has anyone lost weight by walking?

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  • melonaulait
    melonaulait Posts: 769 Member
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    I don't lose weight from walking, but walking is the exercise I mostly do. I don't have access to a gym, or a bicycle, and I don't have any shoes suitable for running/jogging.
  • coalz
    coalz Posts: 308 Member
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    I had a trainer once tell me that, in order for walking to count as cardio, you have to go 4 mph. Well my legs are so short that, at that speed, I would have to jog. Sooo, 3.5 it is for me :) Also, you burn more calories when you pump your arms. Feels a little silly I know! I also have friends who attach ankle & wrist weights when they walk or carry xtra weight in their backpacks. It's really all about whatever works best for you so, invest in some decent walking shoes & hit the trails.
  • Wynterbourne
    Wynterbourne Posts: 2,220 Member
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    rosebarnalice wrote: »
    Calorie deficit means that you burn fewer calories than you consume.

    Walking can help burn more calories (I went on a 1 hour walk today that burned about 275 calories.)

    You have a small typo there. The definition you gave would be for a caloric surplus, not a deficit. Burn more than you consume for a deficit not fewer.
  • tomteboda
    tomteboda Posts: 2,171 Member
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    coalz wrote: »
    I had a trainer once tell me that, in order for walking to count as cardio, you have to go 4 mph. Well my legs are so short that, at that speed, I would have to jog. Sooo, 3.5 it is for me :) Also, you burn more calories when you pump your arms. Feels a little silly I know! I also have friends who attach ankle & wrist weights when they walk or carry xtra weight in their backpacks. It's really all about whatever works best for you so, invest in some decent walking shoes & hit the trails.

    Your trainer may have had a personal financial interest in keeping you in the gym.

    Now to address the original post:

    Walking certainly helps me maintain a caloric deficit. It has also helped tone my body and is amazing for stress-relief. My legs are the spiffiest they've been since I was 19 and I'm nearly twice that age now.
  • susanhung22
    susanhung22 Posts: 11 Member
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    Yes! walking on the treadmill on a 15% incline is a burner or find some hills in your area :D and conquer those
  • tomw86
    tomw86 Posts: 71 Member
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    I typically walk a minimum of 7 miles a day thanks to my job (in all weathers too I should add) so tend to only use the gym once or twice a week for weight work. Although it gets logged automatically thanks to auto sync I don't eat any of the walking calories back because I've allowed for them in my basic activity setting. I'm 61lbs down so far so I think it's working - but it really is all about the calorie deficit :-)
  • Livgetfit
    Livgetfit Posts: 352 Member
    edited March 2016
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    Wysewoman53 wrote: »
    SuperSizeMeNot wrote: »
    Wysewoman53 wrote: »
    I have! So far, I have lost 41 lbs and all I have done is walk and count calories. I walk enough steps a day to make sure I have a calorie deficit every day.

    how long did it take you?

    Four months but I didn't start MFP until a couple of days after Christmas which has helped immensely. I am 2 lbs away from my first goal and then will set a new one. By the time I am done, I will have lost 68 lbs. I consume between 1000-1200 calories a day.

    Congratulatioms! Amazing progress
  • tlucas69
    tlucas69 Posts: 74 Member
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    Helps to get your heart rate up while walking. Work up a sweat. Guaranteed you'll burn calories. I wear a heart rate monitor and 2.5 lb ankle weights and just walk for about 35 minutes on my lunch break. Usually burn about 300-350 calories.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
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    Thats how I started off, counting calories and walking for 30 to 40 mins a day, its a great way to get active :smile:
    I still walk alot 4 years on (although I do run and lift now as well) and have been maintaining my goal for 3+ years now :smile:
  • luv2bowl6
    luv2bowl6 Posts: 62 Member
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    I started the MFP in January I am down 20 lbs. Now that it is nicer in Ohio I try to walk a mile in the morning for one of my breaks and 2 miles at lunch. It makes me feel better and is very refreshing to get away from the building.
  • kayleexbabeex
    kayleexbabeex Posts: 55 Member
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    rosebarnalice wrote: »
    Calorie deficit means that you burn fewer calories than you consume.

    Walking can help burn more calories (I went on a 1 hour walk today that burned about 275 calories.)

    I'm still confused by this? Hope someone can explain. Is it if I have 1,300 calories for the day that I have to burn more than 1,300 calories a day?

  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    edited March 2016
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    I lost the majority of my weight when my main fitness activity was walking. I've lost 52 lbs since 2012. The walking was just to keep me active and was only a minor contributing factor to my weight loss. The major factor was my close attention to and honesty with my calorie intake that led to my current success.
  • melonaulait
    melonaulait Posts: 769 Member
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    kayleexbabeex wrote: »
    rosebarnalice wrote: »
    Calorie deficit means that you burn fewer calories than you consume.

    Walking can help burn more calories (I went on a 1 hour walk today that burned about 275 calories.)

    I'm still confused by this? Hope someone can explain. Is it if I have 1,300 calories for the day that I have to burn more than 1,300 calories a day?

    Completely sedentary (or in a coma) a female body burns through min. 1200 calories per day and a male body min. 1500 calories, so no, you don't need to exercise for 1300 calories' worth.
  • mincopy
    mincopy Posts: 1 Member
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    As others have said, weight loss is dependent on consuming fewer calories than you burn (bearing in mind that most of the calories you burn are just from staying alive). Walking helps burn extra calories to create a greater deficit (difference between calories in and calories out). I've found that an hour long walk burns about 300+ calories. However, just running on the spot for an hour will burn about 800 calories. I know by now that doesn't mean I'll lose weight immediately. Last week, I ate very little and lost 900 grams in 1 day, 600 grams the next, and 600 grams the next. Last night, I ran on the spot for an hour, burned 800 cals and woke up exactly the same weight as yesterday morning. But it all contributes over time and there has been a definite improvement - 85.7 kg mid-January to 78.4 today.
  • flrancho
    flrancho Posts: 271 Member
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    I lost my first 50 pounds or so by eating at a deficit and doing nothing but take a mile walk every day. Later on I added weight training at the gym; now I reached my goal weight.
  • MommyL2015
    MommyL2015 Posts: 1,411 Member
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    I walk every day. I either do it so I can eat more food or to try and make up for the food I ate over the weekend a little bit. Like this last weekend. *cough*

    But yes, before I joined here, I basically walked off the first 20 pounds. I hadn't changed my eating habits at all, just started walking. But this makes sense because I was a bit heavier and very sedentary, probably less than 2k steps a day. Then when weight loss slowed to almost a standstill, I found MFP and started tracking calories and added the walking as a booster.

    I'm about 10 pounds from goal, so I walk today to earn me more to eat. Without walking, I would lose maybe .2 pounds per week, if that and if I'm not careful (or don't care, like this past weekend) I wipe that deficit out completely or go way too far over with not very much food. I ate three large meals over the weekend and probably wiped out 2 weeks' worth of any extra I had. Calories are what it's all about.
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
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    I've lost 70 pounds so far and, while I do a wide variety of other activities, the majority of my workouts are walking. I usually do a 4.5-5mph pace 3 times a day - two 15 min breaks and 30 mins at lunch. Usually I average about 20-25 miles a week.
  • mewilmes
    mewilmes Posts: 44 Member
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    I have lost weight by walking, 40 pounds so far. I also weighed and measured everything that I ate. At first, a 1 -2 mile per day walk did it. Now I need to do 4-5 miles with some uphill inclines if I want to lose weight. I am unable to do much of anything else so walking is it for me. It took about a year for me to lose the 40. I am hoping to lose another 5 to 10.
  • xtina315
    xtina315 Posts: 218 Member
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    I'm losing weight by walking and having a calorie deficit. I've lost 7 lbs in the last two weeks just making those changes. Best wishes!
  • LinzMargaret
    LinzMargaret Posts: 15 Member
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    Just my personal experience: even though trainers have told me you can't train a specific body area, I found that with fast walking 30 minutes a day, my stomach was *completely* flat, which I know is a huge focus for many women. With running, my legs looked more tone and my hips were smaller.

    My cousin is a doctor of physical therapy, ran track in college, and during PT school was a personal trainer. He says walking really is one of the best things for people, and that our bodies are designed to walk.

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