You may think that to get enough exercise, you need to hit the gym or sign up for an exercise class, but walking alone is possibly the easiest way to exercise. It’s free, you can do it almost anywhere, and you don’t need any fancy equipment or a gym membership.
Whether you are walking to lose weight or just rethinking your commute, there are a number of benefits to increasing your daily step count. Take a look at all the different ways Walking for 30 minutes a day can benefit your health here. We have also found the best under desk treadmills to increase your miles while you work, and apps that let you charge to walk.
But how can you turn your daily walks into workouts? We spoke with Craig Mason, trainer of the audio-guided fitness app With you, on how walking exercises are beneficial for the overall health of the body and which are the best ones out there, including exercises for beginners, intermediate and advanced walkers. Read on to find the best walking exercises to add to your routine.
What are the benefits of walking?
“Walking offers a host of benefits for people of all fitness levels. Walking not only burns calories, which helps you lose or maintain weight, but it also lowers blood sugar levels and reduces the risk of coronary heart disease,” says Morgan. You can also build lean muscle in your legs as you walk, thanks to the build-up of strength from walking on an incline. One great benefit that walking can bring is the instant impact on your mental health, due to the release of endorphins, known as happy hormones, in the body.
Morgan recommends doing 3-4 walking sessions per week. If you do other types of training, such as strength training or running, do a walking workout 1-2 times a week. You should also aim for a minimum of 10,000 steps per day; an easy way to do this is to get off public transportation a few stops before your destination, or take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator. This is what happened when our fitness editor walked 10,000 steps a day for a month.
The best walking workouts
Before embarking on any of these workouts, it’s important to have the right footwear, as you don’t want to do serious walking workouts in your Converses. review the best running shoes that will be supportive enough to walk as well as this Skechers Go Walk Walking Shoeor the best hiking boots if you go off road.
While your phone does have the ability to count your steps, for a more accurate estimate of how far you’ve gone and how many calories you’ve burned, it’s also a good idea to invest in one of the best fitness trackers in the market.
Ready to walk? keep reading
Beginner
Duration: 16 minutes
Warm up: warm up with a 3 minute walk
Roll your shoulders and take a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth.
Keep your chest up and your head up, make sure your shoulders are down from those ears, and make sure your arms are swinging back and forth as you start to walk.
Walk training: brisk walks and intervals
Do 7 brisk, 1-minute walks, followed by 30-second rest periods.
Be sure to start slowing down around the last 5 seconds of each interval.
Cool off: cool off with a 3-minute relax
Take it easy and walk slowly, concentrating on breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth.
Allow your arms to come down to your sides, keeping your shoulders back through your ears, trying to relax your body as you slow down.
Intermediate
Duration: 24 minutes
Warm-up: Warm up with an easy 3-minute walk
Start by taking a nice easy walk, rolling your shoulders back, chest up, breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth; Observe your surroundings as you progress and throughout this training.
Check that you are activating through these glutes. Every time your foot hits the pavement, squeeze your bottom as this will help activate your glutes.
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 1
Intensive walk for 3 minutes
Take a rest period from a slower walk for 1 minute
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 2
Intensive walk for 2 minutes
Take a rest period from a slower walk for 1 minute
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 3
brisk walk for 1 minute
At this stage, catch your breath and lower your heart rate. Slow down your breathing, lengthen your breaths and get oxygen into the body. Take a rest period from a slower walk for 1 minute
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 4
Intensive walk for 3 minutes
Be sure to sign up on your form and return directly at this stage. Take a rest period from a slower walk for 1 minute
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 5
Intensive walk for 2 minutes
Take a rest period from a slower walk for 1 minute
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 6
Intensive walk for 1 minute.
Starts to get a little slower as you come to an end
Take a rest period from a slower walk for 1 minute
Cool off: cool off with a 3-minute relax
Take it easy and walk slowly, concentrating on breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth.
Allow your arms to come down to your sides, keeping your shoulders back through your ears, trying to relax your body as you slow down.
Advanced
Duration: 46 minutes
Warm Up: Warm up with an easy 5 minute walk
Start by taking a nice easy walk, rolling your shoulders back, chest up, breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth.
Make sure to keep your glutes contracted and squeeze them every time your feet hit the ground.
Each additional minute into your warm-up, gradually increase the pace.
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 1
Intensive walk for 10 minutes
Take a rest period from a slower walk for 2 minutes
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 2
Intensive walk for 10 minutes
Take a rest period from a slower walk for 2 minutes
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 3
Intensive walk for 5 minutes
Take a rest period from a slower walk for 2 minutes
Walk Training: Interval and Rest Period 4
Intensive walk for 5 minutes
Take a rest period from a slower walk for 2 minutes
Cool off: cool off with a 3-minute relax
Take it easy and walk slowly, concentrating on breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth.
Allow your arms to drop to your sides, keeping your shoulders back across your ears, trying to relax your body as you slow down.
Not for you? Look what happened when we tested the 12-3-30 treadmill workout as good as this Taylor Swift treadmill workout.
