To lose a pound of body fat, you must burn 3,500 calories more than you take in. If you eat a balanced diet and burn 500 calories a day by walking, you can lose a pound a week. How quickly you burn those calories by walking depends on your body weight and how fast you walk. Increase any of these variables and you’ll burn more calories. Walking up an incline also burns significantly more calories than walking on flat ground.
Step 1
Dress in comfortable, free-moving clothing that’s appropriate for the elements. If walking inside on a treadmill or track, dress in whatever fitness apparel makes you feel most comfortable. If walking outside, you may need a weatherproof jacket, warm hat and gloves. Wear sturdy walking shoes and non-chafing socks.
Step 2
Warm up with 5 to 10 minutes of easy walking. You should break a sweat but not be out of breath by the end of the warm up. This helps prepare your muscles and cardiovascular system for more intense exercise. Pause to stretch your calf, quads, hamstrings and iliotibial band. Stretching after your warm up encourages flexibility and reduces your risk of injury.
Step 3
Walk briskly. Aim for an average speed of 4 mph. A GPS unit that measures total distance, a calibrated pedometer, a mile-marked path or a path of known distance will help you maintain your speed. Remember that the faster you walk, the more calories you’ll burn and the sooner you’ll hit your goal for the day.
Step 4
Swing your arms naturally, letting your shoulders move freely as you walk. In a chart titled “Proper Walking Technique,” MayoClinic.com recommends that your feet should roll smoothly from heel to toe as you walk. Your chin should be parallel to the ground, and you should focus your eyes 15 to 20 feet ahead of you.
Step 5
Keep walking. Unless directed otherwise by a doctor or trainer, you should break a sweat and breathe hard, but still able to speak in sentences. If you weigh 185 lbs., you need to walk 4 mph for 1.5 hours to burn 500 calories, according to Harvard Health Publications.
You can significantly reduce this time by hiking uphill or on uneven terrain; you’ll burn 500 calories in slightly less than an hour by hiking, and maintaining a steady uphill incline can more than double your calorie burn, depending on the incline angle.
Step 6
Cool down with about five minutes of slow walking at the end of your walking workout. This helps your heart and muscles adapt back to a state of rest. MayoClinic.com advises stretching again after your cool down.
Tips and Warnings
- It’s extremely difficult to estimate how many calories you’ll burn during warm up because your body weight, warm-up duration and intensity will vary widely. If you want to count these calories toward your 500-calorie goal, you must either wear a properly calibrated pedometer that calculates calories burned or walk on a treadmill that accurately estimates calories burned.
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