Hello Everybody,
As well as walking for fitness and general enjoyment we are, of course, walking for weight loss. We don’t need to get too technical over this. After all how to lose weight can be summed up in five words, ‘Eat less and walk more’ Having said that I was most interested in an article by Wendy Bumgardner showing how walking for weight loss works. It gives more detail than one usually finds and also includes a chart from which you can work out exactly how many calories you are burning per mile of walking. Here it is:
‘Weight is determined mostly by the balance of calories - how many you burn vs. how many you eat each day. To lose weight, you need to increase your activity to burn more and/or eat fewer calories each day.
Calories and Weight
A pound of fat equals 3500 calories. To lose 1 pound a week you will need to expend 3500 more calories than you eat that week, whether through increased activity or decreased eating or both. Losing 1-2 pounds of fat a week is a sensible goal, and so you will want to use the combination of increased activity and eating less that will total 3500 calories for 7 days.
How You Burn Calories
Your weight x distance = energy used walking. Time does not matter as much as distance. If you speed up to walking a mile in 13 minutes or less, you will be burning more calories per mile. But for most beginning walkers, it is best to increase the distance before working on speed. A simple rule of thumb is 100 calories per mile for a 180 pound person.
Note About the Calories Chart
You burn more calories per mile at very low speeds because you are basically stopping and starting with each step and your momentum isn’t helping to carry you along. Meanwhile, at very high walking speeds you are using more muscle groups with arm motion and with a racewalking stride. Those extra muscles burn up extra calories with each step. Running may burn more calories per mile as there is an up and down motion lifting your weight off the ground as well as moving it forward.
Calories burned per mile by walking
The chart of callories burned per mile is based on MET research - metabolic equivalents of various activities.
|
Speed/Pounds
|
100 lb
|
120 lb
|
140 lb
|
160 lb
|
180 lb
|
200 lb
|
220 lb
|
250 lb
|
275 lb
|
300 lb
|
|
2.0mph
|
57
|
68
|
80
|
91
|
102
|
114
|
125
|
142
|
156
|
170
|
|
2.5mph
|
55
|
65
|
76
|
87
|
98
|
109
|
120
|
136
|
150
|
164
|
|
3.0mph
|
53
|
64
|
74
|
85
|
95
|
106
|
117
|
133
|
146
|
159
|
|
3.5mph
|
52
|
62
|
73
|
83
|
94
|
104
|
114
|
130
|
143
|
156
|
|
4.0mph
|
57
|
68
|
80
|
91
|
102
|
114
|
125
|
142
|
156
|
170
|
|
4.5mph
|
64
|
76
|
89
|
102
|
115
|
127
|
140
|
159
|
175
|
191
|
|
5.0mph
|
73
|
87
|
102
|
116
|
131
|
145
|
160
|
182
|
200
|
218
|
I hope that was of interest. The concept of faster and further should be considered with care when you are walking for weight loss. As I always say start slow and only move up a level when you feel really comfortable at doing so.
See you soon,
Peter Stockwell
Add A Comment