Walking and Yoga

wonderwoman

Cathlete
Good Morning All
I am looking for some honest opinions. I was thinking of changing things up a bit for the next couple of weeks being that the spring is finally here. I wanted to do some walking and yoga instead of my usual workout videos of cardio and weights. I am feeling a little burned out on them and wanted a change of scenery. I am afraid that I will lose cardio endurance and muscle tone. Do any of you have experience with this? Thanks
 
I hesitantly started Ultimate Yogi 65 (!) days ago and had the same apprehension. I had to give up running and weights six months ago due to some injury issues. Even with just walking (I'd throw in some walking uphill lunges) for months I was able to run 3 miles on a whim one day. And yoga - at least the program I'm doing - has definitely humbled me and my previous opinions of yoga. Personally I think you'll probably be just fine and may even come back better after switching things up and giving your body a rest and a stretch.

Jen
 
I think if you are going to do aggressive walking, you may be OK for cardio.
But while yoga is much harder than I give it credit for, even while doing "hard yoga"...over an hour, I only burn 100 calories. Versus around 400-500 (per my Polar) during a typical Cathe workout.

So I think it depends on what your goal is. Your strength and endurance will probably not suffer much, and I think you'll reap some nice benefits with the yoga. But in my experience, it just doesn't do much for me to keep weight from creeping up.
 
Thanks Jen.
I only have a few Yoga DVDs. I have Cathe's Yoga Max and relax. The Firm came out with a 30 minute yoga dvd that I really like. I have some other's from beach body sets I have ordered in the past like P90x. I will look into the ones that you metioned. I heard good things about them. I also have a 12 pound vest maybe I'll use that for walking.
Thanks
 
Thanks Melissa.
My main goal is just to keep what I have. I'm not trying to lose any weight. I will definitely look for some hills in my neighborhood :)
 
Hi:

I powerwalk much more than I run these days, even though I started out as a runner.

My regular powerwalks take me through town, and I love them. I get to listen to all my fave tunes, I get out and about to see seasonal changes in town and see what the local undergraduates are up to. It is a nice change from sweaty gyms and my basement!!

I have a 12 mile circuit I complete, and it takes me 2 hours and 20 mins. This is fast. I select songs with various tempos to get me through the miles, some for hills, some for flat sections, some for about mile 8 when my hamstrings are feeling it and I still have 3 major hills and 4 miles to go!

Powerwalking like this keeps my legs in fabulous condition, hones my core also, does wonders for my mental outlook and also keeps my cardiovascular system in good condition. I powerwalk much more over the spring and summer, and no, it does not lead to weight gain.

These are not leisurely strolls in the park. I have more of a New-Yorker personality when it comes to walking: I come from London and I do not know how to stroll!!!!

If you gun it, if you are breathless, if you are walking and pushing so fast that you feel it would actually be a good time to break into a run, then you will feel fitness benefits from walking. I read research that actually it can burn major calories because it is harder to remain walking at 5-6 mph than it is to run at those speeds, so your body has to work harder to maintain that speed and still be walking. My walks through town are at about 5 mph: my treadmill powerwalks are much faster and there I can do miles/or the duration of a song at 5.6 mph constantly.

If you have hills in your area, use them. This works the legs even better than flat courses, excellent for the hamstrings. I like to do hill repeats: up and down about 3 times. This is just as good as doing 15 mins of HiiT with Cathe. Select a fast tempo song and let the beat drive you up that hill.

I cannot testify to yoga because, despite my good intentions, I have never done any. But I can tell you that powerwalking hard, taking it seriously, keeps me in the kind of shape where I could go bang out a 5 mile run with no trouble should I wish to do so. Because I have done this particular experiment several times.

But, it is not a walk in the park. If you are a determined person, this can work for you. Once I start powerwalking, I am extremely focused. I make it work for me. No reason why you can't too.

Clare
 
Yes to everything Clare said about walking. Walking is great for cardio and powerwalking as well. And I absolutely love yoga, I just don't practice like I used to. If you still have P90X, Yoga X is in there, and it is one of my favorite yoga workouts. It is quite long, but amazing.

As far as the calorie burn for both of these, you probably won't burn as much as higher intensity cardio or heavy weight lifting, but you probably won't be as hungry either, which will allow you to eat fewer calories and thus compensate for the difference. Last year was my high intensity, ridiculously heavy weight lifting year, and not only I did not lose a pound, I ended up gaining 10 more on top of that. The thing is I was pushing myself way too hard almost every day and I was hungry all the time, and because I was hungry I was eating way too many calories. This year, I still do some hard workouts, but I also have days where I take my dog out for a walk, or I do some intermediate workouts. Every week I have a couple of days of high intensity stuff and other days I go for intermediate level workouts. I have some days to lift heavy and others I do a barre workout or something less intense than what I was used to doing. I have found I am not as hungry as last year, even though I had to make some changes on my diet due to medical issues, and I am starting to lose weight again.

This has been my experience and yours might or might not be the same, but I think everybody can benefit from a day or two of less intense workouts. I have read also that our stress hormones (cortisol, etc.) increase when we do high intensity exercise too often, which for some of us results in overeating.

The best thing about walking is that the only equipment you need is a good pair of shoes, if you do it during the day you can get the extra benefits of sunlight (vitamin D production, improved sleep, better mood, etc.). I also recommend Jessica Smith's YouTube channel which is free and has tons of intermediate workouts including stretching and yoga.

Good luck. :)
 
Wow Claire you walk as fast as I jog lol!
I only jog about well if I go for five or more mile I jog a 12 min mile ave if I am doing 3 miles then I can do a 10.5 or 11 minute mile but I'd say that is about as fast as you walk! Geez
But I can't ever jog faster I have tried but my short legs can't go faster. But I love to jog I also go walking some days to I love to mix it all up. I love being outside
 
Thanks for all the wonderful responses. Yes I just discovered Jessica Smith and her free YouTube workouts look really great. She actually has a really good May 30 day challenge on her website for free! It looks really good! It has a little bit of everything Yoga Weights Cardio
 

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