Why Walking Beats Most Workouts

 Most workouts fail because they rely on intensity instead of sustainability. In this episode, we break down why walking may be more effective than most forms of exercise — including running — when it comes to long-term results. 

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Transcript

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Welcome back to Why Walking Matters, The Science Explained. I'm Tatiana, your host. For the last few episodes, we've been looking at how to become a confident walker so that we can walk consistently, what I would consider the primary goal of this podcast. And last week we talked about walking and foot care because pain can be the great disqualifier to becoming a consistent walker. Pain definitely gnaws away at confidence and the lack of confidence destroys consistency. If you are a walker like I am, or you want to become a walker, and you listen to this podcast because learning about the science behind walking helps in getting you up and out the door, then the conversations we've been having about confidence and consistency and how habits form are part of a larger conversation, which we'll try to broach today the conversation about why walking beats most workouts, including running. Most workouts fail because they rely on intensity rather than sustainability. In this episode, we break down why walking may be more effective than most forms of exercise, including running, when it comes to long-term results. But first, here are three listener stories that led me to this question. Number one, I always fall off. I try workouts, classes, running, but I never stay consistent. Two, walking is the only thing I keep doing. It doesn't feel like exercise, but it's the only thing I don't quit. And the third story, I go hard and then stop. I'll be really into fitness for a few weeks and then I burn out. Different people, same pattern. They start strong and then stop. So that's why we're asking the question today. What if the best workout isn't the most intense one? What if it's the one you just keep doing? Actually, there's an assumption that most people believe that a workout has to be harder to be better and more intense to be more effective. So they choose running or high intensity interval training or intense gym programs because they feel like they should. But like all workouts, those workouts only work if you keep doing them. But it's difficult to be consistent with these high-intensity workouts simply because they're too intense. High intensity workouts require energy, recovery, and they're harder to repeat. They need time blocks, planning, and motivation. So they tend not to fit into real life. So in the end, most people don't stick with them. So this may not be a discipline problem, it may be a design problem. A study in Science Direct examines how increasing exercise intensity and volume affects metabolic health and challenges the assumption that more exercise is always better. There were four key findings. One, moderate exercise improves metabolic health. Exercise enhances mitochondrial function, that's the energy production in cells, and improves glucose regulation, which is key for preventing and managing metabolic diseases. Two, there appears to be an upper limit to benefits. When exercise load was progressively increased over four weeks, benefits peaked and then reversed at the highest intensity or volume levels. Three, too much exercise impaired metabolism. At the highest training load, participants showed reduced mitochondrial function, worse glucose tolerance, and disrupted insulin secretion. And four, elite endurance athletes showed similar issues. Even highly trained athletes had poorer glucose control compared to matched non-athletes, suggesting chronic high volume training may carry metabolic downsides. The bottom line in this study was that exercise is powerful for metabolic health, but more is not always better. There's likely an optimal sweet spot, and excessive training can actually impair the very systems exercise is supposed to improve. So at the risk of being controversial, let's challenge the biggest belief in fitness. You need intense workouts to get results. According to the World Health Organization, just 150 minutes of moderate activity per week provides major health benefits. Adults may increase moderate intensity aerobic physical activity to more than 300 minutes or do more than 150 minutes of vigorous intensity aerobic physical activity or an equivalent combination of moderate and vigorous intensity activity throughout the week for additional health benefits. However, that is a conditional recommendation with moderate certainty evidence. Regular moderate activity according to the CDC supports heart health, metabolic health, and longevity, and that includes brisk walking and everyday movement. So, listeners, you don't need extreme workouts, you just need consistent movement. Walking wins in one critical way. You can keep doing it. It's sustainable, it's low impact, low fatigue, and there's no burnout cycle. Walking fits into real life. There's no real prep, no real schedule pressure, and you can be flexible with the timing. Walking is accessible, you don't need a gym or equipment, there's no learning curve, you do it all the time. And walking supports other exercise. Even runners rely on walking as active recovery, helping to reduce soreness, maintain movement, and improve recovery. Most people believe running is better and walking is easier. And better usually means more calories, faster results, more efficiency, but that's only part of the picture because better in theory isn't always better in real life. Both running and walking improve heart health. According to the American Heart Association, moderate and vigorous activity both reduce cardiovascular risk. Running burns more calories per minute, but walking can achieve similar total burn over time. Studies show both walking and running are associated with reduced mortality risk and improved overall health. So yes, running is more intense, but both work. And running has a higher rate of overuse injuries compared to walking. Here's an interesting article from the Cleveland Clinic Walking versus Running, which is better for you? The short answer the best exercise is the one you'll actually do. Cats or dogs, summer or winter, text or call, waffles or pancakes, hot or cold. There are a lot of things we compare or prefer to one another. But when it comes to walking versus running, is there a clear winner? Both are great options to your cardiovascular exercise. Some benefits you can get from both include decreases resting blood pressure and heart rate, improves cholesterol levels, improves blood sugar regulation, regulates gut microbiota, maintains muscle function and joint range of motion, improves memory and thinking ability, reduces risk of dementia, protects against risk of Alzheimer's disease, and increases life expectancy. But should we be doing one over the other to stay healthy? Exercise physiologist and certified personal trainer Karen Feeks sets the record straight and shares the advantages of both. Can walking keep you as fit as running? Yes, you can reach your fitness goals by walking, but there are some caveats, says Feeks. You would need to exercise or walk for a longer duration to equalize what you'd be doing if you were running, she explains. When it comes to walking versus running for weight loss, here are some facts to consider. The facts on walking and running. There is usually around a 30% differential between how many calories you can burn, but there are some variables that could make the amount of calories end up around the same. For example, going for a two-mile slow jog or speed walk will probably result in a more similar range of calories burned as compared to running a race at top speed. Your metabolic equivalence determines the amount of calories your body burns based on the level of intensity that's exerted. As your intensity increases, your body's demand for oxygen also increases. The higher the MET level, the greater the yield. Excess post-oxygen consumption EPOC, known more simply as afterburn, is the process of your body expending energy after a workout is completed. Your metabolism can stay at a higher level for several hours post-exercise and greatly influence energy expenditure. A person's body weight can also affect their caloric expenditure. Even if the activity intensity is the same for each person, their body mass will influence the total expenditure. Pros of walking Walking is a critical piece of exercise that people need to be doing on a day-to-day basis, says Feeks. It's functional exercise for many of us as we go about our daily schedules. So, why might you choose walking over running? Feeks outlines the pros of walking. It's easy, convenient, and free. You don't need any equipment. All you need is yourself and a good pair of walking shoes. Most people can handle short bouts of walking and build duration as fitness improves. It can be a very social activity too. Walking with a friend or loved one can be beneficial to your mental and emotional health. And you can walk almost anywhere, whether out in the park, a stroll around the block, or inside your house. Don't overlook the convenience of walking in place or going up and down flights of steps. Just by moving your body on a day-to-day basis, you'll start to see a difference and feel better physically, says Feeks. It's a low impact form of exercise. As a low impact exercise, walking is easy on your joints. I like to refer to walking as sort of a lotion for the joints, says Feeks. My motto is that motion is lotion and it's something we take for granted. On a day-to-day basis, our joints need to move in the fullest range of motion that we can move them. This helps them stay lubricated and can help us feel less stiff. This is particularly important if you have arthritis or other joint pain. For individuals with arthritis, continually moving is critical because the joints can get very stiff and can lack range of motion, she explains. So walking is a great way to increase the synovial fluid within the joints and to loosen up muscle tissue to decrease tension on tendons. You can do it at almost any fitness level. If you haven't been focused on your fitness, walking can be a great way to start. While Feeks says a good walking pace is around a 15 minute mile or 4 miles per hour, you can control or adapt the pace to meet your current fitness level and slowly increase your speed. You may find that walking a 15-minute mile quite challenging, she notes, but over time you may be able to pick up the pace and get into a power walking state, which is more of a 12-minute mile. The goal is to feel slightly breathless, and you can increase the difficulty of your walks as you see fit. Feek says you can look for paths that have hills or inclines to make it more challenging. You can also try rucking, which is wearing a weighted backpack while you walk, or Nordic walking, which uses walking poles. Pros of running. Running is a great option if you're limited on time and maybe best if you're training for a certain sport or competition. Feeks shares the pros of running. You can burn more calories. You can burn more calories running than walking per minute, which can add up to a significant difference over time. For example, if you go on a 30-minute run, you'll burn more total calories than if you went for a 30-minute walk. Some estimates say that you burn twice as many calories running versus walking. There may be greater challenges in your cardiovascular function and your respiratory response, says Feeks. Oxygen uptake has many benefits such as increased metabolic response, increased lung capacity, and greater circulation of oxygenated blood. All are critical for health. You can improve your VO2 max. What is VO2max? It's the maximum rate of oxygen consumption attainable during physical exertion. V is for volume, O2 is for oxygen, and max is for maximum. I think the biggest benefit to running over walking is that you can see greater gains in your VO2 max, says Feeks. Studies show that having the highest VO2 max greatly influences your quality of life as you age. It can strengthen your bones and muscle tissue. Walking and running can both improve your bone density, but research shows that those who run tend to have increased bone density. When it comes to bone health, you need to make sure that you have an adequate stimulus for the bone to retain density and prevent osteopenia and osteoporosis as you age, says Feeks. Potential cons to walking and running. A potential downside to running? Running is considered a high impact form of exercise, and that can lead to an increase in injuries such as runner's knee, stress fractures, and Achilles tendinitis. But you can also sustain injuries from walking, says Feeks. With walking, it's easy to walk too long beyond your capability, she continues. You can end up with shin splints and plantorfasciitis. Feeks adds that it's important for either exercise or any exercise really that you warm up and cool down. Try integrating flexibility and mobility exercises to support the activity of choice. Doing so can help prevent injuries and improve muscular function. The finish line: whether you walk or run, it's recommended that adults get 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise like walking or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity exercise like running. But the best form of exercise, the one you actually do, whether it's walking or running, I suggest you start with 10 to 15 minutes and then on a weekly basis you add 5 minutes, suggest speaks. You also want several bouts of fat activity per week, so spread it out over the course of the week and that way your body has an opportunity to adapt. So what does the science say? Running creates muscle micro damage, fatigue, stress on joints, and connective tissue. Recovery days exist to let your body repair and adapt. Walking fits perfectly because it keeps you moving without adding more stress. This concept is known as active recovery. Instead of complete rest, runners can do low intensity movement to support recovery. Active recovery refers to low intensity movement performed after strenuous exercise to facilitate physiological and psychological recovery. Rather than resting completely, athletes engage in gentle activities such as walking, cycling, or stretching. It is widely used in sports and rehab to reduce soreness, maintain circulation, and improve readiness for subsequent training. Runners specifically benefit because walking is low impact, joint friendly, because running places a demand on joints, especially knees, ankles, and feet. So instead of doing nothing which can increase stiffness, you can keep your body moving, recover faster, and stay consistent. I found that pretty interesting, listeners. Most people don't fail at fitness because they're lazy. It's because they choose something that isn't built for real life. High intensity exercise may feel too hard to start. Or may trigger dread, avoidance, or negotiation, I'll do it later. While walking tends to feel easier, not because it's less effective, but because it works with your brain instead of against it. And when something feels easier to start, you do it more often. And when you do it more often, that's when it actually works. So why does walking beat most workouts? Because walking is something you can keep doing. While you get the same health benefits as with high-intensity workouts, walking is more sustainable. And for most people, sustainability wins. Thanks for joining me today, listeners. And remember, if you're enjoying the podcast, be kind, share with a friend, and share your walking story or ideas for the podcast at whywalkingmatters.com. Until next time, listeners, happy walking.