Walking.... is it enough?

salmat77
salmat77 Posts: 310 Member
edited September 30 in Fitness and Exercise
Hi all,
I am sort of new to MFP, but I already love it. I love to read the posts, blogs, recipes thanks and keep sharing...

One queston: I have a torn ACL/Meniscus in my left knee (just found out about 8 months ago) but I love to walk (okay well just recently loved it!!). I have been walking a mile a day for about 2 weeks here at work at about a 2.8 speed takes me about 9 minutes to do 1/2 a mile so we do 1/2 in the morning and 1/2 in the afternoon. I alos just started (actually started yesterday) walking another 2 miles in the evening at a local park, which last night took me about 35 minutes, I had to stop a couple times. Since I am an exercise beginner is this enough exercise to see any changes in my body, say in 6 weeks?? I am eating about 1600-1750 calories a day with about 100 oz of water. I just would like to know what you think about the exercise of WALKING should i do something else, should I add a mile???
Thanks MFP!!
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Replies

  • SpaceMarkus
    SpaceMarkus Posts: 651
    It's more about getting your heart rate up than how far you go. If you don't get into that aerobic zone you're not doing much to burn fat (or anything really). You are getting a strength component in your legs, but not a lot.

    Every little bit counts, but if you aren't sweating at then end of it you probably won't see much result.
  • psychofied
    psychofied Posts: 138
    I usually walk 20-30 minutes everyday but I think it's not enough. I guess it depends on how long you walk.
    Also, read her story. She started losing weight from walking:

    http://undressedskeleton.tumblr.com/mystory
  • snoopie212
    snoopie212 Posts: 8 Member
    I'm certainly not an expert, but if you are going from almost no exercise, with an injury, to walking a mile a day, I think that's a great first step. Why not do that for a week or two, and then when that feels comfortable, up it to another mile for another couple of weeks? I think if you add more, or challenge yourself to go faster every couple of weeks, that should help you lose weight but also stick with it.
  • jah7700
    jah7700 Posts: 276 Member
    Walking is great exercise!!! I do a mile at lunch everyday if I can get it in... In two weeks I saw my BP and cholesterol drop. Just don't over do your knee...
  • rider72
    rider72 Posts: 119
    Walking is great exercise. If you want to increase benefits without adding a lot of impact to the knee; try adding distance, finding routes with hills (or add some stairs). Try increasing your pace to a good power walk to increase your heart rate.

    Pick up a heart rate monitor if you can, that can help you find your optimal zone wile you walk (as well as track calories).

    If you can do more (without risking injury)...then do more. Maybe jog a few feet at a timeuntil you build up your cardio endurance....whatever is comfortable.
  • authson
    authson Posts: 233
    I was only walking at the beginning of my journey and just recently added swimming, but I have been losing just fine. I am sweating at the end of my walk though and walk about 45 minutes to an hour.
  • sabrinafaith
    sabrinafaith Posts: 607 Member
    I walk for at least an hour a day, I wear my heart rate monitor, and usually burn somewhere between 250-400 calories. I think that's enough. lol.
  • Get sweaty! seriously the best thing ever is to feel the sweat dripping off you thats when you know your working your best. Im recovering from a torn ligament in my ankle and have only just been able to go bk to working out so i know how you feel but just do a little everyday and it will happen i promise.

    If you need any support add me as a friend.
    xx
  • walking is my main exercise, i do work up a sweat as it is usually uphill and when it isn't i try and maintain at least a 3mph speed, it's a good way to start imo
  • lbtewksbury
    lbtewksbury Posts: 147 Member
    i agree with Snoopie, walking is a whole lot better than sitting, you are moving in the right direction. Activity is what it is all about the more you do , the more you'll want to do. Good for you, great first step!!!!
  • allison_joan
    allison_joan Posts: 115
    Walking is a great start if you don't regularly exercise! Walk at your normal pace for a couple weeks then start power walking for a set amount of intervals, then after that start jogging for a certain amount of intervals and eventually over time you will see progress!
  • janalayn
    janalayn Posts: 510 Member
    If you have access to a pool - try water walking...it burns more calories than regular walking but the water supports your weight which is important when you have an injury. Don't overdo while you have the injury. You might also want to try adding weight training to increase muscle mass.
  • aprylkemper
    aprylkemper Posts: 123 Member
    Welcome aboard!
    Sorry about your knee injury, I am sure that makes things harder.
    As for your question, it depends - how much change would you like to see and in what measurement? Weight loss? Inches lost? Progress is a very relative term and the best way to measure it is to know where you've started and where you'd like to be.
    Since you are a beginner, getting your eating under control will be very beneficial, assuming you are staying in a deficit, you will lose weight. Exercise is always going to be the icing on the cake, so to speak.
    Can you add in some resistance training perhaps with resistance bands and moving to weights once your strength increases?
    Adding a mile may not do much besides increase your endurance, if you can add in intervals of walking faster or on hills, that will make a bigger difference because it will force your muscles to work harder and adapt. Also, remember that your body gets used to what you're doing very quickly so as soon as something seems easier, it means it's time to mix it up and add in something else it can adapt to.
    Hope that helps!
  • BeeElMarvin
    BeeElMarvin Posts: 2,086 Member
    Walk as much as you can and as quickly as you can for best results - push yourself. I know that torn ACL is sore! Good luck!
  • I walk every morning for a minimum of 30 minutes at a time, sometimes up to 60 minutes. I've been doing this for 5 weeks now and I've lost over 25 lbs with a strick eating regimen that my doctor and nutritionist are monitoring.

    I also have a lot to lose, so that may be why I've lost so much so quickly, but none the less, I've lost several inches off my hips and thighs and waist. So something must be working with just walking.
  • RMinVA
    RMinVA Posts: 1,085 Member
    Walking used to be my primary form of exercise. It wasn't uncommon for me to do 5 or 6 miles at a time. And I still do that when we are at the beach. And as long as I kept it up, it was effective at keeping away the pounds. Things changed when I turned 40 though...it just wasn't enough.

    It's a great place to start though. You can still do intervals...just walk at the fastest pace you can go for a minute or 2...then drop it back down. That will help get your heart rate up. If you have not had any surgery on your knee, there won't be a whole lot else you can start doing, other than maybe riding a bike.
  • poustotah
    poustotah Posts: 1,121 Member
    It's more about getting your heart rate up than how far you go. If you don't get into that aerobic zone you're not doing much to burn fat (or anything really). You are getting a strength component in your legs, but not a lot.

    Every little bit counts, but if you aren't sweating at then end of it you probably won't see much result.

    This is exactly right. A lot of people think that you have to have your HR up at 180 to lose weight however, research shows that you only need your HR up at 40-60% of your max HR to burn fat. More than that is athletic training and won't burn much fat but will focus morw on strengthening the lungs and heart. Soooo, get sweaty!!!
  • RagtimeLady
    RagtimeLady Posts: 172 Member
    SpaceMarcus is right - it's about getting your heart rate into the fat burning zone for an amount of time. I can't run due to crunchy knees - just had cortisone injections about 6 weeks ago. I power walk on a treadmill and do other cardio machines that don't require weight-bearing and knee-bending at the same time (I can do one or the other without injury).

    If you can, get a cheapie heart rate monitor and watch - I have a Polar - and learn where your target heart rate zone is. It will help you plan your workouts and keep track of your calorie burn.
  • salmat77
    salmat77 Posts: 310 Member
    Thanks so much for all your advice, after walking last night I felt like i was gonna die.. LOL, not really!! It's really had to get a 243 lb body walking for that long.. BUT if I feel better nothing will stop me. Hills and inclines kill my knee right now. We went to Yellowstone for vacation earlier in the month and I really had some issues with the hiking at inclines and steep hills, but I will gt there. I was sweating after the 1st mile and just kept going last night, I feel better today my knee is a little roughed up, but I will survive.
  • BGabbart
    BGabbart Posts: 173 Member
    I am a very heavy person and all I can do right now is walk. I only walk 20 to 30 minutes a day. I walk a quarter of mile in the morning and than 3/4 to a mile in the evenings. I eat between 1200 and 1500 calories and I have lost 2 pounds a week for about 6 weeks now. I plan on adding more as my body lets me. My knees and back are bad and I know this is a life time change not a change just to drop pounds. I am working my way to be able to walk longer and further but for now this is working so I keep pressing on. God bless you on your journey.
  • catwrangler
    catwrangler Posts: 918 Member
    You are doing great! Along with your walks, maybe try something else to mix things up, like a rowing machine or stationary bike that puts less pressure on the knee.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,956 Member
    It's more about getting your heart rate up than how far you go. If you don't get into that aerobic zone you're not doing much to burn fat (or anything really). You are getting a strength component in your legs, but not a lot.

    Every little bit counts, but if you aren't sweating at then end of it you probably won't see much result.
    This is completely wrong. You could get your heart rate up watching a scary movie. Would you burn much more fat because of it compared to walking a mile?
    Whether you walk a mile or run a mile the caloric burn is THE SAME. There are many people with success stories of weight loss with just walking alone. I suggest that you actually learn about how calories are expended before giving your opinion.
  • Mer4343
    Mer4343 Posts: 10
    First of all, good for you for moving! A heart rate monitor is a great tool and you start making a game of keeping your heart in the right range! I walk 40 minutes a day at lunch and make sure my heart rate is staying in the "zone". I walk a treadmill on a hill setting at 3.2mph and the sweat pours like rain. The cardio zone is the key to getting the most out of your walks.
  • KnightsGal76
    KnightsGal76 Posts: 69 Member
    YES! You can lose weight and see a difference in your body with just walking! My main source of exercise is walking, but when I started, I could only go about 20 min before I felt like I was going to die! I started out with Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds videos, they are really good low impact (good for your bummed knee) workout that make you sweat! I would recommend them to you to do at home. If you want to add a little boost to your walk, get a set of hand weights and while you are walking, do bicep curls, arm extensions, or just hold them while pumping your arms(like a power walker does).
  • Mirabilis
    Mirabilis Posts: 312 Member
    I've lost 90+ lbs through walking and calorie counting, so yes, it works. It's a dramatic change as you come down, but it gets easier and easier. The only different thing I do now is hill climbs because I live in a river valley and most of the city is uphill from me.

    I'm not a gym bunny but I realize I need to do toning as well. I don't count this toward exercise calories though.

    I wouldn't really say walking's a huge calorie burner, but on the other hand, if you think about the fact that we calculate BMR to come up with what we should have for calories in a day (BMR x 1.2 for example), it says that any calories we expend, whether they build muscle or not, count toward that goal.

    I also realized something important and probably obvious to everybody but me: time x distance = energy expended (simplistically speaking) so you can walk slower for longer or walk faster for less time to equal the same calories.

    Remember that although this is a new lifestyle, it still has to fit in around your family obligations and joys, your work and your off-work obligations to others. Do you have time to go whole hog on the fitness thing or do you want to make sure it stays in your life by not burning out on it?

    Moderation will get you there and likely keep you there.
  • aelder08
    aelder08 Posts: 12
    Walking CAN be enough. As someone mentioned before, it's not about how far you walk, but how long you can keep your heart rate elevated.

    If you go to this web site you can see a chart of what your maximum and minimum heart rate range is based on your age. Then there is another chart below it that will show you the Fitness Target Zones.
    http://www.heart.com/heart-rate-chart.html
  • DeeDeeLHF
    DeeDeeLHF Posts: 2,301 Member
    My knees are my weak spot as well. When I started my journey I could barely walk a mile without pain. The things that helped me most are: I purchased an over the counter compression knee braces at a sporting goods store. I made sure that I had good sneakers and replaced them often. I added an extra arch support in my sneakers. I elevate and ice my knee after working out. I started slow. Every single time I think that I am going to make a big jump in my exercise routine I end up injured. Last, I did exercises to strengthen the muscles surrounding my knee and stretches to lengthen the muscles and tendons in my thigh and hip.

    Hope that helps a bit!

    Congratulations on your decision to be healthy!!! Measure your success by how you feel and not the scales!

    D
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
    Yes, walking is enough. Especially if you didn't move all that much before. This is 80% nutrition anyway. Once your knee gets to feeling better, and the rest of you starts feeling better, THEN worry about doing something more intense.

    Don't put too much stock in sweat. My last camping trip I was completly drenched after taking down my tent. But I would hardly count that as a work out. On the flip side I ran when it was above 100* the other evening. My clothes weren't all that sweaty. But I KNOW I lost a ton of fluids.
  • tbucks
    tbucks Posts: 72 Member
    I started off walking 3 miles 3-4 days a week about two to three months ago. Now I'm up to 5 miles 3-4 times a week with a combination of walking/jogging. It's all about getting the time in and keeping the calories down. You can lose all the weight you need by walking and counting your calories. Just make sure to walk long (time wise) enough to get your heart going.
  • Mer4343
    Mer4343 Posts: 10
    Words of wisdom spoken by Mirabilis above!
This discussion has been closed.