How far should I walk to lose weight?

Surely you have read or heard many times that to maintain a healthy heart we must walk at least 30 minutes a day. This statement is true, but it is not enough to do it a couple of days a week when the goal is also to lose weight.

To lose weight by walking, specialists assure that you must walk at least 150 minutes a week , that is, at least 30 minutes 5 times a week. Of course, this is just the minimum quota, and that the results will depend on factors that we mention later such as the speed and intensity of the activity, as well as the movement that we apply to other areas of the body, such as the arms.

The ideal if we want to see better results would be to spend a little more time on this activity and walk between 40 and 60 minutes 4 times a week, with which we would be able to exceed the minimum recommended 150 minutes per week and guarantee that our body keeps moving , receiving the benefits of exercise and effectively burning fat deposits.

Never dedicate less than 20 minutes to physical activity because you will barely warm up your body and burn some calories, mostly sugar deposits, but you will hardly be able to burn fat and therefore you will not lose weight. Although this activity is great for the heart, don’t forget that we are also talking about losing weight.

The speed at which we walk is essential when determining how far you must walk to lose weight. In the previous step we have already explained that you need to do at least 30 minutes of walking 5 times a week, but it is not worth doing it at any intensity, your heart rate must be between 60 and 80% of the maximum heart rate and to achieve it the speed with the one we walk and the intensity of the exercise are basic.

It is recommended to walk at least 5 km / h to get our heart rate to increase and burn, in addition to calories, also fat. An average speed of between 5 and 7 km / h will allow you to obtain excellent results, but of course as you gain resistance you can increase the cadence of your route and achieve better results.

Using a pedometer or one of the sports watches on the market is a great way to time not only the time and distance we travel, but also our average speed and the calories we burn. If we want to opt for a simpler device that only measures the distance traveled and the time, we can calculate the calories consumed in a 5 km / h journey with the following formula:

0.029 X body weight X 2.2 X minutes of exercise = number of calories burned (approx)

This means that if a person weighs 75 kilos and has been walking for 45 minutes at 5 km / h, they would obtain the following result:

0.029 X 75 kilos X 2.2 X 45 minutes = 215.32 calories burned approximately.

The excess oxygen consumed post exercise or COPD for its acronym, refers to the oxygen that our muscles need to recover after physical activity. The more oxygen they need after exercise, the more calories coming mainly from fat our body will have to burn in order to guarantee proper recovery. After a good physical training, the body can spend minutes and even hours burning calories to recover, which favors effective weight loss.

In order to increase EPOC and also accelerate basal metabolism , alternating the intensity of cardiovascular exercise is the best option. For this reason, it is recommended that throughout the walk we vary the intensity of the route to increase caloric expenditure, you can for example:

• Heat for 5 minutes at 5 km / h.
• Accelerate the pace for 2 minutes at 7 km / h or more.
• Return to 5 km / h for 3 minutes and then do again 2 minutes of intense travel and so on.
• Finish the ride at a pace of 5 km / h to cool down your body, then stretch and finish your workout.

If you have heart problems, leg joint problems or any chronic disease, it is essential that you consult your doctor before putting this training into practice.

The more muscles involved in the walk, the more you will lose weight by walking , so it is important that you not only move your legs but also your hips and arms, emulating the movement you would do when running, in this way you will burn more calories. If you walk in the gym, the elliptical is an excellent alternative because thanks to it we can also move our arms while walking in a gentle way, contributing to caloric loss.

It is also important that your steps are fluid and that you do not take too long strides, or the movement could be affected and with it also the effectiveness of the exercise.

It is not the same to walk with heels than with sports shoes suitable for exercise, in the same way that it is not the same to walk in jeans or jeans than with tights that facilitate sweating and guarantee comfort. Sportswear has been invented to enhance people’s performance , and wearing it is important to make your walks more comfortable and to achieve greater distance as you progress through your workouts.

A suitable sports shoe will help you cushion the footprint, protect the joints and be able to travel at a higher speed. For its part, clothing will facilitate better movement, help keep you cool during activity and be more comfortable. With all this, walking at a good intensity will become very easy and therefore you can lose more weight.

We have already given an answer to the question of how much you should walk to lose weight: at least 150 minutes a week at least 5 km / h speed, preferably alternating the intensity for a better result.

But if you are physically active and continue to overeat, or worse yet, “make up” for the calories you lose through exercise by eating even more, it is clear that you are not going to lose weight . To understand how important diet is in weight loss, you cannot miss our article , how much exercise do you have to do to burn junk food? The answer will surprise you.

Watch what you eat, do physical activity and you will see how you reach your goal of losing weight effectively.

This article is merely informative, at FastlyHeal .com we do not have the power to prescribe medical treatments or make any type of diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any type of condition or discomfort.

If you want to read more articles similar to How much should I walk to lose weight? , we recommend that you enter our category of Physical Activity .