6 Best Walking Workouts for Weight Loss
The best exercise motivation is seeing and feeling the results. Simply getting active will help the average person look and feel better, but in order to continue losing weight in the long haul you need to challenge your body with the most effective workouts. Some ways to avoid hitting a plateau in your walking program include picking up the pace, going a new distance, and integrating strength moves to build muscle, maximize your metabolism, and burn more fat. Here are the six crucial routines every walker needs to guarantee lasting weight loss.
1. Interval walks
This type of routine involves alternating fast and moderate to easy bouts of walking, so you might walk for 2 minutes at a very brisk pace and then recover at a slower pace for 1 minute. (If you graphed your speed, it would look like a series of peaks and valleys). This type of pattern helps rev fat loss—you’ll turn up your calorie burn by as much as 100 percent during your workout and afterward. It’s best to vary the length of these workouts as well as the intervals themselves to keep your body challenged.
Walk off more weight with this workout from fitness guru Chris Freytag.
2. Toning walks
Using an exercise band while walking will help firm your upper body and boost your calorie burn. Building muscle is the best way to stoke your metabolism long-term. When Prevention tested exercise bands in a head-to-head competition with dumbbells and other popular strengthening workouts, we found that the bands delivered faster firming. Our band-users slimmed down and toned common trouble spots such as the belly, thighs, and butt by 30 percent more than women who did other types of strength training. Try carrying a light to medium resistance band while you walk and stretching the band overhead and in front of your body for 45- to 60-second intervals.
3. Long walks
Endurance training (about an hour at a moderate intensity) has been shown to keep your calorie burn revved for up to 7Â hours post-exercise. Long walks will help maximize results because there is a dose response to exercise; that is, the more you do, the greater the benefits you’ll receive. These will likely be the slowest walks you do in the program.
Like scenic walks? Is your city one of the 25 best walking cities?
4. Recovery walks
Active recovery is important in any fitness program. During a recovery walk, you should walk as if you’re in a bit of a hurry, so that you’re slightly breathless, for about 20 minutes. While they don’t blast fat like intervals, these tried-and-true calorie-burners have an important place when you’re trying to walk off pounds. They’re the perfect workout in between vigorous interval days to keep up your calorie burn without risking an injury.
5. Speed walks
During these shorter workouts, you’ll maintain a high intensity for the entire session, striding as if you’re late for an important appointment, so you’re only able to speak in very brief phrases. This type of training has been shown to specifically attack belly fat better than longer, lower- intensity exercise.
Avoid sprains and injuries with these yoga stretches designed for walkers.
6. Strength training
Adding strength training to cardio workouts improves results: It boosts metabolism, increases weight loss, and can even help you eat less. In addition to the toning walks that target your upper body, you should aim to do lower body, core, and total body strength routines 2 to 3 days a week after your regular walks.
More on MSN Health & Fitness:
- How Can I Lose Weight and Keep It Off?
- Seven Ways to Power Your Walks
- Don’t Let Your Job Make You Fat
- Bing Search: Walk Off the Weight
Incoming search terms for the article:
- celebrity workouts
- celebrity workouts
- celebrity workouts
- free weights workouts charts
- braggs acv for weight loss?
Similar articles
- Exercise to Lose Weight
Exercise to Lose Weight If someone told you right now what the absolute best exercise to lose weight was, would you do it? You might when you read this. Drum roll, please! The best exercise to lose weight is: “the exercise you’ll do,” says Timothy Church, MD, MPH, PhD, a professor at Pennington Biomedical Research
... - Will Walking Help Me Lose Weight?
Walking can promote weight loss, and it is often quite easy to maintain a walking program, especially since the cost is minor, and a walk can begin as soon as one steps outside one’s door. The amount one loses depends upon metabolism, consumption of calories and the type of walking. A ten minute walk daily
... - Two Week Weight Loss Exercise Plan
Overview Making the effort to improve your overall conditioning is an admirable goal. You can lay the groundwork for a healthy exercise plan in two weeks. You can even see some results if you combine cardiovascular training with strength training and improving your diet. Losing weight is not just the result of doing one of
... - How Many Miles Should I Walk to Lose Weight?
Walking to lose weight is a popular option for those who wish to embark on an exercise program. Walking is one of the best forms of physical activity that can help people shed pounds and feel better about themselves. Just by walking one brisk mile ( 1.6 km), a person can burn as many calories
... - Walking for Weight Loss
Walking for Weight Loss By Wendy Bumgardner, About.com Guide to Walking Walking for Weight Loss Calorie Calculators Diet and Nutrition Tools Workouts Plus Size Exercise Clothing Eating for Energy Walking for Weight Loss Walking is one of the easiest ways to add exercise to your weight loss plan.
...