walking vs. running calories

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AlwaysWanderer
AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Is there a difference? Does it matter to your body if you burn 500 cals walking or 500 cals running? It will obviously take longer to burn calories while walking, but is it less beneficial?
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  • gr8birdie
    gr8birdie Posts: 42 Member
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    I walk and it is easier on my knees. I also burn a lot more calories on my treadclimber then people do on a regular treadmill. I burn about 560 calories in 34 minutes. It is more about time for me because I don't want to spend all day working out and walking.
  • sam23030
    sam23030 Posts: 76
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    I would be interested in learning the answer to this.

    I used to walk a bit to burn my calories and decided recently to take up jogging. After only two days of jogging all my leg and bum muscles ache so in that respect I would say it will probably help you tone and get some definition, also it gets your heart rate up a lot more and exercises your lungs so I would say jogging has it's benefits.
  • Limeinthecoconut
    Limeinthecoconut Posts: 234 Member
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    Running is more time effective, walking better on joints. That's about it. :)

    I love to run though. You get results much faster if you push your body as much as you can, so running is the better option for most people.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    Running burns more calories than walking because you burn more oxygen while running over the same distance. Here is a really great article on the topic: http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-304-311-8402-0,00.html

    Here's a small excerpt for those who don't have time to read it:

    Result: The men burned an average of 124 calories while running, and just 88 while walking; the women burned 105 and 74. (The men burned more than the women because they weighed more.)
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    Running will improve your cardiorespiratory fitness moreso than walking, since it challenges you more in that area. If you're looking for all-over fitness and not concerned about just calorie burn, you should be looking to push and challenge yourself when working out - you do this by pushing either Intensity (speed - jog or run instead of walk), duration(how long you walk/run) or frequency (how often you exercise). Check out this blog post where I summarize the basic info about cardio.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/accountant_boi/view/cardio-not-just-about-calorie-burn-82317
  • AlwaysWanderer
    AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
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    I just hate running... I make myself do it, but still hate it. On the other side I could walk 15 miles and love every minute of it (I do it every weekend), so I wonder if I could get away with just walking...
  • Anna_15
    Anna_15 Posts: 22
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    I would say definitely running for 500 calories is more beneficial that walking for 500 calories... you really can't beat jogging or running even in short intervals for raising your heart rate and improving cardiovascular health - and burning fat off! :) Still, if you have the time to walk for that long in a day then every little helps
  • AlwaysWanderer
    AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
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    Well, gotta get some good running shoes then... :frown:
  • DebiP10
    DebiP10 Posts: 275 Member
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    I hate running as it hurts my knees so i tend to use the treadmill to walk at a fast pace of around 6-5 -7 and have the incline set at 15, the maximum and i get a great burn, heart rate nice and high, takes a little longer but if you got time why not, better than damaging your knees and not being able to do anything.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    Well, gotta get some good running shoes then... :frown:

    If you hate running, why don't you find a different activity? There's swimming, bike riding, rollerblading, etc. The list goes on and on. Walking/jogging/running aren't the end-all-be-all of cardio, and if you're looking to up your fitness level, going from walking to running isn't your only option. Just a thought... Personally, I like running so that's my cardio of choice, but I'm not fond of swimming and can't see myself spending a ton of time doing something I'm really not that fond of.
  • bbb84
    bbb84 Posts: 418 Member
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    I think the key point here is just moving in general. They say the best exercise is one that you can stick with, if you are going to hate running, you are less likely to do it on the regular. You are burning calories either way and yes , running has it's benefits but it is not the end all be all solution to losing weight and getting fit. You have to do what works for you. In closing you get out what you put in, as long as you are working hard and pushing yourself that's all that matters!
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
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    Well, gotta get some good running shoes then... :frown:

    If you hate running, why don't you find a different activity? There's swimming, bike riding, rollerblading, etc. The list goes on and on. Walking/jogging/running aren't the end-all-be-all of cardio, and if you're looking to up your fitness level, going from walking to running isn't your only option. Just a thought... Personally, I like running so that's my cardio of choice, but I'm not fond of swimming and can't see myself spending a ton of time doing something I'm really not that fond of.

    What Trent said. If you find that running isn't your deal, then move on to something you enjoy. If you don't enjoy something you're less likely to do it.

    My wife thinks people who run long distances have a screw loose in their heads. I think she's right, maybe that's why I'm still running.

    And one other thing. My knees feel much better after I started running.

    To the Original Topic. The running vs walking calories has been a point of debate. I understand the theories and the arguments. From personal experience you I find it hard to beleive walking for the same amount of calories gives you the same benefit as running for the same calories.
  • breezey77
    breezey77 Posts: 89 Member
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    Thanks for asking this question! I would prefer to walk too. I will do intervals maybe, walk a few minutes, jog/run a few minutes.
  • AlwaysWanderer
    AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
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    There just isnt that much to do around my town... I love swimming but we only got one gym with a swimming pool, and its got so much chlorine in it that it makes me sick... I cycle about 16 miles from work every weekday, so dont really want to do it more... and I dont want to go to a gym in the spring/summer. seems like a waste of money, and I really enjoy outdoors. Maybe I hate running cz I cant do it well? I'm able to run about 4 miles streight (on a good day), but any more kills me. Any other suggestions as of what I could do?
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    There just isnt that much to do around my town... I love swimming but we only got one gym with a swimming pool, and its got so much chlorine in it that it makes me sick... I cycle about 16 miles from work every weekday, so dont really want to do it more... and I dont want to go to a gym in the spring/summer. seems like a waste of money, and I really enjoy outdoors. Maybe I hate running cz I cant do it well? I'm able to run about 4 miles streight (on a good day), but any more kills me. Any other suggestions as of what I could do?

    C25k - it's an interval program designed to ease people into running for longer distances. If you can already do 4 miles, you might look up "Bridge to 10k" which pushes you a bit further. I downloaded C25k and B210K apps onto my phone - it beeped to tell me when to walk and when to jog/run. Very useful.
  • AlwaysWanderer
    AlwaysWanderer Posts: 641 Member
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    There just isnt that much to do around my town... I love swimming but we only got one gym with a swimming pool, and its got so much chlorine in it that it makes me sick... I cycle about 16 miles from work every weekday, so dont really want to do it more... and I dont want to go to a gym in the spring/summer. seems like a waste of money, and I really enjoy outdoors. Maybe I hate running cz I cant do it well? I'm able to run about 4 miles streight (on a good day), but any more kills me. Any other suggestions as of what I could do?

    C25k - it's an interval program designed to ease people into running for longer distances. If you can already do 4 miles, you might look up "Bridge to 10k" which pushes you a bit further. I downloaded C25k and B210K apps onto my phone - it beeped to tell me when to walk and when to jog/run. Very useful.
    I think I'll do that... Are you just starting? Maybe we could do it together... BTW, are you really an accountant?
  • ♥Violette♥4Ever♥
    ♥Violette♥4Ever♥ Posts: 457 Member
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    I hate running as it hurts my knees so i tend to use the treadmill to walk at a fast pace of around 6-5 -7 and have the incline set at 15, the maximum and i get a great burn, heart rate nice and high, takes a little longer but if you got time why not, better than damaging your knees and not being able to do anything.

    I do the same thing. I can't run do to injuring my knee years ago while training for a marathon so I walk briskly and set the treadmill on the highest incline which is 15. I burn over 600 cals in 35 mins that includes a 5 minute cool down, Then I do 30 to 40 mins of weights alternating arms and legs
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    There just isnt that much to do around my town... I love swimming but we only got one gym with a swimming pool, and its got so much chlorine in it that it makes me sick... I cycle about 16 miles from work every weekday, so dont really want to do it more... and I dont want to go to a gym in the spring/summer. seems like a waste of money, and I really enjoy outdoors. Maybe I hate running cz I cant do it well? I'm able to run about 4 miles streight (on a good day), but any more kills me. Any other suggestions as of what I could do?

    C25k - it's an interval program designed to ease people into running for longer distances. If you can already do 4 miles, you might look up "Bridge to 10k" which pushes you a bit further. I downloaded C25k and B210K apps onto my phone - it beeped to tell me when to walk and when to jog/run. Very useful.
    I think I'll do that... Are you just starting? Maybe we could do it together... BTW, are you really an accountant?

    Ha - yes, I'm an accountant. :)

    I'm actually not doing the programs anymore - I've "graduated" and recently ran my first 10k. Now I'm working to improve my endurance/speed and prepare for another 10k on Memorial Day. However, there are *tons* of people doing either of these on MFP, so I'm sure you can find a group of folks to check in with if that's what you want to do.
  • parvati
    parvati Posts: 432 Member
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    If you are simply looking to burn calories, it doesn't matter if you walk, run, swim, bike ect...
    Your body has different energy systems that it uses for different activities. Running obviously will burn calories faster & will improve your cardiorespiratory system.

    Another option is to add a bit of interval training to your walks... After your initial warm up, try walking 1 1/2 minutes & then running for 30 seconds, continue for about 15 minutes then finish your walk... This is a great start to interval training.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
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    Running and walking in intervals is probably better for you than straight running, anyway. There are a lot of proponents of interval training in general. It supposedly burns more calories well past the time you stop exercising. It's also easier on your joints.

    My sister, who runs marathons, does them in intervals. She runs 6 minutes and walks 1. She says for 5Ks, she runs 3 minutes and walks 1. I'm shooting for the latter as I work my way up to 5K. I have no intention of straight running for long distances, ever.

    Here's a guide:

    What's the Burn? A Calorie Calculator
    You can use the formulas below to determine your calorie-burn while running and walking. The "Net Calorie Burn" measures calories burned, minus basal metabolism. Scientists consider this the best way to evaluate the actual calorie-burn of any exercise. The walking formulas apply to speeds of 3 to 4 mph. At 5 mph and faster, walking burns more calories than running.

    Your Total Calorie Burn/Mile ---- Your Net Calorie Burn/Mile
    Running ---- .75 x your weight (in lbs.) ---- .63 x your weight
    Walking ---- .53 x your weight ---- .30 x your weight

    Adapted from "Energy Expenditure of Walking and Running," Medicine & Science in Sport & Exercise, Cameron et al, Dec. 2004.

    Edited to add: Ugh, sorry, the spacing won't stay, hopefully it's still understandable.

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