom but said that to make it low impact, you could increase incline of the treadmill quite a bit during the interval segments. I have tried this and find that increasing the inclince definitely gets my HR up higher.

Sometimes I walk with hand weights or Kickboxing gloves.

I like Kickbox workouts, too. I feel like kickboxing gives me a better feeling afterwards, more similar to running, than walking. My HR is probably a lot higher?

This site has some good info:

http://walking.about.com/cs/howtoloseweight/a/walkoffweight.htm

Also, a pedometer can be useful for outdoor walking:
http://www.new-lifestyles.com/DIGIWALKER/nl2000.html

Good luck
Barb

:) :)
 
Shannon,

I add walking on treadmill varying incline, speed, etc. but also incorporate walking/hiking on the trails through the mountains around home during spring, summer and fall. That incline walking, hiking is a great workout and gets my glutes good, also. This along with the various Cathe cardios (I do all types) means I rarely do the same type of cardio twice in one week, unless weather hinders. I think my body is always confused and never adapts to one type of cardio. I get bored very easily with one type of cardio workout, although I LOVE cardio.

I have a two sets of many steps leading up to my porch and decks of the cabin and sometimes I sprint or just a good fast walk up and down those, speed walk across the long open deck area, do jumping jacks, plyos, etc on the deck, do the steps some more, take off for a walk/hike and come back and finish with the steps again. Sometimes I just hop on my mountain bike for a few up and down the bumpy hilly road leading to my house along with the step/deck/hike thing. Can you tell I don't like doing anything too repetitive for too long?

I can't tolerate earplug/headphones in my ears so I don't hike, walk or treadmill to any music - I enjoy quite on the treadmill and it becomes meditative for me. The same with just enjoying the sounds of nature when outside. I have so much noise in my life from the boys that the sound of silence is a blessing.:)

Just be creative, look around your house, your yard, your neighborhood...you can get really creative on "walks".

HTH:)
 
Well, walking through the woods is out of the picture for the summer. I DESPISE chiggers, and they eat me alive. I am envisioning myself doing a bunch of plyos in the middle of the road as some hick in a battered pickup comes barreling around the corner. This summer could be interesting.
 
Oh well, sorry Shannon. Please don't get squished by the hick pickup truck. My TWO neighbors who live a bit down the road have learned to drive slowly and carefully on our road as my boys may be out on bikes and also one neighbor will often take people on horseback up and down the road. About the woods, get tough girl!!;-)

Still, look around and get creative within YOUR surroundings, you can do it.
 
>Well, walking through the woods is out of the picture for the
>summer. I DESPISE chiggers, and they eat me alive. I am
>envisioning myself doing a bunch of plyos in the middle of the
>road as some hick in a battered pickup comes barreling around
>the corner. This summer could be interesting.

Shannon, you're killing me here!
http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_12_6.gif

Michele
 
Glad I'm adding some cheer to your day, Michele!

Melody - Chiggers are the bane of my summers. They are pure torture. I have endured these little monsters out here for almost 30 years, and I really wish I could exterminate the entire species.

I really do like the creativity ideas though. I think I can make them work without risking life or limb.
 
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