Is running better for burning calories than walking?

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Replies

  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    OK so maybe some of my numbers were off. But I did read this online I think on runner's world that fast walking is tougher than slow running. at the same speed.

    But only at speeds that are, for the most part, irrelevant to the average exerciser. Barring an unusual combination of very high fitness and specific orthopedic injuries, anyone who can walk at those particular speeds (i.e. racewalking) can usually go faster and work even harder if they run.

    The information is more esoteric than practical.
  • jaygreen55
    jaygreen55 Posts: 315 Member
    Is running better than walking. I weigh 200 pounds and wish to know if running can help me lose fat better than walking on the treadmill for the same time.
    [/quote

    for same time - yes
    for same distance, not so much.

    For most people the calories per mile, whether walking or running, are similar.

    This is not true. Running burns considerably more calories per mile (about 20-30 percent) When you run you propel yourself off the ground with every step while when you walk one foot is always in contact with the ground. It takes energy to counter the force of gravity. You are also breathing deeper and more rapidly, more fully engaging your diaphragm and other respiratory muscles and your heart is beating faster as well. This requires energy as well

    That being said walking has it's advantages as well. You can walk for hours without becoming exhausted and it's much less wear and tear on your joints and ligaments
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    You burn the same amount of calories per mile. It just depends on how long it'll take you to finish the mile.

    Not true--running burns significantly greater calories than walking per unit of time or distance. When walking different speeds or running different speeds, then, yes, for the most part calories burned per mile will be similar regardless of speed. When comparing walking to running -- no.
  • marc_s_johnson
    marc_s_johnson Posts: 107 Member
    I walk for about 3-4 hours a day and burn between 400-600 calories a day but I don't eat it back because it just doesn't feel like a proper workout.

    I can't get my head around it, if I ran or do Insanity then I would but walking just just doesn't seem right to me.
  • junkie_99
    junkie_99 Posts: 26
    I would love to learn to run but i have heard Running is really hard on the joints. My ankles hurt when i start to jog never mind run.:brokenheart:

    go to a running store, and get properly fitted shoes for you. You might find a lot of pain goes away.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    It's not a question of value--moral or otherwise, It's only science.

    Calorie burn depends on intensity and weight.

    Running is more intense than walking, for the most part.

    If one can put together a combination of walking speed and elevation that reaches a sufficiently higher intensity than running at a particular speed, then yes, that combination will result in a higher calorie burn than the selected running speed (see #1). However, that occurs ONLY if one arbitrarily selects two workloads that are dissimilar.

    Equal workloads MUST burn equal calories.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    Is running better than walking. I weigh 200 pounds and wish to know if running can help me lose fat better than walking on the treadmill for the same time.

    For the same amount of time ..... yes

    Mile per mile .... not necessarily. To burn fat .... make sure walking "challenges" you.

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