Walking.... exercise or lifestyle?

ahadj
ahadj Posts: 257 Member
edited September 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
I walk anywhere from 1-2 (sometimes 3) miles a day getting to and from school and walking around the city for lunch, etc. I chose sedentary lifestyle because I am sitting in classes all day, and I simply count the walking towards exercise. But should I choose lightly active if the walking is part of my daily routine, even if the amount of walking I'm doing varies? The reasons I elected to count it as exercise in the first place were good and bad: 1) I think it was sort of a cop-out so that I could log exercise without having to go to the gym, but 2) I find that I push myself to walk more, or a little faster, knowing that "every step counts".

Thoughts?

Replies

  • Sigra
    Sigra Posts: 374 Member
    I think it's a good idea to count your walking in as your exercise. Even though it might be part of your lifestyle - that is the point of losing weight. You want to change your lifestyle to adapt exercise into it. - If you've already making walking a lifestyle choice then you're on the right path!

    Before I starting coming to MPF, about 5years ago. I lost a bunch of weight. And not because I was thinking about it, but because I had a stand up job! And while it was part of my daily routine to walk anywhere from 4-9hrs a week there was enough exercise within my lifestyle to allow me to lose that weight.

    :) I say keep the walking in your diary, so that if you end up not walking, you can incorporate something else!
  • Upanddown
    Upanddown Posts: 35 Member
    Well....you seem to have lost 25 pounds already without having joined a gym....lol...so I'd say the walking is already working for you. Now that your also watching what you eat....the two combined together must be exactly what you need. Your losing weight and everything seems to be working....why change whats not broken?? =-) The fact that you are now aware of perhaps doing a little more than you already do is awareness enough.....I say "keep up the good work"! =D
  • MyNameIsNotBob
    MyNameIsNotBob Posts: 565 Member
    I walk 2-5 miles daily like you: to and from work, walking the dog, etc. I walk at a moderate pace. Until now, I've been logging my walks as cardio, but this week I'm not going to log them. I'm at a frustrating plateau, and I figure if I've been walking this much for 5 years without losing weight, then I shouldn't count it as exercise. I set my activity level to lightly active (I also move around a lot at work). We'll see if this helps.
  • ahadj
    ahadj Posts: 257 Member
    Well....you seem to have lost 25 pounds already without having joined a gym....lol...so I'd say the walking is already working for you. Now that your also watching what you eat....the two combined together must be exactly what you need. Your losing weight and everything seems to be working....why change whats not broken?? =-) The fact that you are now aware of perhaps doing a little more than you already do is awareness enough.....I say "keep up the good work"! =

    I wish it was that easy! :) Actually I had been going to the gym to help lose the weight, I just recently (about a month and a half ago) stopped going due to a knee injury. I am trying to ease back into it, but I am definitely not at a point where I can be going to the gym 5x a week just yet...
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