After months or weeks of dragging your feet, you’ve made up your mind.
You want to lose weight.
Your reason may vary from any of the following;
- You don’t like what your BMI says about your health.
- Your last health check made you realize how unhealthy your current weight is.
- You want be part of team flat tummy, but your fupa keeps sticking out in pictures.
Whatever your motivation is, you are not alone. Millions of people try to lose weight every year. The confusion is usually around how to lose weight. Apart from diet, a crucial aspect of weight loss is exercise.
Most people get hung up about which form of exercise to choose. The big question on your mind is probably this
What’s the best way to lose weight? Walking or jogging
Let’s find out
Walking or jogging are types of cardio exercises that raise your heart and breathing rates and increase your heart, lung and circulatory system function. Both play a role in weight loss and maintaining a healthy weight, albeit in different ways.
So, how does walking affect your weight?
Walking
Walking in this context is not the same as the activity you routinely do to get around. The more appropriate form of walking is brisk walking. That is the speed at which you walk when you are late to a meeting. Walking at 3 miles per hour will help you maintain this pace. (You can track your tempo with your phone).
While walking is a great way to get cardio, especially if you are elderly, it is a slow method of losing weight. Running burns almost double the number of calories that walking does. However, walking is gentler on your joints. So, you will face reduced wear and tear if you choose to walk instead of run.
Finally, walking may be the best form of cardio if you are new to working out. This advice also applies if you have not worked out in a long time. It is better to ease slowly into the stress of physical activity.
How does jogging affect your weight?
Jogging is a more intense form of cardio compared to walking. It is an effective way of losing weight and staying in shape. When you jog, you can burn almost twice the calories you burn while walking. Through this, you can lose weight and get into good shape in no time.
But running is not all rosy. It can take a toll on your body and cause stress fractures, and shin splints.
While walking puts you at a 1 – 5% risk of injury, running increases your probability to 20 – 70%. You may also struggle with jogging if you are not fit, so you may have to ease in slowly.
Walking vs Jogging: What’s The Final Verdict For Weight Loss?
You can use this simple formula to determine which option you go with for your weight loss plans:
Choose Jogging if you are
- Physically fit
- Have been working out (cardio exercises) for a while
- Want to lose weight as fast as possible; you should also try jogging.
Choose Walking if you have
- Not worked out before
- Not worked out recently
- An injury or a condition that requires you to avoid excess stress.
It is always best to speak to a doctor before taking on any exercise routine, even if it seems as mild as walking. A doctor is waiting for you on the other side of this link to advise you on your exercise routine.
Don’t drag your feet.
Start losing that excess fat, and become healthy today.
Doktorconnect
