Walking vs. Running
It’s the new year and those resolutions are kicking in. Maybe you have a goal of a new fitness routine and are wondering whether walking vs. running is more your speed. While fitness fads come and go, both walking and running have been staples of cardio workouts for decades. Overall, they offer similar benefits, but there are a few key differences that might make you choose one over the other. We spoke with Brianna Meyrick, a performance coach at EXOS within the adidas HQ gym in Portland, Oregon, about the differences between walking vs. running, jogging vs. running, and which might be better for you.
The Benefits of Walking and Running
Whichever form of cardio you choose, understand that they all benefit your body. “Any movement is better than no movement at all. Walking increases blood flow, leading to less stiffness and makes it easier to do general tasks. Walking is so easy, yet it's really looked over,” said Meyrick.
Both walking and running can help you maintain a healthy weight, lose body fat, improve cardiovascular and muscular strength, improve energy and sleep, improve balance, and reduce stress. Apart from these major benefits, here are a few differences between walking and running.
The benefits of walking:
- Easy to get started
- Easy to fit into your day at any time
- Low impact and accessible to a wider audience
The benefits of running:
- Increased cardiovascular intensity compared to walking
- Increased calorie burn compared to walking
- Improved strength and endurance
The benefits of jogging are mostly the same as walking and running, it just lands nicely in the middle on the scale of intensity and is a nice way to introduce running into your routine. With walking, jogging, and running, you can adjust the time, distance, or intensity to increase or decrease the amount of effort. This could look like walking for 45 minutes instead of 20, setting a goal to walk two miles, or hopping on a treadmill and increasing the elevation to get your heart rate up. The same principle applies to jogging and running.
Running vs. Walking for Weight Loss — What's the Best Type of Exercise?
With fitness, the secret sauce isn’t any one type of workout — it's consistency. The best path to weight loss is to pick a form of exercise that you will stick to. As mentioned above, walking is the easiest way for people to get active and start seeing the benefits of exercise. However, if you are already an active person looking to add more intense cardio, then you might find more enjoyment in running.
“It depends on everyone's goals. What is the ‘why’ behind what you're doing?” said Meyrick. “Pick what you enjoy and what you’ll continue to do. If you get off the couch and go right to running and hate it, you'll stop doing it. Instead, go for a walk. Slowly make your walks longer. Start integrating jogging in your walks and then work your way up to running and maybe find a new love for running.”
Tips for Getting Moving
- Meet up with a friend and catch up while going for a walk.
- Watch a show or listen to a podcast while walking on a treadmill and the time will pass before you know it.
- Find ways to walk more throughout your day. “Work toward getting at least 10,000 steps in a day. Park farther away, take the stairs, or take a 10-to-15-minute walk break at work,” said Meyrick.
- Get new running shoes for added comfort, support and motivation.
- Refresh your workout gear with new walking and running essentials.
- Build your cardiovascular endurance and strength with interval running, varying between walking, jogging and running.
Every Step Matters
All in all, choosing between running vs. walking for weight loss isn’t the question, because both are great options and can be done by all. If you have an injury or joint pain, then you might prefer walking because it’s low impact. The important thing is that you stick with whatever you enjoy to move your body through your entire life. “Your body's just like a machine and exercise is the oil,” said Meyrick. “The whole thing about fitness is finding things that you like to do, because any movement is better than no movement. I think a lot of people either want to go zero or 100, and it's really okay to go 10 or 50%. Start small and add on.” The bottom line? Just keep moving and see where it takes you on your fitness journey.