Select your objective, whether it’s burning fat, increasing energy, enhancing mood, or toning specific areas, and we have the workouts tailored to meet your needs. Explore diverse and enjoyable methods to reach your fitness goals. We’ve categorized the tips and the best walking workouts based on specific objectives. Find the one that resonates with you and embark on your journey towards your healthiest body!
Firm Your Arms, Butt, And Thighs with the Best Walking Workouts Below!
Incorporating toning exercises into your walking routine can transform your walks into full-body workouts, accelerating the shaping of your legs and buttocks. Strive to focus on each body area at least two to three times weekly. For instance, engage in the Sculpt All Over workout once or twice weekly and integrate lower-body and upper-body routines (or multiples) on alternating days. Avoid targeting the same muscle groups consecutively. Intersperse walking routines from different sections on alternate days to expedite firming, effectively trimming excess fat and revealing toned muscles.
This year, incorporating high-intensity walks into your routine could help you shed a size (or more). These workouts enable you to burn fat during and after your cardio sessions, with options to accommodate everyone’s schedules—a quick 10-minute routine for busy days and indoor alternatives for rainy weather. For optimal results, aim for at least 20 minutes of high-intensity walking (select from the exercises in this section and any hill or stair routines are outlined later. sections) on three nonconsecutive days each week. On alternate days, moderate-intensity activity for approximately 30 minutes per session.
Walking Workout: Treadmill Slimmer
Time: 30 minutes
Treadmills offer a convenient solution to weather, traffic, and darkness concerns, making them ideal for consistent workouts. Witnessing your speed improve as your fitness level progresses can be a significant motivation source. In Phase 1 speed intervals, incrementally increase your speed by 0.6 mph. For each successive phase, raise your speed intervals by 0.2 mph. *Note: Calorie burn estimates are based on a 150-pound individual and may vary depending on weight, walking speed, and workout duration.
Walking Workout: Drop-It-Fast Sprint
Time: 25 to 30 minutes
The faster you walk, the greater the distance you can cover and the more weight you can shed. Try out this enjoyable routine that can burn up to 175 calories. Begin by warming up for 5 minutes. Then, walk at your maximum speed for 10 minutes and note the distance covered. Turn around and return briskly, gradually slowing down as you approach your starting point to cool down. With each session, strive to walk faster and extend beyond your initial turnaround spot.
Walking Workout: Megacalorie Burner
Time: 60+ minutes
Extended workouts exceeding an hour can significantly increase your post-exercise calorie expenditure, almost five times more than a 30-minute walk. In addition to burning nearly 350 calories during your walk, this extended activity can prepare you for more ambitious goals like a half marathon (13.1 miles) or a multiday fundraising walk. It’s also a social endeavour to trim down: Arrange your route to rendezvous with friends and enjoy walking together for segments of your journey.
Walking Workout: Belly-Busting Walk
Time: 10+ minutes
The high-intensity workouts outlined in this section are known to reduce five times more belly fat compared to moderate-intensity workouts. To target and sculpt your abs effectively during any walk, follow these tips:
- Engage your core by drawing your abs in towards your spine. Maintain this contraction throughout your walk, ensuring that you continue to breathe naturally.
- Visualize your legs extending upward from your navel. As each leg swings forward and backwards, allow the corresponding hip to follow suit. This gentle hip swivel prompts your lower torso to rotate, engaging more abdominal muscles and accelerating the tightening of your midsection.
Walking Workout: Super Fat Blast
Time: 10 minutes
Increase the intensity by incorporating metabolism-boosting bursts of high-impact activities.Â
This can assist in burning almost 70% more calories than walking at a consistent pace. Consider trying one of these routines whenever you need a quick energy boost. A mere 10-minute stroll can instantly revitalize your energy levels by enhancing circulation. Extend your walk to 30 minutes, and research indicates you could experience a significant 85% increase in energy. For a truly invigorating experience for your body and mind, explore these stimulating walks designed to engage your senses and cognitive faculties. The positive effects may linger for up to 12 hours! These workouts can be beneficial to tone up, lose weight, or improve your overall health.
Walking Workout: Happiness Walk
Time: 10+ minutes
Rejuvenate your mind and body by incorporating stress-relieving techniques into your leisurely walk. The longer you walk, the greater the benefits you’ll experience. Begin by focusing on your feet, grounding yourself with each step as your feet roll from heel to toe, and maintaining this awareness for 2 to 3 minutes. Then, shift your attention to your breathing, standing tall to expand your lung capacity, inhaling renewed energy and exhaling fatigue and discomfort. Finally, engage in positive self-talk, repeating phrases like “Fresh air in, stale air out” to stay focused throughout your walk.
Walking Workout: Brainpower Booster
Time: Under 20 minutes
Varying the direction of your walk, whether forward, backwards, or sideways, not only keeps your mind engaged but also enhances calorie burn and activates muscles often underused, such as the outer and inner thighs. This routine is ideally performed on a school track, most of which are typically ¼-mile around.
The workout begins with a warm-up lap, walking normally around the curved part of the track. For the second lap, turn sideways with the right foot in front, sidestepping around the curve, walking backwards on the straight section, sidestepping through the next curve with the left foot in front, and walking forward on the straight section. Repeat this sequence for the third lap, alternating between sideways, backwards, sideways, and forward walking. Finally, step forward slowly for the fourth lap to cool down. This routine amounts to a 1-mile walk if utilizing a ¼-mile track, with the option to extend it by adding more laps or gradually progressing to half or full laps of each type of walking.
Walking Workout: Head For The Trees
Time: 5+ minutes
Spending just 5 minutes in nature can uplift your mood and recharge your energy levels. Longer periods of exercise in natural settings, like a stroll in a park during lunch or a full-day hike in the mountains, can enhance memory and attention by 20% compared to walking in urban environments. The serene surroundings offer fewer distractions and induce a greater sense of relaxation, contributing to the cognitive benefits experienced in natural settings.
Walking Workout: Double-Duty Toner
Invest in a set of walking poles, which typically start at $90. Studies indicate they can increase calorie expenditure by as much as 46% while engaging your arms and core for comprehensive toning. Additionally, these poles help minimize impact on your joints, making them a valuable addition to your walking gear.
Walking Workout: Treadmill Booty Blast
Time: 25 minutes
If outdoor hills aren’t available for your glute workout, try a dynamic treadmill routine instead. Whether you opt for the complete 25-minute session or just a few 5-minute hill climbs for a shorter workout, this routine promises a fun and effective way to target your glutes.
Walking Workout: Arm Shaper
Time: 20 minutes
Take your walking routine to the next level using an exercise band to incorporate upper-body toning exercises. Begin with a 4-minute easy walk, then transition to a moderate-intensity pace and perform the first exercise for 25 reps. After completing the reps, loop the resistance band around your neck and accelerate to a brisk pace for 2 minutes. Alternate between the 25-rep toning exercises and 2-minute fast walking intervals until you’ve finished all the exercises. Conclude your workout with a 4-minute cooldown of easy walking. To adjust the intensity, bring your hands closer together for more resistance or farther apart for less resistance.
Walking Workout: Butt Firmer
Time: 16+ minutes
Walking uphill engages 25% more muscle fibres than flat ground, promoting faster toning. For optimal results, locate a hill that requires 2 to 2½ minutes to ascend and attempt this routine developed by Judy Heller, a certified personal trainer and master racewalker from Portland, OR. Begin with a 5 to 10-minute warm-up at a comfortable pace. Next, ascend and descend the hill, followed byÂ
Walk briskly on a flat surface for 2 minutes. Repeat this sequence of hill climbs and level walks for your preferred duration. Conclude the session with a 5-minute cooldown of easy walking.
Walking Workout: Sculpt All Over
Time: 25 to 40 minutes
In this workout, you’ll blend strength exercises with walking to achieve cardiovascular benefits and muscle toning. Employing the lottery method, as outlined by Lee Scott, can help keep your routine engaging while targeting different muscle groups.
Here’s how it works: Begin by jotting down at least nine strength exercises that require no equipment on separate pieces of paper. Ensure variety to addressÂ
Key muscle groups, including walking lunges, bench push-ups, tricep dips, planks, and power jumps. Place the slips of paper into a jar and randomly select three before your walk. Start with a 3 to 5-minute warm-up at an easy pace, followed by a brisk walk lasting 5 to 10 minutes. Pause to perform one of the chosen strength exercises for ten repetitions. Resume brisk walking for another 5 to 10 minutes, then transition to the next strength exercise. Repeat this process once more to conclude with the final exercise. Conclude the session with a 5-minute cooldown at an easy pace.
Walking Workout: Indoor Leg Toner
Time: 5 minutesÂ
Here’s a quick stair workout you can do anywhere there are stairs, as recommended by Prevention reader Barb Best of Erie, PA, who placed it at the base of her stairs as a reminder. Begin by walking normally up and down one flight of stairs. Then, walk up sideways, crossing your bottom foot over the top, and walk down normally, repeating in the opposite direction. Next, step up on the first stair and then down, starting with your right foot, ten times, and repeat starting with your left foot.
Afterwards, climb the stairs two steps at a time and come down quickly using each step, followed by running up and walking down normally. Repeat steps four and five four more times. At the bottom, place your right foot on the first or second step, bend your knees, and lower into a lunge, ensuring your right knee stays directly over your ankle. Push off with your right foot to return to the start and repeat with your left leg, alternating legs for 20 lunges. Finally, walk up and down normally once to complete the workout.
Conclusion:
Do the following walking workouts to ace your body goals and achieve the fittest and slimmest body this year. Yet before doing your strenuous specified workout, consult your doctor and pair it with a balanced and proper diet.