6 Amazing Benefits of Cardio: Effective Weight Loss with Running and Walking
H
ave you been putting so much thought in trying to determine whether it’s better to engage in a stroll or a run in the quest for a fitter body? It is not a simple case of one being better than the other but. Both, walking and running are beneficial types of cardio and they allow you to get different results starting from weight loss and ending with cardiovascular health improvement. In fact, it seems that the use of HIIT works best when incorporated into the weight training schedule. In this article we are going to discuss the importance of cardio, whether walking is better than running for reducing weight or not, and also whether incline walking is better than running.
It also helps a lot especially if you are an experienced runner or a beginner in the field of walking exercise and how both can help you.
1. Why Cardio is Essential for Health
But to better establish a viewpoint regarding this debate that seeks to compare and contrast walking and running, it is necessary to ask; why cardiovascular activities in general are of such significant importance to our overall wellness? Aerobics, also known as cardio it is type of exercise that improves the health of the heart and lungs and raises the heartbeat for instance, swimming jogging, among others. Cardio exercise is therefore very vital in exercise and it cannot be substituted by any form of exercise for one to maintain both the physical and mental body.
The Benefits of Cardio:
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Improved Heart Health:
However, recent research by America Heart Association says that cardio can decrease your chances of getting heart disease which is among the leading causes of death globally. Cardio improves the heart’s muscle so that it will work more effectively at pumping blood and also decreases high blood pressure and cholesterol.
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Weight Loss and Maintenance:
Since Cardio is a fantastic calorie-sheds exercise it serves as a perfect exercise for anyone who wishes to lose or maintain their weight. There is certainty in the continuous performance of cardio to develop consistent calorie deficit and hence bringing about fat loss in the long run.
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Mental Health:
Paying attention to your cardio also has an added advantage of improving the mental health. The research conducted by Harvard Medical School established that cardio was effective in releasing feel-good hormones notably endorphin that help to check anxiety and depression.
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Increased Lung Capacity:
Aerobic exercise improves the lungs, where the ability to deliver oxygen as a body mumbo-jumbo is improved making the body perform better physically. Increased lung capacity also implies that you will get weary less often generally getting fatigued with the common things in life such as climbing the stairs, carrying groceries among others.
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Boosts Metabolism:
What that translates to is when you are cycling, jogging or generally engaging in most popular forms of cardio, your metabolism rate is significantly raised. This dictates that even if during the exercise, you were to have burnt let’s say, 300 calories; you still burn over 300 calories more after the exercise and even at rest.
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Improves Sleep Quality:
A study conducted by the National Sleep Foundation indicate that those people who engage in regular cardio have better sleep quality and less incidence of insomnia than other people. I agree that either walking or running during a day does pay off when it comes to night sleep, it will be deeper.
Based on the above discussed benefits Cardinal is very crucial in enhancing health both of the body and the mind. So, what is the difference between walking and running and how does all this compare to helping you reach your goals.
2. Walking vs Running: What’s the Best for You?
Among cardio exercises, walking and running are the most popular and easy to perform for people. But which of them is more beneficial to you?
The Case for Walking
One commonly known exercise is walking and this is largely recommended since it does not require a lot of effort or even money to practice. Some people even finds it as one of the best means of exercising because it is suitable for professions that require one to sit most of the time, or for those people who have joint problems, it’s good for beginners too. Fast walking is basically one of the best exercises since it aids in strengthening of muscles of the heart and thus helps in weight loss.
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Low Impact:
It can also be considered as an aerobic activity which makes it less strenuous to the bones as compared to running. It means that this type of exercise is suitable for the individuals who have never practiced or have arthritis or joint pain. This is because unlike other rigorous exercises, walking is relatively easy on joints and thus anyone who is a little recuperating from an injury or anyone who might be a little old could take a good walk every day.
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Versatile:
It can be done while walking virtually anywhere – be it in and around the neighborhood, or on the treadmill, or through the park. Walking outside is also favorable due to the fresh air and some mother nature which have been proven to improve one’s mood.
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Sustainable:
Aerobic exercises such as walking can be done for long periods, and that makes it ideal for people who want long term health benefits. This is an activity that one can do daily and lose minimal momentum into becoming burned out or getting injured.
The Case for Running
As for running, this is a more vigorous type of exercise, which in many ways can produce quicker results insofar as the burning of calories and enhancing the heart’s performance is concerned. In turn, it is suitable for use by those who need to shed some pounds in record time or an athlete wanting to achieve their desired goals faster.
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High-Calorie Burn:
It burns more calories in the shortest time than walking does Thus it is advisable that every person who wishes to shed some poundage within the shortest possible time undergoes jogging. For instance, you will have burnt nearly double the energy required if you decide to go for a run than if you decided to take a 30 minutes walk.
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Endurance Boosting:
Jogging has been found to facilitate improvement of cardiovascular endurance to a greater extent than walking. During running the rate of work of the heart and lungs increases and therefore regular running results in an improved aerobic fitness and endurance.
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Stronger Muscles:
Since running involves the entire body, especially lower body muscles including your legs, core and glutes, it makes you develop muscles as it tones your stamina. Lineaments such as running, which involves an explosive movement, are good in the development of tone of muscles.
Of course, both walking and running can be very effective, however, the decision on which is better and is tailor made will, of course, depend on your fitness capability, and more importantly on your and your certain health constraints or objectives that you may or may not have in the future.
3. Walking vs Running for Weight Loss: Which is More Effective?
Sometimes one of the biggest questions many people ask is which method is more effective, walking or running?
Comparing the Number of Calories Burned in Walking and Running
Running is, by and large, believed to require more energy than is the case with walking, but the disparity might not be as big as expected. For instance, if a person is weighing 155 pounds, he or she will spend about 240 calories, in a half an hour walk at the speed of 4 miles per hour, while burning 450 calories within the same time if the person was jogging at an average speed of 6 miles per hour. That’s a difference but do not forget the intensity of running may make it easier to get exhausted implying that you cannot run for long.
On the other hand, walking is more sustainable for longer period so that the rate of burning is continuous over durations. Moreover, walking at the same pace over lengthy distances would also get you the desired weight loss results, albeit, it could take slightly longer.
The Importance of Consistency
In the case of losing weight it is much more important to maintain constant, as opposed to, intensive work out. And this is why, and this is far easier to sustain for longer periods, can be just as effective as running in the long term. A research done by Journal of the American College of Cardiology revealed that walking at a moderate intensity for 150 minutes a week helps to reduce the chances of cardiovascular diseases and in weight loss efforts.
So if your goal is to lose weight in the most natural manner possible and you watch out for joint problems associated with running, then brisk walking might just be more of an appropriate menu for you.
4. Incline Walking vs Running: The Hidden Benefits
Though incline walking is not very much popular among the fitness freaks, walking at an incline can offer you a calorie-burning workout that can be almost equivalent to running on the level ground.
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Benefits of Incline Walking:
Enhanced Calorie Burn: There are few tell-tale signs that walking at an incline will cut your calorie loss by up to 50% since your body has to fight gravity. Incline walking increases the intensity of your muscles; therefore, it is regarded as an efficient exercise.
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Improved Muscle Activation:
There is more emphasis of your lower body muscle groups given that this type of walking involves most of your lower body muscles such as glutes, hamstrings and calves which are toned as you walk. It is very effective in toning the legs and the glutes especially when the movements are done with proper form.
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Reduced Impact:
Running uphill is also good in burning calories but incline walking provides almost all the benefits that come with uphill running except the joint impact thus suitable for anyone who wishes to avoid exercising injuries. Especially if you have to avoid shin splints or knee issues at all costs, it’s perfect for you.
Incline Walking vs Running: Which is Better?
Incline walking is one of the most valuable forms of exercising that can be viewed as an excellent substitution for running in case if the person cannot perform this kind of activities, or he/she just prefers a low-impact exercise, which will still be highly effective in increasing the cardiovascular health, and burning fat. As you take a combination of the two in your day-to-day activities, you get a balance whereby incline walking helps tone your muscles while running helps burn fat. Formerly, such workouts were possible only on a steep ramp; whereas nowadays treadmills enable users to adjust the slope of the surface created by the equipment.
5. The Role of Cardio in Overall Fitness
The movements involved in walking and running certainly do qualify as cardiovascular activities, however, you really should not limit your training regime solely to those two if you want to get into good shape. Cardio is about enhancing your endurance and health of heart but strength and flexibility training are also very essential for you.
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Combining Cardio with Strength Training:
Cardio assists in weight loss the health of your heart and makes you lose weight by burning calories while your muscles are strengthened through strength training and it helps pump blood and gain muscle mass. This way one will get the best of both worlds; firstly, the cardiovascular system benefits from the rhythmic movement; secondly, muscles also get benefited since one exercises every part of the body by weight training or body weighing.
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Improving Flexibility and Mobility:
The aerobic exercises such as yoga or pilates that help to enhance the flexibility add to the cardio workouts by minimizing the likelihood of an individual experiencing an injury. Loose muscularity makes it possible to have improved posture, less stiff muscles as well as fewer cases of cramps or strains.
Walking and running can be coupled with other exercise in such a way that there will be no boredom hence a good program for a long term health.
6. How to Incorporate Both Walking and Running into Your Routine
Here’s how you can do it:
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Start Slow:
It’s prudent for first timers in jogging to start by walking slowly then increasing the speed after some time. After sometime you should begin incorporating short intervals of running. This unfortunately leads to damage in your muscles without repair as the stress is constantly put on your body. For example, the first interval of the warm-up exercise may comprise walking for 5 minutes and jogging for another 1 minute and so on.
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Mix It Up:
You can therefore attempt to change between walking and running workouts in a weekly basis. For instance, walking can be done in the morning or evening when you are tired or have a sore leg while running has to be done in morning when you are fully awake. Another way to give variation is by adding incline walking into your program.
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Use HIIT:
When you’re jogging, introduce High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) as one of your practices while exercising. This type of training involves a change in sets between high and low works and ideal for burning the fats while building muscles at the same time.
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Track Your Progress:
Keep a record of your exercise using a fitness tracker via a website or an application. This will in return help you to stick to your exercise regimen as you monitor your progress with your fitness levels with time. Other things like heart rate, pace as well as the distance lets you monitor and maximize on your workouts.
