Walk away that waistline

Walk away that waistline!

By James Hutchison

Ever since the late 1970’s when Jim Fixx’s best selling book “The complete book of running”, hit the shelves, jogging and running has been seen by many as the best form of exercise (despite the author dropping dead a few years later whilst on his morning run), especially for weight loss. There is no doubt that running is a very effective form of aerobic exercise, which in turn can promote many health benefits to the runner. It is also true that most sports such as football, rugby, tennis etc. all require some level of running ability, be it short sharp sprints or a more endurance based jog.

However, in my experience as a health and fitness professional most of the clients I meet rarely play competitive sport (if they did I would base their programmes towards sports specific exercises anyway) and a high percentage feel sick at the thought of spending hours pounding away on the treadmill. There are also a significant amount of people who would be advised not to run due to knee, hip, ankle injury or general obesity issues. So it is safe to say that running isn’t for everyone.

The good news is that there are other ways of improving your physical fitness and losing weight. Walking is often the most under- rated activity when it comes to weight loss due to the perception that it is easy and ineffective. However, a brisk walk (getting slightly out of breath, not a poodle around the shops) for 30 minutes per day for an 80kg individual can burn approximately 1400 calories per week, this same walking rate for a 60kg individual would burn around 1100 calories per week.

So if you multiply this over the year it can burn up to 75,000 calories (for an 80kg individual) or 56,000 calories (for a 60kg individual), or to look it another way 21 lbs or 16 lbs of fat respectively. These statistics clearly show that an achievable target of a 30 minute brisk walk per day can be an effective weight loss tool, if accompanied by an adequate nutrition plan.

Another advantage that walking has over running is that it doesn’t have a counter productive effect to resistance training. One of the most efficient ways of losing weight and burning fat is too build lean muscle tissue. Building muscle mass not only makes the body more aesthetically pleasing, but makes the body more metabolically active which in turn burns fat more efficiently.

If an individual is attempting to build lean mass in the gym but then going for a long run the next day there is a high chance that the new muscle tissue is being broken down in this process. This would not happen during a brisk 30 minute walk as the body is not pushed to the same limits, in fact it has been shown that brisk walking itself can raise the bodies metabolic rate.


Starting your walking programme

 Get yourself a pedometer. A pedometer is a device that clips onto your waistband and counts how many steps you have taken. This handy piece of kit can act as a motivational tool as it allows you to keep an accurate record of how far you are walking each day, which can then be used to set progress targets. A 30 minute brisk walk will take approximately 3600 steps. You can buy a pedometer for around £10 from www.proactive-health.co.uk

 Get yourself some comfortable shoes. Walking for 30 minutes everyday is not a huge burden on an individual’s timetable, but if this walk was causing sore and blistering feet it would not take too long before 30 minutes in front of the television is a far more tempting use of time. So I recommend either some comfortable trainers, or some walking shoes. Check out these links for some ideas; www.sweatshop.co.uk or www.blacks.co.uk

 Find somewhere interesting to walk. There is a greater chance of you sticking to your new walking regime if you find interesting walks to go on. These do not have to be in rolling countryside or in areas of outstanding natural beauty, but it is easy to search online or go down to the local town hall to find information on walks in your local area. I am lucky enough to be based in the Highgate and Hampstead area in North London where there are hours of walks on the Heath. Check out www.innerlondonramblers.org.uk/walk-hampstead-health.html for more information.

So all that is left for you to do is to get yourself outside, start walking and get burn that excess fat. Remember though, every effective exercise programme should be accompanied by an adequate nutrition programme, this does not mean starving yourself or surviving on powdered foods or milkshakes, it means a diet that provides an optimum amount of nutritional value whilst at the same time promotes a slow and steady weight loss (or weight gain or maintenance depending on the individual dieter). For more information how to plan effective weight management programme contact me at the studio on james@aayou.co.uk .

Good luck!!