Treadmill walking can be a good method of burning calories for weight loss and for overall health. However, it's important to walk often, at a brisk speed and for sufficient length of time if you want to burn a significant amount of calories. Also, reducing your caloric intake will provide substantially greater weight loss results compared with a walking program by itself.
Calories Burned Walking
Walking on a treadmill can be an excellent way to burn calories, especially if you are a larger person and/or you walk at a brisk pace. In one hour of walking at a speed of 2 mph, a 160-lb. person will burn 183 calories; a 200-lb. person will burn 228 calories; and a 240-lb. person will burn 273 calories, according to MayoClinic.com. Walking at a brisker speed of 3.5 mph for one hour, a 160-lb. individual will expend 277 calories, someone who weighs 200-lb. will eliminate 346 calories, and a 240-lb. person will burn a significant 414 calories.
Walking for Weight Loss
If you're trying to lose weight by walking on the treadmill, it's important to keep in mind, that while treadmill walking will certainly burn some extra calories, changing your diet promotes weight loss more effectively than does exercise, according to MayoClinic.com nutritionist Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D. Ideally, if your goal is to lose weight, you should include both diet and exercise into your weight-loss plan. By reducing your daily caloric intake by 500 calories and walking on the treadmill for 30 minutes each day at a brisk speed of 3 to 4 mph, you can lose as much as 1 and 1/3 lb. per week; with the treadmill walking alone, you'll only lose 1/3 lb.
Walking for Health
Exercising on the treadmill at an appropriate frequency, intensity and duration will help you burn the most calories from your workouts while also providing important health benefits such as reduced risk of heart disease and other chronic diseases. To get the most health benefits from exercise, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends adults get at least 2 hours and 30 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity such as brisk walking. To make sure that you're walking at an intensity that will give you the most health benefits and help you burn more calories, aim to exercise within your target heart rate. If you are exercising at your target heart rate, you should be able to hold a conversation while walking, but singing should be difficult.
Treadmill Walking Tips
Treadmill walking can be a good way to burn calories, particularly during bad weather and for seniors and other people with some physical limitations. Regarding treadmill safety, it's important to always wear supportive, closed-toe walking shoes and to do some light stretches before you begin. Warm up and cool down by gradually increasing the treadmill's pace at the beginning of the workout and gradually decreasing it towards the end. Beginners should also learn to let go of the treadmill's safety rails because holding them while walking causes poor posture which can lead to injuries. You may want to try interval training, in which you speed up for a few minutes, perhaps to a light jog, and then slow back down to your regular pace. This method helps you burn more calories during your workout, although inexperienced walkers shouldn't try it, according to "Arthritis Today."
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