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Why walking is the most underrated form of exercise (2017)
- joduplessis 1y agoI can't think of a single person that would think of walking as "pointless".
- hyperbovine 1y agoTrying living in Los Angeles.
- InitialLastName 1y agoI know lots of people who are anywhere between bemused and actively hostile to the idea that walking might be a worthwhile activity, either on its own or as a transportation mode (and this in a region with decent pedestrian infrastructure, and temperate weather).
- pc86 1y agoIt's a great way to get from point A to point B, it's a great workout if you're "maybe you should have a television show" levels of obese, but if you're reasonably fit and not completely sedentary in your day-to-day life it is pointless as a means of exercise. Context matters and in terms of good means of exercise it does not take much for walking to fall pretty far down the list.
- spudlyo 1y agoI think "pointless as a means of exercise" perhaps overstates it a bit. I agree you're not going to see much benefits in terms of cardiovascular fitness, but every bit of activity figures into one's energy balance. You often hear that even small little movements throughout the day (non exercise activity thermogenesis) can be the difference between maintaining weight homeostasis or having a few pounds a year creep into your life. Prioritizing walking seems like a good hedge against this if you're not blessed with NEAT.
- amelius 1y agoUnderrated, but also overrated, as it does not bring the heartrate into the region for cardiofitness (unless you are walking up a steep mountain).
- spudlyo 1y agoIt depends on your weight and current fitness levels, for sedentary and morbidly obese folks walking can be a zone 3-4 workout, as it's more like rucking.
- dns_snek 1y agoOf course this depends on your current level of fitness. Even modest walking pace on level terrain can bring you up to ~70% of your max HR if you're out of shape.
- IncreasePosts 1y agoYou just walk faster
- sn9 1y agoYou would be shocked at how easy it is for walking to put you into Zone 1-2, especially if there's any incline. Especially for non-athletes. There was even a period of history where extreme volumes of walking were used in marathon training.
- kotyk 1y agoI once tried to burn 3,000+ calories per day using just walking. I had heart issues and couldn't do intense workouts, so I set a goal of 20,000 steps a day. To hit that consistently, I ended up walking 4–5 hours daily. It worked — I was burning massive energy — but it was hugely time-consuming. When I later recovered, I realized the same burn could be done in 40 minutes of gym effort. Walking is absolutely underrated, especially for recovery and mental clarity. But in raw efficiency... it’s humbling how long it takes to match even moderate training.
- bob1029 1y agoThis is what is kicking in when you do anaerobic exercises: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excess_post-exercise_oxygen_consumption https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excess_post-exercise_oxygen_co... > Anaerobic exercise in the form of high-intensity interval training was also found in one study to result in greater loss of subcutaneous fat, even though the subjects expended fewer than half as many calories during exercise. Walking essentially does nothing to your EPOC levels. A one rep maximum deadlift can elevate it substantially for hours. 10 seconds of suffering can trigger responses that hours of walking cannot.
- ChrisRR 1y agoMy weight loss shows a huge difference in cycling vs. burning the same number of calories walking
- lm28469 1y ago> the same number of calories How do you measure the calories burned ? Get 10 different devices you'll get 10 different measures.
- BobaFloutist 1y agoMaybe they put their daily food intake and feces both into a bomb calorimeter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calorimeter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calorimeter and measure the difference?
- jajko 1y agoSorry but this article doesn't bring anything new, this was discussed also here ad nausea for anybody concerned, under any interesting healthstyle article. Or just learn basics of physical activities and how body works, this is proper 101. Yes walking is great, it clears your mind and is rather little impacting on joints compared to say running. Is this surprising to anybody understanding basic physiology? No mention of ie swimming which is even much better for such case. Yes, it will never supplant more intense workouts like running, no need to explain that everybody who ever done both can see and feel it clearly. No mention of hiking which is more intense and weight loaded variant of such, on rougher terrain. Its not underrated, it sits right where it should, and tons of folks are doing it, also me (as recovery after some nasty paragliding accident last year which included some wheelchair time, plus its a great way to clear my mind after an intense day... but for proper workout I go to gym for free weights or HIIT if goal is cardio, with corresponding results).
- clamlady 1y agoI wish more folks knew about/would take up rucking. Yes, I look a bit odd as a small woman in my neighborhood wearing a giant weighted backpack, but it's a great workout.
- dnpls 1y ago+1 for rucking. It's as easy as walking and you can progressively increase the weights if you want more effort - I need a better backpack for my weights!
- 0_____0 1y agorucking seems like it would be bad for one's back and knees? How much weight do you use? It seems like one of those things that's military inspired, except I don't have the VA to look after me if I wear out my hard goods.
- lm28469 1y ago> be bad for one's back and knees? "This can't be good for your body" is a bullshit excuse most of the time, I have 1 in a million chance to pulling a muscle while deadlifting, but someone who sits all day and don't exercise has 1 in 1 chance of slowly rotting away day by day, pick your poison. Unless you morbidly obese I don't think a 10kg backpack will be the straw that breaks the camel's back Most people got it backwards, your knees and back don't hurt because you overused them, they hurt because they're grossly underused.
- 0_____0 1y agoI do 10-15 hours of cardio a week lol. I make an effort to take care of my knees because at those training loads, having bad bike fit or an uncorrected varus knee issue can mean really messing things up for yourself. My question was how much weight is necessary. Also curious whether that applies on the flat or only on incline, and whether a similar training load could be accomplished with lower joint stress by doing unloaded runs and weight room stuff.
- arp242 1y ago
- mcntsh 1y agoMy take is that walking is good for the mind and soul. I don't really think it's a good physical exercise, but it's definitely better than nothing.
- lm28469 1y ago> I don't really think it's a good physical exercise The problem is that most people don't do anything physical at all and walking is one of the easiest way to get started. Any type of activity is beneficial, you need to move for your lymphatic system to work properly and walking is perfect for that, your feet/lower legs basically are lymph pumps: https://www.mdpi.com/2813-3307/2/2/4 https://www.mdpi.com/2813-3307/2/2/4
- thaisstein 1y agoThat's why walkable cities are so important for mental health in general
- chasil 1y ago"Walking is the suggested workout over running for... those with knee, ankle and back problems... walking... creates less stress on joints and reduces pain." I've seen many people around me with knee replacements, and I do not want that for myself. I walk two miles per day. I would not run for this reason.
- Swizec 1y ago> knees /../ I would not run for this reason Studies increasingly show that running is not bad for your knees and runners in fact have some of the strongest healthiest knees around. User proper form, replace your shoes regularly, don’t train for the olympics, and running will be just fine for your joints. > Studies have shown that recreational runners have a knee and hip osteoarthritis (OA) prevalence that is three times lower than that of sedentary non-runners. Competitive runners showed an even more impressive four-fold reduction in knee and hip OA prevalence. These results are due to the fact that regular running strengthens the muscles around the knee joint and supports overall joint health. Running also plays a vital role in maintaining healthy cartilage and bone density, which are crucial for knee function. https://longevity.stanford.edu/lifestyle/2023/08/29/is-running-bad-for-your-knees-research-says-no/ https://longevity.stanford.edu/lifestyle/2023/08/29/is-runni...
- AnimalMuppet 1y agoAlso consider not running on pavement. A track, a trail, or grass will be kinder to your knees.
- 0_____0 1y agoTrail running has a lot of weird loads associated with it, at least where I am. Roots and rocks galore, never a dull moment.
- AnimalMuppet 1y agoTrue. Plus the occasional rattlesnake, or even mountain lion...
- 90s_dev 1y agoFun story, I once walked about 11 hours because of my stupidity, and at the end my heart wouldn't stop racing even after I passed out in a bed. I woke up a few times with my heart still racing, and that whole day and night I wasn't sure I was going to make it. Don't repeat my mistake. Don't walk too much.
- IncreasePosts 1y agoYou might have just been low on electrolytes
- pastage 1y agohttps://www.fotrally.se/ https://www.fotrally.se/ 88 hours of walking.
- 0_____0 1y agoI have ridden a bike for 24 hours+ several times and have not experienced anything like that. Mild post exertional resting HR increase is normal (going from 50 to 65, say) but I think you had a different issue.
- lm28469 1y agoDefinitely, healthy people should be able to hike 8+ hours a day for days in a row with minimal difficulties. Walking shouldn't raise your heart rate that much unless you're walking uphill, a healthy heart should be able to come back under 100bpm fairly quickly too
- 0_____0 1y ago"healthy" is a very loose term it seems. I know many people who would be called healthy by their doctors simply because they didn't have any concerning medical history or present concerns. I think I may agree with you that "healthy" should include basic levels of fitness and not simply !(ill)
- arp242 1y agoThat doesn't seem like a normal response to 11 hours of walking? I've done close to that on hikes and was basically fine (tired, but fine). I'm not unfit, but also not especially fit.
- xwowsersx 1y agoI train six days a week, but since I work from home, I was actually pretty sedentary outside of my gym time—basically just an hour or so of movement a day. That changed recently when I got a Fitbit. I've gotta say, it's helped a lot. Just having something simple like step tracking and reminders to move makes it way easier to stay aware and hold myself accountable. Now I'm consistently hitting at least 10,000 steps a day. Before I started tracking, I would've assumed 10,000 steps was a lot, but now I realize it's actually pretty easy to hit if you’re just a little intentional about it...tbh 10K feels like a basic minimum.
- rhubarbtree 1y ago100% agree got a Fitbit recently my steps have gone through the roof. The biggest change was when I made it show steps on the main screen.
- James_K 1y agoI don't for a minute believe that walking is a better exercise than running, by any reasonable definition of the word "better". This strikes me as a "surprising health benefits of wine" type article. I suppose it makes sense though. If I were a doctor, I'd be desperate for anyone to do even the tiniest bit of exercise, whatever form it takes.
- lm28469 1y ago75% of westerners are overweight or obese, most people don't even know how to run without heel striking. Given these facts I wouldn't be surprised if running would actually be detrimental to the average joe.
- ndsipa_pomu 1y agoWalking certainly seems a lot less intimidating than running though. There's a general expectation that running involves particular footwear and clothing, but you can go for a walk wearing whatever you want. It's a lot easier to persuade someone who doesn't exercise to go for a walk. Personally, I hate running, but love cycling. If I'm in two minds about whether to go for a cycle, I think to myself "I'll just start off and if I don't feel in the mood I can just come back after 5 minutes".
- blu3h4t 1y agoI’ve just lost 45 kilos in 10 month with 10 km a day walking and lots of vegetables and fruits. AMA :D
- josefritzishere 1y agoRead Obesity stats, eat less junk, go for a walk. https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-statistics/overweight-obesity https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-statisti...
- iJohnDoe 1y agoFWIW, walking 30 minutes a day is hugely beneficial. Even when I wasn't eating as healthy, my 30 minute walk would keep me maintained and healthy. I would just walk and BS with a friend for 30 minutes. Walking is a low calorie burn which is sometimes more beneficial when you're out of shape. One theory is that your body doesn't go into fight-or-flight. Running might be too stressful, which might cause an excess cortisol response, which can increase fat storage (especially belly fat), suppress recovery, cause muscle breakdown, so overdoing running when out of shape can backfire metabolically. Not because it's ineffective, but because the body is overwhelmed by the perceived "emergency." Anecdata, simply walking more was the magic solution for me.
- tzs 1y agoI once asked my doctor what would be the best home exercise equipment to get if I wanted to exercise more and wanted to do it inside. Weight machine? Elliptical trainer? Rowing machine? Stationary bike? Treadmill? Something else? He said treadmill, because in his experience walking on a treadmill is the only indoor exercise that he's seen a good fraction of people actually stick with long enough to do any good. With all the others people do it for a while and then stop.
- burnt-resistor 1y agoTreadmills are murder on the knees. Ellipticals are much lower impact and safer.
- burnt-resistor 1y agoWhile walking helps the lymphatic and digestive systems, it's so incredibly calorically efficient that eating less probably a much better way to go about weight management.