How to Walk for Maximum Weight Loss

Walking is the easiest form of exercise, it’s free, convenient and best of all, low-impact. Therefore, it is the best choice for the elderly, pregnant women and anyone who is morbidly obese. If you want to lose weight, burn fat and improve your overall fitness, walking is a great choice. In fact, walking actually improves your non-exercise activity thermogenesis. (NEAT) Neat is ultimately an umbrella term for any unintentional activity that helps you to burn calories. For example, fidgeting, doing house chores, walking the dog or running errands.

When you make a conscious effort to go for a walk every day, you increase the amount of NEAT you get in a day. Also, low-impact exercise reduces the risk of injury and is kinder on your joints. Therefore, if you want to lose weight and you struggle with sticking to an exercise regime, just walk more.

In this article, you will learn how to walk to increase your fat burn for maximum weight loss. Taking a slow stroll every day is beneficial however, if you want to boost your weight loss efforts, you need to increase the frequency and intensity of your walking.

Invest in Running Shoes

Your usual fashion sneakers just won’t do, when it comes to walking it is vital that you wear proper running shoes. It is best to spend the money on a good quality pair of running shoes instead of purchasing a low-cost pair that could damage your feet and back. Before you start your walking regime, get yourself a good-quality pair of running shoes.

Track Your Steps

Gameify your walking regimen by tracking your steps. You can either purchase a fitness watch or use the inbuilt pedometer on your phone. If you are completely new to walking for weight loss, start with a realistic goal. 5000 steps is a good yardstick, commit to walking 5000 steps every day for the next two weeks.

Once you have achieved that goal, move on to the next one, 7,000 steps and continue to increase your steps until you achieve 10,000 steps. Once you achieve 10,000 steps and you feel fitter and more capable, increase your step count.

For extra energy, you could include supplements into your diet plan such as protein powder or any other dietary supplements to increase your nutrient uptake. Opt for high-quality supplements such as STEEL supplements, they will increase the amount of protein and other macronutrients that your body absorbs.

Remember to listen to your body and don’t overwork yourself. The goal isn’t to overwork your body, the goal is to get your heart rate up just enough to burn excess calories.

Ditch the Car

If you usually drive to the grocery store, walk instead. Obviously, if your grocery store is miles away then it might be best to drive instead. However, you can increase your steps by parking a few blocks away from the grocery store instead. If you catch the bus or train to work, alight one or two stops earlier and walk the rest of the way. Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator.

Pick up the pace

Once you get used to walking more, start to pick up the pace and walk faster than you usually walk. You should be able to talk to a friend while you walk but you should also feel your heart rate increase as you walk.

Interval Training

Interval training is one of the most effective fat-burning methods. Set your timer for one minute and walk at a very quick pace for one minute then slow it down for 30 seconds. Continue this routine for 30 minutes. You will burn more calories in a 30-minute interval training session than you will burn in a 60-minute slow-walking session. Perform interval training three to four times per week. 

Incline Walking

Instead of walking on flat terrain, include hill walking into your regime. If you don’t have any hills close to your residence, use a treadmill and increase the incline. Walk for 30 to 40 minutes on an incline at least once or twice per week. You should aim to walk for six days in the week and rest for one day.

Diet

Walking is excellent for boosting your metabolism and increasing your calorie burn, however, your diet plays a crucial role in your overall weight loss success. The easiest way to get your body into a caloric deficit is to cut your portions right down. Instead of cutting out all the foods you love, reduce your portions and replace the rest of the food with vegetables to fill you up. For example, if you often eat one large pizza to yourself, eat half the pizza and fill the rest of the plate with green vegetables.

Drink Plenty of Water

Finally, drink plenty of water to increase your metabolism, cleanse toxins, hydrate your body and reduce your appetite. Drink at least eight to ten large glasses of water per day to achieve maximum results.

Bottom Line

Walking is a highly effective form of cardiovascular exercise, it burns calories, increases your metabolism and reduces the risk of heart disease and various other serious diseases that could be detrimental to your overall health and wellbeing. Walk at least three to four times a day for 30 to 40 minutes to achieve maximum results.