Walking or Running: What is better?
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Great start with your walking. I have had bad knees and I think it is best to start by walking and add time as well as walking faster as you can. You don't want to injure yourself and then not be able to do anything. I fast walk about 4 miles on weekends and it has helped my knees and reminds me to log in my food and exercise. I also listen to music. I agree on the biking too, I am going to start doing that soon, I think it helps to add all types of exercise. Best of luck. Karen0
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Why don't you gradually add in some short bursts of jogging to your walk and give yourself some intervals of rest and then more intensity.0
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Someone further up (sorry, haven't figured out how to quote yet) suggested adding a weighted backpack to your walks to help you lose weight. Please, please don't try this. Your current weight is enough that it wouldn't be a great plan to run because of the stress it will place on your body... adding weight and walking will not solve the problem of too much weight on your joints.
Log your food accurately and honestly, and walk whenever you can. Long walks, short walks... walk the dog, walk to the shop, walk round to visit a friend, walk to work. Whatever you can fit in whenever you feel able. Don't be afraid to have a day off or an easy day a few times a week... even pro athletes let their bodies rest sometimes!
Stuff to try if you feel like just walking is a bit boring and you want a bit more structure to it...
-Pick a big or steep hill and walk up it a few times in a row, fast walk up as much as you can, slow recovery walk back down and repeat.
-'Intervals' Walk as quick as you can between two lamposts, then recovery walk to the next lampost, then fast to the next one etc.
You can use trash cans/bins/fenceposts or whatever suits you instead of lamposts.
Running will come later. Yes, it's a faster way to burn calories, but too much too soon sees a LOT of beginner runners end up injured. Take it slow and you'll surprise yourself with how much progress you'll make even just at walking.
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Running is much better because you can get more miles in and more calories burnt. And the calorie rates for walking and running a mile are different, it takes more calories to run than walk. I can burn 3700+ calories during a marathon.
Yeah, I'm going to say no.
Truth is: the best exercise regime is, what you:
a) are able to do,
b) like to do,
c) will stick with.
Getting moving is good. Walking is a quality, low impact movement and has a lot to recommend it. There's nothing wrong with going for a run either.... but at 300lbs, walking is where you should be placing your emphasis.
Get moving and enjoy it!0 -
Running is much better because you can get more miles in and more calories burnt. And the calorie rates for walking and running a mile are different, it takes more calories to run than walk. I can burn 3700+ calories during a marathon.
Yeah, I'm going to say no.
Truth is: the best exercise regime is, what you:
a) are able to do,
b) like to do,
c) will stick with.
Getting moving is good. Walking is a quality, low impact movement and has a lot to recommend it. There's nothing wrong with going for a run either.... but at 300lbs, walking is where you should be placing your emphasis.
Get moving and enjoy it!
I feel like this is so important. Killing yourself with a workout once a week or less (because it's mentally too hard to do it more often) is so much less effective in the long run than doing moderate exercise almost every day. If it's do-able, you'll do it.0 -
If you are already experienceing leg pain from walking I wouldnt push yourself to run just yet. keep walking, thats GREAT, and when you feel like your legs are getting stronger you can start doing some light running. Remember just like when we were babies. Gotta walk before you can run.0
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Plus, another thing to mention is that walking isn't in any sense "running-lite".
It's not an inferior form of running. It's a different activity altogether - a damn fine one at that.0 -
Walking is awesome by itself and it stands "on it's own"!
I like to run also and I am staring to walk 500 steps / run 100 steps. I am going to continue this until I get more "running endurance".0 -
an early post mentioned swiming, very low impact, very recommended. you could team this with your shorter safe walks and really make some impact. Just to mention that weight loss is about 20% exercise & 80% diet, so keep that in mind & focus so you dont get disappointed & disheartened with too slow progress. The hardest bit is starting, look like you have aced that one already! 0
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correction: 75 percent diet and 25 percent exercise. but take that with a pinch of Low sodium salt.0
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Walking is better for your joints but if you want to lose a lot of weight or to meet your weekly weight goal is running because your sweating more. I just try to walk 1 to 2 miles a day which I lose from 0.5 to 1 pound a day.0
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Just to toss another option out there, at 5'9 275, the bike was a pretty good alternative to walking / running. Haven't really run into any big aches and pains yet and it's a little easier to push harder when I want to on the bike vs. running that would still be a little hard on my still large frame.
The biggest thing if you really want to get fit is to not get too caught up in what you can't do and just focus on what you can as best you can do it. Everything else gets easier as the weight drops.0 -
Running is much better because you can get more miles in and more calories burnt. And the calorie rates for walking and running a mile are different, it takes more calories to run than walk. I can burn 3700+ calories during a marathon.
No offense, but that's not helpful for someone just starting out.
Take your time. Try a walking app. I use Map My Walk. You can slowly graduate to running if your joints, lungs, and heart can handle it as you progress. Good luck!
^^This. Walk as much as you can. Add more distance as you feel ready. My calves start hurting at a fast walk, my dog and I walk 2-4 miles 5 or 6 days a week. Sometimes I jog, sometimes I just dont feel like it. Even a leisurely walk for 2 miles is better than not walking at all. I would hold off on running for awhile, lose a bit of weight and maybe jog from one mailbox to the next then walk to the next mailbox and jog, ect. Baby steps.
Great job diving back in and exercising. Good luck, and feel free to add me. I log daily.
Eta: Invest in a fitbit. Best decision I have made. My daily goal is to walk 10k steps. Last night I was 1k short at 11pm so I hopped out of bed and ran in place until I hit my goal. Really keeps me thinkig about how much I move !0 -
i find walking to be an excellent exercise - i'd rather walk longer than short shorter, as i see better results.
btw, i started having leg pain walking up and down hills. if you're not in great shape, might consider skipping the hills and see how it goes.0 -
This^.There's an old saying that seems to fit your situation.
Don't run before you can walk.
If you're getting pain from walking alone and at your current weight running is a bit too much. That's just my opinion of course, others may disagree.
Good luck in your journey.0 -
Running is much better because you can get more miles in and more calories burnt. And the calorie rates for walking and running a mile are different, it takes more calories to run than walk. I can burn 3700+ calories during a marathon.
I'm going to go ahead and disagree. I've found that whether I'm walking, hiking, running, or bicycling, my calorie burns end up being pretty much the same over a given distance. I burn 5000+ calories during a marathon... which is right in line of my average of 200 calories/ mile for all other activities.
Running and biking are "better" from a time management perspective, and an argument can be made for cardio vascular health. But the BEST exercise is the one that a person will do day in and day out.0 -
If you want to be a runner, then running is better for achieving that goal. Walking is a fine exercise, but unless you're very undertrained you aren't going to make much in the way of substantial aerobic gainz0
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When I used to run, I would start out by running electric poles on the country roads. One set of poles run, two sets walk and increase as tolerated.Walking is awesome by itself and it stands "on it's own"!
I like to run also and I am staring to walk 500 steps / run 100 steps. I am going to continue this until I get more "running endurance".
Still think OP should walk until walking is pain free, then hike some hills and finally, start to run.
And, get the leg pain checked to rule out anything more serious. I saw a lot of stress fractures in young,military basic trainees. And, those stress fractures can result in avascular necrosis, particularly of the femur, but also the tibia.0 -
I'm a nooby here also and I would like to say gratz to you on your decision to make a change 8), and get healthier. I'm 42, 5'7 and was at 265lbs up to February 2nd 2014. As of this date I'm down to 198 lbs and aiming for 160ish as per my BMI. I also started off walking in the beginning as when I tried to run I got more sore due to the excess movement of my body and weight on my knees. I started walking 2km then 3km then 4.5 for up to 2-3 months. I then started running when my body felt it was ok to do so. I'm now running 5km everyday at a pace of 35 minutes. In the end listen to your body. Another thing the road can be hard on your legs, ankles and knees maybe look in a good pair of shoes, it helped me.
Keep up the good work, and don't forget to stretch. 8)0 -
I recommend "The Complete Guide to Walking for Health, Weight Loss and Fitness" by Mark Fenton. It has a 52 week plan that starts you out at 10-20 minutes of walking per day with one day of rest for Week #1 and builds you up to doing 30-45 minutes of walking per day (with one day off) plus core exercies and cross-training on Week #52. I got my copy at Half Price Books for maybe $6 but I bet you can find it reallly cheaply on half.com0
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