Running vs Walking

There’s no denying that cardio should be an important part of your fitness regime. Not only does it keep your heart strong, but it’s a great calorie burner. I have always gone for a short run around my neighborhood after my evening class. 

My Running Trail

I’ve never been a strong runner; the farthest distance I’ve reached has been just under 5km. This season I was reaching just under 3 and was trying to work my way up to 10km so I can run a memorial race in my home town this August. Lately though my goals have been to burn some fat to define the muscle I’ve been working hard to build. Just recently I learned that walking is better for the goals I’m trying to achieve so instead of my 20 minute run, I am walking on the treadmill at an incline for half an hour.

This long slow distance (LSD) cardio is burning about 300 calories in 30 minutes which doesn’t make sense consider high intensity cardio is burning roughly 450 calories in the same amount of time. The difference is that following my weight training the 300 calories I’m burning is 80% fat which is 240 calories of fat. With high intensity cardio the 450 calories burned in 30 minutes is at 45% fat burned which only equals 202.5 calories of fat.

This doesn’t mean that you should avoid running if you’re trying to burn fat. You are still getting benefit from the higher intensity cardio, just not as much as you would with the LSD cardio. This isn’t something I will be incorporating permanently into my workout regime. I find the treadmill horribly boring when I’m not concentrating on pushing myself to run farther or faster. To curb the boredom I bring a book and have my phone handy. It’s a great time to catch up on emails, my Google reader and burn through the pile of books I have lined up for the summer. If the treadmill isn’t your thing either you could hop on a bike at medium intensity for the same low intensity results.

After I get back from my vacation in July I will go back to running where I will focus on doing specific runs three or four times a week so I can build up my length and hopefully be able to finish 10km for my August race.

So there you have it friends, the difference between running and walking. Keep in mind I’m not a fitness professional, this was advice passed down to me from someone who is. If you want to know more I suggest making an appointment with your own trainer to discuss your fitness goals.

Happy Cardio-ing!