Is walking actually sufficient exercise?

Hi everyone.

I'm trying to lose about 17 lbs, and in addition to eating healthily (I'm a gluten-intolerant vegan, so lots of fruit, veg, grains and "whole" food) I need to get exercising to kickstart my body into weight-loss mode.

However, the only exercise I can do is daily powerwalking, with some short bursts of jogging. This is mostly due to my bad knees; they ache incredibly painfully if I do too much running. I was roller-skating for a short while but had to give it up because of the pain.

Due to my crazy work hours (10-5 six days a week, with a 1.5hr commute there and back...don't ask) I can't really get to a gym. I plan to be walking at least 6 days a week. Is walking enough to help me lose weight? I want to do everything possible to help myself out this time round.

Depends on what your goal is - for health it's good and for weight loss it's mildly helpful in that it makes your calorie burn number higher so it's easier to get a deficit without deprivation.

 If you're looking to run a marathon, not so much.

If your goal is body composition, add in at least some bodyweight-based strength training to your week for best results; strength training is a crucial component to weight loss whereas cardio is only vaguely helpful as long as you've got limited time to train. Once you've got the strength training bit taken care of, any extra exercise you do on top of that will help in as much as it burns calories so you don't have to restrict intake that much to get a decent calorie deficit going.

Maybe you can buy an elliptical trainer? Low impact exercise should not be so tough on your knees. And it works great for interval training. And of course yes to weights, yes yes yes.

Personally, I consider walking one of the best exercises.  You're using a lot of muscles to just take one step after another. 

When I traveled in Europe I noticed in the cities where people did a lot of walking, the residents were much skinnier than in cities where driving was needed to get around. I remember talking with a slim girl who walked 4 miles a day just to get to and from work. That's virtually unheard of in the US.

I agree with gunnercade, if you can afford an elliptical machine that would be great for your bad knees. And with walking it's pretty easy to add weights around your ankles and wrists...I've even heard having those walking sticks that look like ski poles help burn more calories.

ANY walking is better than none, so just do what you can w/o worsening your knees.

I like the feeling I get after I walk on the tread-mill..I feel the muscles of my thighs getting stronger..which is basically why I walk...

An elliptical would be good for your knee problem since it's lower impact.

Do you have a lot of responsibilities outside of work? If not I think you'd be able to fit 30 minutes to an hour at the gym in your day pretty easily.  I guess it's just a matter of how important it is to you, (though really fitness/weight loss doesn't require a gym.)

Though really your original question, walking is good exercise depending on your goals and current state of fitness. If it aggravates your knees it may be doing more harm than good.  Maybe if you focus on your weight loss through your diet and drop some pounds walking/jogging may be easier on your joints?

Walking is plenty good enough to help you lose weight, given a couple of things:

1. Keep watching the calories in;

2. walk at least most days of the week (5 or 6 is great) for an hour at a MODERATE pace.

You can find out lots at:

 http://walking.about.com/od/weightloss/Walkin g_Off_Weight.htm

I used to go to my nearest gym for 3 sessions of 40 mins per week but I burn far more calories walking, and in less time. How can that be? Well, those 3 sessions cost me a grand total of over 7 hours per week (for 2 hours of work-out) - 1 hour per session sitting in my car, 15 mins changing and showering and 30 mins 'reward' in the sauna and steam room. 2 hours circuit training at my weight - 1850 kcal or 'vigorous' elliptical - 2774 kcal. 5 hours hiking burns 3465 kcal for me (5 hours of walking 3mph on a flat, firm surface would be 1905 kcal).

What's a 'moderate' pace? Depends a lot on the terrain. If you are walking in town then 3mph (about 100 steps per minute) is good. Where I walk, 3mph is fast (mostly stony tracks and if I go a mile in any direction it usually involves going up or down 300-600 feet, or both!).

Even if I had a gym at home, I would stick to the walking - the views (at least here) are wonderful and ever-changing, I enjoy it (hated those gym sessions and the only time I tried jogging, my knees hurt for a week), it's all that's necessary (in conjunction with calories in) for losing weight and anyone can do it (it's even recommended for cancer patients undergoing chemo) anywhere (unless, perhaps, you live in a bad neighbourhood).

Yes it is possible to lose weight with a walking program.  I've been successful in losing weight and my only regular exercise is walking.

Original Post by jlayman0614:

When I traveled in Europe I noticed in the cities where people did a lot of walking, the residents were much skinnier than in cities where driving was needed to get around. I remember talking with a slim girl who walked 4 miles a day just to get to and from work. That's virtually unheard of in the US.

 They also eat less.

Their eating "less" is debatable, but generally they eat "better."

Off the top of my head, so take the figures with a grain of salt, but:

 Average European calorie intake: 2300kcal. Average American calorie intake 3400kcal.

 The walking a lot doesn't have as much of an impact as the calorie intake - Europe generally doesn't have HFCS hiding in freakin' everything to make it more calorie-rich than it has to be. [I don't concern myself with the theory that HFCS is particularly bad for your from a nutrition standpoint, it's no better or worse than any sugar. It's the calories in it that counts.]

 Walking is endurance training, which means that it's "extra credit" for any dieter.

 Quick show of hands: check out resistance training versus endurance training (Westcott, W., Fitness Management. Nov., 1991.) -. Do you want the endurance training results, or the strength training results?

 This is not an argument for dropping the endurance training if you've got the time for it, it's just that when prioritizing how you use your workout time you program in 3xweekly strength training first when the goal is fat loss. Any training time you've got left in the week, you should use to do endurance training of some kind compatible with your other goals. And walking is certainly a very good use of that time as it's compatible with a variety of goals.

 Also keep in mind that resistance training doesn't have to be done at a gym. You can do a LOT with bodyweight and improvised weights without ever setting foot in a gym or picking up a formal dumbbell, as long as you're conscious of the need to increase resistance to present your muscles with a progressive overload.

I have been having knee/hip pain for a while, so I don't run, but I have lost about 26 lbs in the last 2.5 months or so. Mostly changing my eating, and also doing some strength training (moderate weights 3 days a week)

I walk 20 miles a week on purpose. About 4 miles 4 days, and 2 miles 2 days. I walk at a fast pace, and it has been effective. So I would say it depends on your fitness level, pace and food intake as well.

If you are in pain, see a doctor, make sure your shoes are good for what you are doing, and make sure you stretch and ice frequently. You don't have to run to get thin. There are plenty of effective, lower impact work-outs.

Difficult to get accurate figures for calorie intake, but try:

1. Ireland 3,410 
2. Belgium-Luxembourg 3,380 
3. U.S. 3,330 
4. Netherlands 3,320
5. Austria 3,310 
6. Russia 3,280 
7. Australia 3,280 
8. New Zealand 3,200 
9. United Kingdom 3,190
10. Canada 3,180

http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/community/fo rum_post.php?nav=reply&topic=151196 

1. Ireland 4054 
2. Denmark 4023 
3. East Germany(this is from 1983) 3787 
4. Belgium 3743
5. Bulgaria 3711 
6. Yugoslavia (1983)3642 
7. USA 3616 
8. Czechoslovakia (1983) 3613 
9. UAE 3591
10. Libya 3581
11. France 3572

http://www.newint.org/issue151/facts.htm (source World Bank's 1985 World Development Report)

No doubt about it, the Irish are the champions. Also, most of those 'top ten' countries are in Europe. Differences from the USA? Less junk food and less HFCS (although both are plentiful) and a (somewhat) more active lifestyle. But you Americans are moving up the league and will surely be the champions one day soon.

Original Post by melkor:
Quick show of hands: check out resistance training versus endurance training (Westcott, W., Fitness Management. Nov., 1991.) -. Do you want the endurance training results, or the strength training results?

 This is not an argument for dropping the endurance training if you've got the time for it, it's just that when prioritizing how you use your workout time you program in 3xweekly strength training first when the goal is fat loss. Any training time you've got left in the week, you should use to do endurance training of some kind compatible with your other goals. And walking is certainly a very good use of that time as it's compatible with a variety of goals.

Lol, those results are definitely a good selling point.

Original Post by foiegras:

Difficult to get accurate figures for calorie intake, but try:

1. Ireland 3,410 
2. Belgium-Luxembourg 3,380 
3. U.S. 3,330 
4. Netherlands 3,320
5. Austria 3,310 
6. Russia 3,280 
7. Australia 3,280 
8. New Zealand 3,200 
9. United Kingdom 3,190
10. Canada 3,180

http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/community/fo rum_post.php?nav=reply&topic=151196 

1. Ireland 4054 
2. Denmark 4023 
3. East Germany(this is from 1983) 3787 
4. Belgium 3743
5. Bulgaria 3711 
6. Yugoslavia (1983)3642 
7. USA 3616 
8. Czechoslovakia (1983) 3613 
9. UAE 3591
10. Libya 3581
11. France 3572

http://www.newint.org/issue151/facts.htm (source World Bank's 1985 World Development Report)

No doubt about it, the Irish are the champions. Also, most of those 'top ten' countries are in Europe. Differences from the USA? Less junk food and less HFCS (although both are plentiful) and a (somewhat) more active lifestyle. But you Americans are moving up the league and will surely be the champions one day soon.

For one thing things have likely changed since 1985!

For another, I believe those statistics derive from calories in the food supply per capita. So countries with a greater food supply will have higher calorie intakes, even though much of the food may be wasted not actually consumed, making the actual calorie consumption lower.

Original Post by eugeniececilia:

Hi everyone.

I'm trying to lose about 17 lbs, and in addition to eating healthily (I'm a gluten-intolerant vegan, so lots of fruit, veg, grains and "whole" food) I need to get exercising to kickstart my body into weight-loss mode.

I see from your profile you have a history of disordered eating. You also state that you are eating 1200 calories per day despite knowing that your recommended calorie intake is 1700. 1200 calories is not enough to sustain any exercise - you need to eat more. You also need to avoid dieting; restricting is just setting yourself up for a relapse.

I used 2003 data from this site:

http://faostat.fao.org/site/609/DesktopDefaul t.aspx?PageID=609#ancor.

I got France: 3623

USA: 3753

Pretty similar, but like I said it only refers to food supply and not actual intake.

What I hear is:  "can I get away with just walking even though I already know the answer"

I've tried to pussyfoot around this issue with a lot of people and the short answer is no - you need to exercise and you need to manage a deficit.  This is especially true if you want to do everything possible to help myself out this time round." 

If your knees hurt, I recommend swimming as the ideal exercise.  Yes it's at a "gym" (depending on where you live, etc), but I'd argue the time spent traveling there, into the activity and back is equal, in a caloric sense, to the time spent walking. Additionally, swimming will provide a more balanced workout...you can also mix in other activities as needed. 

Plus, you "crazy hours" are really something like 8:30 to 6:30...that's 10 hours home and back - a lot of people do something similar (present company included).  In my mind, if you're dedicating 1.5 hours to powerwalking (an hour walk with roughly 1/2 hour of everything else involved), then why not do the same with swimming or at the gym? 

So yes, you'll have to sacrifice time/exercise as much as food

I've seen responses from plenty of people on this website who have lost plenty of weight with walking as their main form of extra exercise. If you have access to an elliptical machine, they are great because they are low impact on your joints. I have a friend who has really bad knee problems but she loves using the elliptical... I also swear by the elliptical machine.

Also, it doesn't burn a ton of calories but doing yoga is pretty low impact if you stick with some beginner poses.. it also helps to strengthen you and can certain poses can help with your metabolism if done regularly.

Wow thanks everyone for your responses, this is really good to know.

There's a gym near-ish my place of work so I can probably do some strength training there, I'll look into joining. I've always been afraid of doing weights and such, but I guess there's no time like the present to face your fears, right? They would also have an elliptical machine, I'm sure. I can't really buy one right now - I'm moving states in a few months, so it would be a tad irritating if it broke in transit to my new home - but I'll keep it in mind.

Oh and I'm eating more that 1200 a day now - more like 1600. I just haven't got around to updating the online thingie. I count my calories and track my weight in a journal rather than on CC.

I'm seeing another doctor soon, hopefully I can get some scans and find out exactly what the problem is. And jutmsy4, I actually didn't know the answer... that's why I asked. But thanks all for your advice nonetheless!

I'm sorry to be rude, but over half of the "questions" in here seem to be "what can I get away with and lose a lot of weight."  It's not a lazy man's (or woman's game).  You can keep a 100 cal deficit and lose weight just as effectively as a couple hundred (just a lot slower). 

Those are the types of people happy with walking.  But, if you're serious about doing "everything possible," you're gonna need to do more than simply walking (which focuses on only one muscle group and can make you plateau without other exercises.