10 Walking Mistakes That Kept Me Fat I Vowed Never to Repeat After Losing 140 Pounds
Are you walking to lose weight but can't seem to drop pounds? Jenn Clayton is a Certified Weight Loss and Nutrition Coach and social media influencer "who has lost and maintained a 140-pound weight loss," she says in a recent clip. "Did you know that walking is the best form of exercise for weight loss? Hands down, but there are some mistakes that you can make if you're walking for weight loss. So we're going to talk about that today."
Mistake 1: Not Walking Enough
"Number one is not walking enough," Jenn says in her post, noting that walking "is the number one exercise for weight loss." However, "if you're only taking a leisurely stroll a couple days a week, you're not really going to reap the rewards of walking. It is something that you need to be doing consistently to see the progress." It's recommended to aim for about 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise weekly.
"That means walking at a brisk pace for 150 minutes per week," she says. "Now, if you're someone who does some intense exercise or intense walking, maybe it's power walking, lots of heels, lots of building up your endurance, lots of sweating out of breath when you're walking, it's recommended to do about 75 minutes or more per week," she continues. "Again, taking a leisurely stroll a couple of times a week isn't going to deliver the same results, not only for your weight loss but for your health. Your cardiovascular system is moving your body 150 minutes per week."
Mistake 2: Not Increasing the Intensity of Your Walk
Number two, "not increasing the intensity of your walk," says Jenn. "We can fall into the trap of just walking the same route every day," she says. "Our body gets used to the intensity, used to the exercise, and then we're not going to get the same rewards and benefits out of it as if we changed it up a little bit." She goes on to reveal some things you can do to change the intensity, "especially if the area that you have to walk is the area that you have to walk," she says.
"Number one, toss on a weighted vest or backpack or even walk with a pair of light dumbbells. Rucking is a great way to switch things up. Switch up your terrain. Hills, trails, and rough surfaces all make a difference. Pick up your pace to a brisk walk to elevate your heart rate and boost your calorie burn. Try interval walking, which involves alternating between fast and slower paces. Or challenge yourself by varying your speed and incorporating inclines. Now, if you're walking on a treadmill or a walking pad, this is easy. You can easily increase the intensity, but if you're someone like me that lives in a warm climate and you wanna walk outside, these are some things that you can try to change up the intensity."
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Mistake 3: Skipping Warm Up and Cool Down
Another big mistake is skipping your warmup and cool down. "It is so important to warm up and to cool down. After all, exercise walking included, it can lead to injuries. It can actually hinder your overall progress," she says. She recommends a five to 10-minute warmup and some.
"Get your legs geared and ready for your walk. And then, after your walk, do about a five-minute cooldown. Again, some stretching, stretching out those leg muscles, stretching out the upper body after your walk. Just make sure you're incorporating that warmup and cool down. It's really essential for injury prevention as well as truly reaping the biggest reward out of that walk," she says.
Mistake 4: Neglecting Nutrition
Number four "is huge," she says, "and that's neglecting nutrition. You can't out-exercise a bad diet. Nutrition is 80 to 90% of weight loss. You can walk all day long, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and if your nutrition isn't on point, you're not going to see those weight loss results." She recommends avoiding a lot of high-calorie, sugary, highly processed foods.
"Now, this doesn't mean that you can never eat these, but 80 to 90% of your diet should be whole real food. And then 10 to 20% of those fun foods stay in a calorie deficit. If you're trying to lose weight, focus on protein with every meal and eat enough fiber every day. These are all things that are essential to reach your weight loss goals. And like I said, all the walking in the world isn't going to outexercise a bad diet. So get your nutrition in check and keep it in check, and then walk in addition to that, to really maximize fat loss."
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Mistake 5: Forgetting to Hydrate
Mistake number five: forgetting to hydrate. "Hydration is so important. I don't care if you're taking a 10-minute walk. You still need to hydrate. The warmer the climate, the warmer the weather, the more intense your walk is, the more hydration you need. And I'm not talking about Diet Coke, I'm talking about water."
She also recommends adding electrolytes to your water "to help with recovery and hydration," she says. "Drink water before, during, and after all of your walks."
Mistake 6: Wearing the Wrong Shoes
Number six, another "big mistake," is walking in the wrong shoes. "The shoes that you wear for different workouts, such as walking, HIIT workouts, running, and strength training, really play a big part, and there are specific shoes designed for specific activities," she points out. She recommends buying shoes designed for walking.
"This is going to help with shock absorption, support, and stability and will help reduce your risk of foot injury and pain. You want a pair that fits well, is comfortable, and that your toes aren't smashed in the front of and that isn't too big for you."
Mistake 7: Not Including Strength Training
Mistake number seven: not including strength training in your workout routine. While walking is the best exercise for weight loss, "you need to be strength training as well," Jenn says.
"You need to maintain lean muscle while you're losing fat. You also need to build lean muscle. We lose a percentage of our lean muscle every year that we age after 30. So, it's important to strength train regularly to combat that loss. Strength training builds lean muscle boosts your metabolism, and we're all looking for a metabolism boost. When we strength train, our body continues to burn calories, boosting our metabolism throughout the entire day. So pairing strength training with walking triple threat squats, lunges, pushups, lightweights, and again, taking those handheld dumbbells with you on your walk, maybe a one or three or five-pound dumbbell and just trucking along on your walk, is going to increase your calorie burn leading to more weight loss."
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Mistake 8: Not Allowing for Recovery Between Workouts
Number eight is not allowing for recovery between workouts. "I used to work out six days a week on rest days. Now I work out five days a week with two rest days," she says.
"Let me just tell you that all of the magic happens on the rest day. Your body needs time to recover. It can lead to fatigue over training and even injury. Listen to your body. If you're sore, if you're tired, if you're fatigued, if your muscles hurt, take a rest day. Like I said, that's when everything happens. Rest days are meant for your body to recuperate. It's also meant to rebuild and grow the muscles that you broke down during your exercise. That is where we, again, see the magic. That's where it happens is on those rest days."
Mistake 9: Not Being Consistent
Number nine is not being consistent with your exercise regimen. "Consistency is key. Whether it's consistency with nutrition, tracking your food, moving your body, being consistent is what's going to lead to results," Jenn says.
"Taking a leisurely stroll a couple days a week isn't going to get you to your goal. You need to have a set, workout, walking routine in place," she continues. "You're not going to see fat loss, weight loss, muscle building, or any of that without a consistent routine. If you know me, if you follow me again on my weight loss channel, you know that I'm very, very consistent with my exercise. I do HIIT training boot camp three days a week, and I strength train and walk the other two days a week. I hike, I do 5Ks. I'm consistently moving my body, and consistency leads to results. And guess what? Results lead to motivation to keep going."
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10. Not Switching Up Your Walking Routine
Number 10 is not switching up your walking route. "We gotta change things up. Our body gets used to things," she says. "Drive to a local park, take a hike, go to the downtown area and walk around, find different routes in different terrains. This is going to challenge your body and produce more results. This will keep you engaged and also work those other muscle groups, which is very, very important to losing and maintaining any weight loss." And if you enjoyed this article, take advantage of these 15 Quick Ways to Lose Body Fat Percentage in a Week.
