How Many Calories Does Walking Burn Off?
Walking is one of my favorite exercises. It is easy, you can do it in ordinary clothing, you can add it into your regular schedule.
Benefits of walking daily:
to lose weight
lesser incidence of cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and other killer diseases
psychological well being
less stress which increases your longevity
increases metabolism,
strengthens muscles
increases flexibility,
improves respiratory function
improves concentration and memory.
So if you’ve a regular visitor to this Blog you are probably interested in #1 … losing weight.
This is a simple formula you can use to determine how many calories are being burned according to your weight and how fast you are walking:
3.0 miles/hour (20-minute mile): Burns .027 calories/pound/minute.
3.5 miles/hour (17 minute mile): Burns .033 calories/pound/minute.
4.0 miles/hour (15 minute mile): Burns .042 calories/pound/minute.
4.5 miles/hour (13 minute mile): Burns .047 calories/pound/minute.
Here’s an example: if you weigh 200 pounds and walk at the 3 miles per hour rate (20-minute mile) for 60 minutes, you multiply 200 by .027, then multiple the result (5.4) by 60. You burn 324 calories.
Now 324 calories for an hours effort may not seem like all that much, BUT the GOOD NEWS is … that because you have increased your metabolism, you will continue to burn more calories in the hours following your walk.
AND consider walking just a bit faster. Here’s the calorie loss for the same 200 pound person walking at various rates:
3.0 per hour for 60 min = 324 calories lost
3.5 per hour for 60 min = 396 calories lost
4.0 per hour for 60 min = 504 calories lost
4.5 per hour for 60 min = 564 calories lost
Happy walking!
Melanie