Why do people disregard walking?

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Replies

  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
    "It is not that you cannot get in cardio in those ways, but rather that you are paying money for something so basic and natural to human function. I can understand specific instances why these two methods would be preferred to actual walking, but outside of those reasons it is a bit of a head scratcher."


    Um, I live in a semi-unsafe neighborhood. Loose dogs EVERYWHERE, shady people, no sidewalks, cars that drive fifty miles an hour down the road. I'm really uncomfortable walking in my neighborhood. Our city has one nice walking park....all the way across town from me. I cannot drive there everyday, it would waste a fortune in gas. Of course, I love to go to the walking park when I can, but it's not practical for everyday.

    This is one of the specific instances I was referring to.
  • prettigirl01
    prettigirl01 Posts: 548 Member
    the only exercise I do is walking and I don't care what people say about it
  • willdob3
    willdob3 Posts: 640 Member
    If you like to walk for exercise go ahead and walk. Let it work for you. Ignore the critics.

    We don't all need to do the exact same things.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I expected rudeness.....you are the ignorance I speak of.....THANK YOU for proving my point.

    Where was the rudeness? You asked a question and I gave you the answer from my perspective. Surely you did not think everyone would think that Walking DVDs are great?

    As for ignorance, I think you are confused about what that means. I actually think walking (actual walking outside, not a treadmill or DVD) is a great way to get in some cardio, relax, and get to know your neighborhood.

    Sorry if you already covered this but there are too many pages to go back and read. Why do you think that walking on a treadmill or to a DVD is not a great way to get in some cardio?

    It is not that you cannot get in cardio in those ways, but rather that you are paying money for something so basic and natural to human function. I can understand specific instances why these two methods would be preferred to actual walking, but outside of those reasons it is a bit of a head scratcher.

    Allergies or asthma could make walking indoor prefereable. Having small children, living in a dangerous neighborhood, liking to watch TV as a distraction, living in a climate or terrain that makes outside not pleasant, I can think of dozens of reasons, including simply different strokes for different folks.
  • louisegibbs85
    louisegibbs85 Posts: 304 Member
    I constantly walk it is my main source of exercise, I've lost 74lb without stepping foot into a gym once so it must be doing something!
  • rgraham1
    rgraham1 Posts: 2 Member
    I walk by myself and with my kids. I think walking is great exercise. Anytime you get out there and commit yourself to some kind of exercise its good. I do try to mix it up but walking is just another tool to stay fit and lose weight.
  • ginamac1984
    ginamac1984 Posts: 4 Member
    Keep doing Leslie Sansone you are getting a great workout. I also use her DVD's and I love them. Like you I have found that I like doing her DVD's, and I feel like any thing that makes me get up and move is definitely worth continuing. Keep up the good work.
  • JackieB42
    JackieB42 Posts: 4 Member
    Fantastic! I am aiming to lose 50 lbs and am happiest to walk, not jog. I do use the elliptical at the gym sometimes but not happily! I love walking in the neighbourhood and am worried as winter is coming.
  • KellySue67
    KellySue67 Posts: 1,006 Member
    I love walking!! I do go to the gym 2-3 days per week, but on my off days I try to walk at least 2 miles/day and on the weekends if walk 3.5-5miles/day. It's a great stress reliever and I know I definitely burn some calories. I have lost 71lbs by using walking as one of my most frequent exercises!
  • xSirensSong
    xSirensSong Posts: 615 Member
    Hi, there. I too am a walker, I walk every morning & try to get another walk in every evening & am upping the mileage every day. I will say that from a recent appointment with my doctor, she informed me that a new study came out stating that leisurely walking does absolutely nothing for weight loss. She suggested walking leisurely for 1 minute, then a brisk walk or jog for 2 minutes & repeat, or something like this, depending on how long you can briskly walk/jog comfortably & still feel motivated enough afterwards to keep doing it. Just a thought. :)

    Keep it up, fellow walkers! Get that heart rate a-goin'! :D
  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
    If you like to walk for exercise go ahead and walk. Let it work for you. Ignore the critics.

    We don't all need to do the exact same things.

    And that is fine, I could care less what another person does for exercise. Just don't expect me to be excited or interested when you talk about it. :tongue:
  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
    Don't pay them any attention, walking is a good way to exercise. If it's something that you enjoy doing and stick with, that's what's important.
  • karenh3585
    karenh3585 Posts: 27 Member
    I walk with my 3 dogs almost every day. It gives me time to think, get outside into nature, and since I live in a hilly area it really is a great workout.

    I just wish more people would take their dogs with them as it's great exercise for the pups too!
  • jeffd247
    jeffd247 Posts: 319 Member
    Are you getting the results you want? I love walking and have been getting the results I want, but I don't feel like it can continue to be my only source of exercise.

    There are merits to walking every day, but resistance training and other cardio is really going to help you as you get closer to your goal. I'm just to the point where I have started doing those things again.

    Again if you are getting the results you want, ignore negative outside forces.
  • DymonNdaRgh40
    DymonNdaRgh40 Posts: 661 Member
    Walking is my favorite workout! I put my iPod on and just go.... clear my head, love it.
  • csuhar
    csuhar Posts: 779 Member
    I think if you're counting walking around your house as exercise it's a cop out but if you didn't exercise, and you started going on hour long walks every day and you are walking a lot more that you were in your previous life etc. then why isn't it exercise?!?

    From what I've seen, this can tend to be one of the reasons some people scoff at the idea of walking as exercise.

    Sometimes you'll get people who will want to count their "incidental" walking- walking done for the sake of accomplishing other things, such as chores and shopping. This isn't bad, because any additional activity is good when you're trying ot be active. The issue is how you categorize and log it accurately because the stop-and-go nature of the activities means you can't use the total time to determine the duration of the exercise. Because it's hard to quantify, it means you're at greater risk of overestimating what you've burned.

    I may be at the grocery store for an hour, but that doesn't mean I was walking for an hour (especially on crowded days). That's why I like to use a pedometer to measure my walking during the course of my normal day.

    On the flip-side, you have dedicated walking that is done specifically as a workout in its own right. This kind of activity is much more easily quantified and, therefore, easier to log with a greater degree of accuracy. When I walk for exercise, I know I walked X distance in Y minutes without stopping so I have an average speed to use when calculating my activity.
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
    Everybody walks every day. It's just that the other 7 billion of us don't call it "exercise."

    The MFP debate about what is exercise or is not exercise is old and useless. Walking burns the same number of calories if you call it or exercise, walking, or an afternoon break from work.
    Who said anything about a debate. Typing smart allec responses on the forums burns calories. Why's erryone gotta hate on my preferred form of exercise?
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Everybody walks every day. It's just that the other 7 billion of us don't call it "exercise."
    Perhaps. But then we look at nations (or cities) where folks walk a lot. Not huge obesity problems there....

    Does it matter if it's called exercise? The mantra here is: eat less move more. Walking is moving.


    fwiw: I alternate running, cycling and walking. I don't disregard any of them (nor my weight lifting).
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
    Everybody walks every day. It's just that the other 7 billion of us don't call it "exercise."
    Perhaps. But then we look at nations (or cities) where folks walk a lot. Not huge obesity problems there....

    Does it matter if it's called exercise?
    What matters is I that get my typing calories.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Everybody walks every day. It's just that the other 7 billion of us don't call it "exercise."
    Perhaps. But then we look at nations (or cities) where folks walk a lot. Not huge obesity problems there....

    Does it matter if it's called exercise?
    What matters is I that get my typing calories.
    ditto!:drinker:
  • Slacker16
    Slacker16 Posts: 1,184 Member
    Since I don't like to run, I get most of my cardio from walking. It's pleasant, easily integrated into day-to-day life and keeps me in shape for hiking. I don't log every step I take since most of it would be covered under general calorie expense, but I have started logging when I walk to and/or from work (1 hr) and when I go take long walks on weekends.

    Incidentally, MFP way over-evaluates the calories spent while walking. More precisely, it lumps the base metabolic rate in with the calories burned so that the base gets counted twice.

    This article seems to be well-researched:
    http://www.runnersworld.com/weight-loss/how-many-calories-are-you-really-burning?page=single

    They say that the net calorie expense when walking at a normal speed is around 0.3 x (distance in miles) x (weight in pounds). I've computed my average speed (google maps helps) and made a custom exercise so I can log my walks semi-accurately.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Everybody walks every day. It's just that the other 7 billion of us don't call it "exercise."
    Perhaps. But then we look at nations (or cities) where folks walk a lot. Not huge obesity problems there....

    Does it matter if it's called exercise? The mantra here is: eat less move more. Walking is moving.


    fwiw: I alternate running, cycling and walking. I don't disregard any of them (nor my weight lifting).

    Pretty much this. I put on 30 lbs in one year when I moved from Paris, where I was walking a lot just going to work etc, to the US... What matters in the end is that you're more active when you walk.
  • arabianhorselover
    arabianhorselover Posts: 1,488 Member
    At least at this point, walking is my main cardio exercise.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    Well, I am/was a runner. I love speed. Let's go fast, let's get over it and be done. Half dead, I will still run.
    Walking? ha Ha ha!) I never get sweaty... it a waste of time... it doesn't even raise my b. pressure.... I don't understand why people chose this as a sport...

    Well, I got older, hopefully, I got wiser a bit. Everybody has different needs!

    The great thing is you do it and helps you to reach your goal!

    walk on:))))
    Because not everyone is you?
  • People disregard any lifestyle choice that they haven't practically experienced the results off. My dad is a heart patient and has taken amazing care of himself just by walking after dinner every day. I'm a big cardio fan at the gym, but even on days I can't get into the gym I walk around the mall, or back and forth from school. I avoid taking a car or the bus unless its really lousy weather. You can easily fit walking into your day, even a trip to the grocery store by foot adds up a lot in the long run. Tried and tested :) Don't give up on what works for you and tune out the naysayers
  • Mslmesq
    Mslmesq Posts: 1,000 Member
    I walk every day. And I intend to for the rest of my life. My grandma walked every day also. About 5 miles a day into her 90's. She lived until 96. My mom was lazy and never walked or did any exercise. Now she is not medically capable of walking. Bet she wishes she had walked more when she could.

    Walking is good exercise, it's easy, it's free, it's meditative, you can do it with your pet, you can do it with a friend, you can do it with a mate, or you can do it alone.

    Walk on. I intend to. :-)
  • x1v16
    x1v16 Posts: 66
    I do leslie sansome as well! Right now I do the 1 mile walk, 20-30 minute break, another mile, 20-30 minute break, and if I feel good another mile. She makes me work up a sweat and it certainly is more difficult than what you would think of as walking in place.

    Personally I find ALL workout video people's voices annoying, so I mute it and have another video playing on the other half of the screen. I just imitate what she's doing while watching something interesting and fun. Wouldn't do it any other way.
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
    I just walked 6km to get my yoghurt, then walked it again carrying the damn 6.4kg dog in my arms the whole way,



    Think it's still not exercise?
  • RaggedyPond
    RaggedyPond Posts: 1,487 Member
    Walking is for people who's time means nothing.
  • joshdann
    joshdann Posts: 618 Member
    Walking is for people who's time means nothing.
    I suppose spelling is, too.