Is walking actually beneficial for weight loss?

[ygrittesnow5]

I hate exercising and rarely have time for the gym (although I could weight train at home I suppose). But I am and have been making a conscious effort to walk more for the last few months. With the school run, a lunchtime walk and an evening dog walk along with general pottering throughout the day, I am averaging at least 10,000 steps a day more usually more.

But will this actually do anything for weight loss? I know diet is the key factor by miles but I hope all this extra walking might help somewhere.

Under an hour is a big milestone for any runner, especially us of the older female persuasion! Good luck!

I am back to full rowing training so it's less important now but thanks

And it would have to be a hell of a vest to emulate carrying toddler DS

I suspect only athletes do. If you build muscle, you will burn more calories even when resting.

If you do lots of cardio exercise you will feel hungry so what you eat becomes key. Eating more lean protein is good for filling you up because it takes longer for the body to process without being as calorie dense as foods with lots of sugar and/or fat.

Are athletes attempting to lose weight?
Exercise like cardio and weights will help you to tone up and to burn more calories, and IME make you hungry for the right sort of food.

Walking and swimming won't and they tend to make you hungry, and more inclined to reach for high energy treats.

If swimming isn't cardio to you you're doing it wrong

@HiZev , that's a silly statement. You can swim leisurely just like you can go for a gentle stroll.

But your statement was absolute - you said swimming won't tone you up or burn calories.

It will a little but not noticeably unless you put a lot of effort into it.
I could go for a gentle jog round the park and that wouldn't do much either.
Especially if I had a banana before I went and a cake when I came back.

I mean I’m no athlete, but working out is
my favourite pastime. And I do have to watch what I eat, but only to make sure I eat enough.

Walking is brilliant. I lost over ten stone with my main form of exercise being walking.

It depends on your starting point. Someone who is significantly overweight and unfit will burn quite a lot of calories just walking, because moving a heavy body uses more energy than moving a lighter body. But once the person is losing weight and getting fitter, the calorie burn will reduce.

Most people need more than just walking to have any effect on their weight. You need to feel a bit out of breath with an elevated heart rate for a decent chunk of time. Someone very overweight or unfit will likely achieve this simply by going for a walk. But for most people, you’d need to set quite a brisk walking pace and/or go up some steep hills (great for glutes).

Walking is good for mental health and general mobility though, so always worth doing. It’s something we should all be doing a fair bit of on a weekly basis; daily if possible. Our grandparents and great grandparents would have likely done loads more walking than we do today.

It really is. I’ve lost 10lbs in 3 months (so slow but steady) just from walking and hiking as well as watching what I eat and cutting down on drinking!

Nope it’s crap. You need high intensity exercise and walking (unless speed walking up lots of hills) doesn’t provide this. Your heart rate shouldn’t be too high when walking. My mum spend years convinced she should be losing weight because she had an active job and did over 10k steps a day. Didn’t shift a pound. It’s just no good. You need to run or do HIIT or strength training- something to get the heart pumping. Also 10k steps is nothing, I walk at least twice that most days.

I walk a lot and notice it helps if I’m doing some hills. The incline is very important. Walking on flat will only go so far. But anything is better than nothing at all.

Eating less is the only way to weight loss, I am afraid.

If you are out walking that is a couple of hours less in the day to eat.

I hate to say it but losing weight is much more about what you eat than exercise. A five mile run only burns about 650 calories.

Keep to three meals a day, no more than 500 cals a meal and no snacks at sll. You will lose weight

Walking is good exercise but it's all about being in a calorie deficit.

Walking is a great help in losing weight. My walking pad is the best thing iv ever bought

@Bluestar1971 , I think that's an overestimate. I'd say about 500, if that. I'm about 50 kg and it's not very hilly around here so I probably wouldn't burn that.

I don’t really exercise , but I have a dog so I’m out most days walking him as well as doing lots of housework in a large house .
My weight is fairly stable .
However when I upped my walking ( away in a city in a different country ) I lost 2 kilos over a month .

Lost 2.5lbs walking and calorie deficit and keeping it off on maintenance calories and… you guessed it, walking.

I used to walk a lot more than I do now. Whilst it didn’t make me lose weight it definitely kept my weight stable.

I know it's great exercise for fitness but doing tons of it over years and years in my youth left me with huge calves and thick ankles that I don't think I can ever slim down.

walking, or any exercise for that matter, will only help you lose weight if you eat in a calorie deficit. You could sit on your bum all day and still lose weight if you ate in a calorie deficit. You can’t cheat with the nutrition. Unless of course you walk enough to burn 1000 calories a day?