Easy Ways to Turn Your Walk Into a Fat-Burning Workout

Walking doesn’t have to be boring. Let’s spice it up and burn fat at the same time.

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Becoming more fit and healthy doesn’t have to be hard or complicated and you don’t have to be a marathoner to burn calories.

Walking is a simple and easy way to get started on a fitness routine. This can be done outside or on a treadmill. There are many options out there for less expensive apartment-size treadmills if you don’t want to drop a huge chunk of change. I have one and it gets the job done.

To help you get a jump start on your fitness goals I’ve put together this simple plan for a fat-burning walk.

As always, check with your doctor before starting a new workout routine. If you are walking outside, make sure you are walking in a safe place. If you are walking in wintertime, wear warm layers and gloves with shoes that have good traction. Avoid icy areas. Better yet, can you find an indoor place to walk, such as a mall or a track at your local gym?

Let’s get started!

Get your heart pumping

• Start out slow. You don’t want to jump right into your walk if you haven’t exercised in a while, or if it’s been a while since you’ve walked for exercise. If that’s the case, start by walking at a normal pace for one to five minutes.
• Increase speed every minute. After that first minute, pick up the pace and walk faster for another 60 seconds, then increase again after another minute. Repeat this pattern until you reach 10 minutes total of high-intensity walking — or until your heart rate reaches its target zone during each interval but doesn’t stay there long enough to count as aerobic exercise (at least 20 minutes).
• If possible, try to get yourself into a groove where each time you increase speed or duration from one interval to another feels easier than before because of all that great fitness progress!

Add some inclines

Adding some inclines to your walk will help you burn more fat and gain more endurance. Walking uphill is particularly effective at this because it requires you to use more energy, and therefore burn more calories. You can also add inclines by doing any of the following:

• If you are walking at the mall or another indoor building, find stairs that you can walk instead of using an escalator.
• If you have access to a sports stadium, walk those stairs.
• Walk up a hill if you live in an area where there are safe hills to walk.
• If you are out on a walk and can only find a short set of stairs, walk up and down the stairs multiple times.

Work in some intervals

Intervals are periods of higher-intensity exercise that require you to work harder than the rest of your walk. You can add them in by running for a few minutes, or by picking up the pace for a few blocks.

Benefits of intervals:

• Intervals can help you burn more fat during exercise by increasing your metabolism even after the workout is over.
• They also leave you feeling energized and less fatigued than steady-state cardio workouts do because they give your heart rate an opportunity to recover between intervals. That means it won’t take as long to feel recovered enough to push again, which means more caloric expenditure!
• The time will likely go by faster as well. Intervals beat the boredom!

How to do intervals

Intervals can be done in any aerobic activity, but running is a great place to start.

After warming up for 5 to 10 minutes at an easy pace, run at a moderate pace for 90 seconds (30–60 seconds if you are new to running) that’s roughly 60–70% of your maximum heart rate (MHR). You should still be able to speak in short sentences.

Then you will walk for one to three minutes, then run again. If you are just starting out, opt for the three-minute walk within the intervals until you build up your endurance. You can shorten this by 20–30 seconds each day.

Work in some HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training)

I love to incorporate HIIT into my walking routine. It mixes it up and keeps my walk interesting, and it burns more calories. HIIT tends to give me more energy throughout the day as well.

A walking HIIT workout could consist of 10-second sprints and 30-second walking rests for 30 minutes total.

If you’re new to HIIT, start with just two rounds (10 seconds of work followed by 30 seconds of walking rest). As you get more comfortable with the routine and build up your endurance, start adding rounds until you’re doing all 10 rounds at once (or until you can’t keep going).

Below is an easy way to include HIIT into your walk:

You can do this outside or use a treadmill for the walking portion. You can also use an indoor bike instead of walking.

1. Warm up for 3 minutes with some low to moderate-pace walking.
2. Squats — 20 seconds
3. Walk for 2 minutes (one minute at a brisk pace, one minute at a slower pace)
4. Push-ups — 20 seconds
5. Walk for 2 minutes (one minute at a brisk pace, one minute at a slower pace)
6. Mountain climbers — 20 seconds
7. Walk for 2 minutes (one minute at a brisk pace, one minute at a slower pace)
8. Burpees — 20 seconds
9. Walk for 2 minutes (one minute at a brisk pace, one minute at a slower pace)
10. Plank with knee taps — 20 seconds
11. Walk for 2 minutes (one minute at a brisk pace, one minute at a slower pace)

Again, if you are new to HIIT, start with two rounds. As you get more comfortable, add more rounds until you hit your target time frame, such as 30 minutes.

Don’t forget to cool down at the end of your walking workout with a slower walk and some light stretching.

Listen to your body and do what feels comfortable to you. It is ok to build up your endurance slowly. If you can’t do the above moves, then try running in place or jumping jacks instead. The goal here is to get your heart pumping.

Movement is essential for our health. It is important to find exercise that you enjoy so that it can become sustainable in your lifelong health journey.

Healthy eating along with consistent movement will go a long way in feeling fit, fabulous, and healthy. Here are a few recipes to get started with.