Is Power Walking better Than Running? Find Out!

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Good to know that you jog, run, do gym, aerobics, pilates, and what not. But do you walk? How stupid a question.

No, it isn’t.

Besides walking for your errands to the market, have you ever done power walking? It is a beneficial low-impact workout. And it is a natural technique that lessens your chances of injury. That is why it is much much safer than jogging or running.

Power walking which is walking at a pace between 3 and 5 miles per hour gives you the same benefits as jogging but no injury at all.

Now that you know what we are talking about, is power walking better than running? Let us find out more about the concept of power walking.

Power Walking Versus Running:

First things first, walking is awesome. It gets you the liberty to walk anywhere, and anytime with no rules. While running takes time to master, walking does not. Running is a high-impact exercise, walking is the opposite. Supposing you are overweight or have other health issues troubling you which don’t allow a high-impact activity. What should you do? Just power walk. Because it is a more feasible exercise for all age groups and doesn’t need any power equipment.

Countless doctors recommend power walking. Walking is sociable and doesn’t cost you a penny. And it doesn’t need you to join a gym. Plus with the right technique that you chose to walk, you can burn more calories, a ton of them, lose weight, tone up and get fit. Sounds simple and workable, right?

Calories Burned By Walking:

When you run, it burns a lot of calories. The calories burned walking is no less either. The table below gives a good idea of the calories burned when you walk for 30 minutes on a level surface.

Speed/Pounds	100 lb	120 lb	140 lb	160 lb	180 lb	200 lb	220 lb	250 lb	275 lb
2.0 mph (30 minutes per mile)	57	68	79	91	102	113	125	142	156
2.5 mph (24 minutes per mile)	68	82	95	109	122	136	150	170	187
3.0 mph (20 minutes per mile)	75	90	105	120	135	150	165	187	206
3.5 mph (17 minutes per mile)	86	103	121	138	155	172	190	215	237
4.0 mph (15 minutes per mile )	113	136	159	181	204	227	249	283	312
4.5 mph (13 minutes per mile)	143	171	200	229	257	286	314	357	393
5.0 mph (12 minutes per mile)	181	218	254	290	327	363	399	454	499

How To Burn Calories While Walking:

Good question. You can turn a regular walk into a challenging workout which will up the calories burned while walking and help you lose weight. Here is how to power walk in different ways:

1. Monitor Your Walking Speed:

Don’t get carried away by how fast you walk but how hard you exercise. Think about the intensity and the right pace will follow. To slim down you need to walk at the right intensity which is your “target zone”. This is normally 65% to 85% of your maximum heart rate.

To get into the target zone, walk at a faster pace than usual and a little out of breath. It is like walking at a pace as if you have an appointment to catch and no time to spare. If that pace seems easy to you, then walk at a pace as if you are several minutes late for an appointment.
One of the ways to gauge whether you are walking in your target zone: Use a scale of 1-10. It is called a Rating of Perceived Exertion scale or RPE. Walk at such a pace that it feels like level 6 or 7 on the scale.

Supposing you are walking on the treadmill. An average speed is about 2½ to 3 miles an hour (which means about 20 minutes a mile). To get fit you should aim to walk at 3½ to 4 miles an hour (15 minutes a mile). It means more miles in lesser minutes. When you increase your miles per hour (mph) it means you will burn about one third more calories. Sounds phenomenal, right?

2. Choose A Hilly Terrain:

3. Uneven Terrain:

When you are walking on grass, sand, rocks, gravel, trails, or snow, you are upping the intensity, burning more calories and making your muscles work harder. Did you know walking on snow increases calorie burning by 2 to 3 fold? Hope this drives home the point why is power walking better than running?

4. Add Weights:

If you find walking easier and your strength levels have increased considerably, then add weights. This will challenge your muscles to work harder. Wear a weighted vest or a weighted backpack. If the latter is on your mind, then fill the backpack with water and sand so that the weight gets distributed evenly.

5. Nordic Walking Poles:

This is one of the best ways to increase the number of calories burned walking and to speed up weight loss. Nordic poles ensure that walking does not remain limited to being a lower body exercise but is rather a workout for the whole body by involving 90% of your body’s muscles. It engages your arms, shoulders, back muscles, ups the heart rate and strengthens the upper body. More importantly, the calorie burn goes up to 46%.

6. Swing Your Arms:

When you do that, it generates power and momentum thereby propelling you forward and burning more calories. When you swing your arms forward and backward as you walk, it opens your chest, improves posture and helps you get the most out of your morning walks.

7. Maintain A Good Posture:

Walk with your head held high, keep your shoulders straight and relaxed. Look ahead keeping your gaze at chin level, it means you have a good posture. It also means you will able to walk faster and get more calories burned while walking.

8. Take Longer Strides:

The ideal way to walk fast is to take smaller and faster steps. When you take larger steps it helps you get rid of the cellulite and firms up your leg muscles.

I hope you have got your answer to the question is power walking better than running? Are you planning to include it in your fitness regimen? If you have tried power walking to get fit do share with us how it helped you become fab from flab.