Walking is a great exercise choice. When walking for weight loss, create realistic goals you can hit to keep yourself motivated.
There is nothing wrong with starting with 10-minute daily walk and slowly increasing as your fitness, endurance, and motivation improves. All types of physical activity put you on the road to wellness. Adding more walks to your daily routine is a great way to boost physical activity.
Whether you are walking for weight loss, weight maintenance, or improved health, you can use this schedule to reach your goals. Modify the workout days as needed. For instance, if you know that Thursdays tend to be hectic, then you might want to schedule your long walking workout on another day. If you choose to skip a day, that's okay. The schedule helps you to pick up right where you left off.
If you are new to walking, it is best to build up your walking time gradually before using this schedule. If you have been walking for less than 30 minutes at a time, start with a 10-minute or 20-minute walk to see how you do. Repeat that walk daily and add a couple of minutes of walking time to it after the first week. Continue with this pattern to improve your endurance until you are ready to use the schedule below.
Sample Daily Walking Schedule
Sunday: Long walking workout for 60 minutes at a brisk pace
Monday: Recovery Day with no walking workout, but you can enjoy easy activity.
Tuesday: Short walking workout for 30 minutes at a brisk pace, plus a strength training workout
Wednesday: Short walking workout for 30 minutes at a brisk pace
Thursday: Long walking workout for 60 minutes at a brisk pace
Friday: Short walking workout for 30 minutes at a brisk pace, plus a strength training workout.
Saturday: Long easy walking day for 30 minutes at a brisk pace, then 30 to 90 more minutes at an easy pace.
Walking every day for weight loss can be a great way to burn calories and increase fitness. There is no absolute number of steps to achieve, most people do well with a goal of 10,000 or more steps daily.
*Choose a walking route and daily step goal that’s appropriate for your age and fitness level.
*Warm up and cool down before walking to avoid injury. Always speak to your doctor before starting a new fitness routine.