Walking is a safe and effective type of exercise that most of us can do. Not only can it help to reduce the risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and depression, but it can also help you lose weight.
How you walk, how often, and how long you walk are all critical factors. To that end, let’s look at 7 tips to help you lose more weight while you walk!
Vary Your Pace
Leisurely walks won’t do the job if you are really trying to lose weight or belly fat, after you warm up, change up from a moderate pace to a higher intensity, then back to a more moderate jaunt. Another tip is to do three high intensity walks a week, and two at a moderate pace. This has been shown to help you lose six times more abdominal fat.
When you walk a bit faster, you go farther and are able to burn more calories.
Start Slowly and Be Consistent
Whatever you do, don’t expect to walk two miles on your first time out. Pace yourself and decide on a realistic goal. We often hear that 10,000 steps per day is a healthy amount of exercise, and it’s true. However many steps you are walking, decide to increase that amount by 250 more steps each day or each week. If you try to push yourself too soon, it can affect your motivation and stamina, plus it can lead to injury.
Stay focused, watch your step count, and slowly increase it bit by bit to see long-term results.
Invest in the Right Shoes
You don’t have to spend a lot of money on a pair of walking shoes. Running shoes are the more expensive type of footwear, but walking shoes should not require much more than the basics. Find a comfortable pair that provide some support and get to it.
Look for Some Elevation
Walking tracks are perfectly fine, but they don’t help to improve muscle mass or strength. As you are increasing your number of steps each day, look to include some hills or a few inclines during your daily walk. It will strengthen your core and help you burn more calories. Don’t ignore stairs either. There are always opportunities to walk up and down stairs instead of using an elevator.
If you supplement your outdoor walks with a treadmill, set it on an incline.
Use Your Pedometer as a Challenge
Check it several times a day to keep you on track. If you notice you have fallen behind in your set goals, looking back on your steps gives you time to make up the difference. Many phones and other devices will have a pedometer built in to an existing program or app, or you always have the option to carry a traditional pedometer with you too. You have it, so use it!
Work Your Upper Body
Most of us move our arms when we walk at a brisk pace, but there are more beneficial things we can do. Even when it’s freezing outside, don’t walk with your hands in your pockets. Instead, bend your elbows at a 90-degree angle and move them back and forth keeping them close to the body. It will help tone your arms and burn more calories too. This simple change can have enormous benefits.
Keep a Keen Eye on Your Diet
It’s important to balance your walking exercise with how much you eat. It is great that you are walking, but if you consume more calories than you are burning, you won’t drop the weight.
Consider a deficit of 500 calories a day to see the loss of a pound a week. There are plenty of effective and healthy options out there.
Eating healthy vegetables and fruits, lean meats, and avoiding processed foods is a good place to start. Ask Agave Surgical Specialists for additional diet plans or tips to help you lose weight while you walk.
As always, if you have any further questions, request an appointment today.
