Walking with incline on treadmill

Question:
Will walking for a minimum of 60 minutes at an incline of (7.0) 7% with a speed of 3.5 or higher be effective for weight loss and the loss of inches?
additional info: this of course is being combined with controlled eating, low carb-high protein way of life. *Also I cannot run or use the elliptical as of now due to a recent surgery. I have only been cleared for treadmill use and extremely light weights (10-15 pounds.nothing higher).
Any advice or success stories welcomed and appreciated!!!!

Incline on the treadmill will increase intensity of your workout as long as you are not holding on that kind of makes the incline pointless... I have bad knee's so I tend to stick to the elliptical cause I can not take the pounding on the treadmill but prefer to walk at an incline when I am on there.... Best of Luck...

At this weight the only way I can get a good calorie burn is to raise the incline. I keep it at an incline of 15 for the 60 minutes, speed 4.0-4.5 mph. I hold on but walk upright so that I feel that in my calves, thighs and glutes. I do a two minute warm up and cool down. I am drenched afterward so I figure I burned enough.

I've been very SUCESSFUL !!!! I've walked at an incline 15-30 at a speed of 4.0 mph for 60 mins I've burned up to 1200 calories doing this !! You can do it ; )

The "trainer" at the gym I just joined told me that the benefit from the incline is minimal and that I was better off just doing intervals instead (2 or 3 minutes of higher speeds every 5 minutes or so). I thought that sounded a bit odd, how can walking on an incline NOT burn more calories?

The "trainer" at the gym I just joined told me that the benefit from the incline is minimal and that I was better off just doing intervals instead (2 or 3 minutes of higher speeds every 5 minutes or so). I thought that sounded a bit odd, how can walking on an incline NOT burn more calories?

It will. It sounds like the "trainer" is caught up in the "only interval training is good" idea that is the current fad. There is a place for higher-intensity interval training and there is a place for steady-state training (at different levels). Focusing on one to the exclusion of everything else is kind of a sign that the trainer has a limited background.

I do 2 30 minute strength training sessions a week, and when I consistently add 2 more incline walks on the treadmill, I start losing weight again. It does work! I read a book on my tablet when I do this, and I walk 2 miles in 31 minutes.

I agree with other posters who have advised NOT to hold on to the handlebars when walking at an incline. If you need to hold on, you're going to fast or at too high of an incline or both.

With practice, you'll even be able to walk at a 15% incline without holding on to anything.

From everything I have read on this subject. It depends upon your age and heart rate target. I would suggest if burning fat is your ultimate goal it does not mean you have to be at a 15% incline. I would go at brisk pace of 3.5 on the treadmill for 60 minutes and increase the incline until you reach your targeted heart rate to burn fat. As you progress , you will naturally have to increase your incline to raise your heart rate to reach this target and continue to burn fat. Here is a link http://walking.about.com/cs/calories/l/blcalcheartrate.htm to figure out heart rates.

Hi. I'm a little confused about the incline on the treadmill. If the incline on the treadmill reads 5, does that mean it's at 5%? Cause going steeper than 5 makes my lower back hurt

Also, after walking for 1 hour at 3.5-3.8 on that incline, my HRM said I burnt 912 calories! Is it crazy? Or is that actually possible?

Not at that worklaod.

Even if you kept it at 3.8 mph and 5% hill the entire hour, and you did not hold on to the hanrails, you would have to weigh over 360 lbs to burn 912 calories in an hour at that workload. I think your HRM is out of whack.

Question:
Will walking for a minimum of 60 minutes at an incline of (7.0) 7% with a speed of 3.5 or higher be effective for weight loss and the loss of inches?
additional info: this of course is being combined with controlled eating, low carb-high protein way of life. *Also I cannot run or use the elliptical as of now due to a recent surgery. I have only been cleared for treadmill use and extremely light weights (10-15 pounds.nothing higher).
Any advice or success stories welcomed and appreciated!!!!

Absolutely! It's way more than zero exercise and will burn a good amount of calories. It will also build muscle in your legs, which, in turn, will also up your metabolism and burn calories.

As others have said, incline treadmill walking is excellent for burning calories. To repeat, in order to get the most out of it, you cannot hold on to the handrails.

Research has shown that handrail support can reduce the amount of calories burned by as much as 70% (compared to what you would expect based on the speed and incline).

People who walk at high speeds and high inclines, but have to hold on for dear life, not only have bad biomechanics, but are only burning a fraction of the calories they think they are.

It it much better to start with a slower speed (in the 2.5-3.0 mph range) and learn to tolerate the higher inclines (10%-15%)--it's the incline that really adds the itensity--without handrail support. It takes some getting used to -- your back will get a little achy at first-- but it pays off in the long run.

It might be a 10-20% difference..No way is it 70%..I walk at very high inclines and my heart rate is much higher holding onto the front rail compared to walking at a 10% incline and not holding on..Plus I can feel it my legs much more at 30-40% incline holding on the rails..Plus my lower back is much stronger now then it was before I started..

Note that I used the term "as much as". So, no, not every instance of handrail support will be off by 70%--it is a range, with the highest amount at the higher combinations of speed and elevation.

And, rereading this, I realize I am unclear what you are disputing. The discrepancy in numbers that I am citing is the difference between the numbers displayed on the console and what one is actually burning. It is not a comparison of completely different workloads. If you are working at a 30%-40% incline, you have to hold on and so you don't know what your actual workload is. So there is really no way to compare that to "walking at a 10% incline" especially since you haven't mentioned the speed. It's not like EVERY incidence of walking without support MUST be greater than every instance of walking with handrail support. Again, going up to 40% is beyond the limits of human capability. So it stands to reason that, even with holding on and offsetting a large chunk of the actual workload, you could still be working harder than doing another workload walking unsupported.

The study that demonstrated the effects of handrail support replaced the handrail on a treadmill with a device that measured the actual force exerted hanging on to the rails. It also compared the effects of walking assisted and unassisted. It was very well designed (probably published 25 years ago when we were still doing real graded exercise testing in clinical settings). The 70% figure came during the 4th stage of the Bruce protocol, with a workload of 4.2 mph and 16% incline.

You can do whatever you want. If you like the effect that you get from those kinds of workouts, that's fine. I am only presenting the science so that people can judge what is best for them. And the science is that handrail support can sharply reduce the number of calories actually burnt compared to what is on the display. That's something that many people don't seem to understand, based on my conversations on this website and with some of our members. If you like the feeling of walking at a steep incline and feel it provides unique benefits, and you are not counting the exercise calories on the display, that's perfectly fine. I am just saying that, in terms of aerobic training and calorie burning, there is nothing that can be done on that type of treadmill that cannot be achieved on a regular one, so people should not purchase one because they think they are going to get a unique calorie-burning experience.

My concern is never with anyone who knows what they are getting and enjoys their purchase. It is with those who get taken in by misleading advertising and end up thinking they are getting something that they are not. Or limiting themselves to a niche exercise piece when they wanted something more versatile.

hmm... I don't hold on cuz I need to - it just feel natural (I hold onto the top)...but most of the time I'm running and can't hold onto nothing. I wonder how bad is it really?

As others have said, incline treadmill walking is excellent for burning calories. To repeat, in order to get the most out of it, you cannot hold on to the handrails.

Research has shown that handrail support can reduce the amount of calories burned by as much as 70% (compared to what you would expect based on the speed and incline).

People who walk at high speeds and high inclines, but have to hold on for dear life, not only have bad biomechanics, but are only burning a fraction of the calories they think they are.

It it much better to start with a slower speed (in the 2.5-3.0 mph range) and learn to tolerate the higher inclines (10%-15%)--it's the incline that really adds the itensity--without handrail support. It takes some getting used to -- your back will get a little achy at first-- but it pays off in the long run.

It might be a 10-20% difference..No way is it 70%..I walk at very high inclines and my heart rate is much higher holding onto the front rail compared to walking at a 10% incline and not holding on..Plus I can feel it my legs much more at 30-40% incline holding on the rails..Plus my lower back is much stronger now then it was before I started..

Note that I used the term "as much as". So, no, not every instance of handrail support will be off by 70%--it is a range, with the highest amount at the higher combinations of speed and elevation.

And, rereading this, I realize I am unclear what you are disputing. The discrepancy in numbers that I am citing is the difference between the numbers displayed on the console and what one is actually burning. It is not a comparison of completely different workloads. If you are working at a 30%-40% incline, you have to hold on and so you don't know what your actual workload is. So there is really no way to compare that to "walking at a 10% incline" especially since you haven't mentioned the speed. It's not like EVERY incidence of walking without support MUST be greater than every instance of walking with handrail support. Again, going up to 40% is beyond the limits of human capability. So it stands to reason that, even with holding on and offsetting a large chunk of the actual workload, you could still be working harder than doing another workload walking unsupported.

The study that demonstrated the effects of handrail support replaced the handrail on a treadmill with a device that measured the actual force exerted hanging on to the rails. It also compared the effects of walking assisted and unassisted. It was very well designed (probably published 25 years ago when we were still doing real graded exercise testing in clinical settings). The 70% figure came during the 4th stage of the Bruce protocol, with a workload of 4.2 mph and 16% incline.

You can do whatever you want. If you like the effect that you get from those kinds of workouts, that's fine. I am only presenting the science so that people can judge what is best for them. And the science is that handrail support can sharply reduce the number of calories actually burnt compared to what is on the display. That's something that many people don't seem to understand, based on my conversations on this website and with some of our members. If you like the feeling of walking at a steep incline and feel it provides unique benefits, and you are not counting the exercise calories on the display, that's perfectly fine. I am just saying that, in terms of aerobic training and calorie burning, there is nothing that can be done on that type of treadmill that cannot be achieved on a regular one, so people should not purchase one because they think they are going to get a unique calorie-burning experience.

My concern is never with anyone who knows what they are getting and enjoys their purchase. It is with those who get taken in by misleading advertising and end up thinking they are getting something that they are not. Or limiting themselves to a niche exercise piece when they wanted something more versatile.

Studies are a dime a dozen. Especially one done 25 years ago. There are so many variables. It probably depends on where you hold onto a rail. Is it the side rail or the front rail. How extended are your arms..Do you lean forward and support a lot of your weight. What's the speed. How fit is the individual doing the clinical study. How much do they weigh. Walking at 4.2 mph at a 16% incline as mentioned in the clinical setting is hard to do..Many can't walk 4.2 mph at no incline..So if the person in the study has really bad form and can barely keep up. Then maybe it is 70%. But way, way out of the norm imo. Every scenario is going to be different.

When I walk up an incline of 30-40% at 2.5 - 3 mph holding onto the front rail. My heart rate is higher compared to running at 5-6 mph at no incline..That's one of the reasons I bought a treadmill with such a high incline..You do get more out of a high incline treadmill compared to most treadmills. Most treadmills stop at a 15% incline. I wanted something different then the usual. So I would disagree with you about comparing a normal treadmill (10-15% incline) to a treadmill that goes up to 40%. I don't know if I would call it a unique calorie burning experience..I call it one hell of a workout. Better then any treadmill I've ever been on. Just walking, you heart rate will rise much faster compared to a treadmill that stops at 15% at similar speeds.

There were no misleading advertisements. I found it online searching for over 2 months for a treadmill. I didn't even know that treadmills went up to a 40% incline. Once I saw it and knew that was the one for me. The price was reasonable. Completely satisfied and would recommend it to anyone looking for a treadmill without hesitation.

I started walking the treadmill at an incline about a month ago. I can already see a huge difference in my thighs, hips, waist, and most importantly - my booty. I alternate incline (8-12) and speed (3.2-4.2) for 35-60 minutes about 4 times a week. I've never really been much for exercise, but I also know that I won't continue losing if I don't step it up - literally. I am a big fan of the incline on the treadmill!

I walk at a 15 incline 3.0 speed for 30+ minute everyday