Everyone knows that walking is good for you. And whether you’re counting steps, going for distance or just taking the dog out for a stroll, there are benefits to any amount of movement.
But not all movement is truly “exercise.” “It’s better than sitting on the couch, but doing all of your walking at a leisurely, window-shopping pace isn’t giving you the cardiovascular and other benefits you’re trying to achieve,” says Pamela Webert, MS, ACSM-CEP, an exercise physiologist at Henry Ford Health. “For that, you need push yourself a bit.”
What Is Interval Walking?
At its most basic, interval walking training consists of walking at different paces. Instead of a relaxed stroll or even a quicker, steady-paced walk, you mix it up. The intervals can be different lengths, but the idea is always the same: You alternate a period of harder effort with a period of slower, recovery-pace walking.
Webert recommends trying two-minute intervals—increase your pace and effort for two minutes, then do two minutes at a more relaxed pace.
How Interval Walking Boosts Health and Fitness
The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans call for getting at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise (like brisk walking) per week. We know that staying active has numerous health benefits including weight management, better blood sugar control, stronger bones and a healthier heart.
When you increase the intensity of your workouts by adding intervals to your walks, you burn more calories and increase other benefits. “Pushing the pace and going a little bit beyond your comfort zone gets you faster results,” says Webert.
Meet With An Exercise Physiologist
Research has shown that interval training can improve:
- Endurance
- Insulin sensitivity
- Metabolism
- Weight and body composition (ratio of muscle to fat)
It can also reduce your risk of:
- Cognitive decline
- Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Osteoporosis
How to Incorporate Interval Walking Training
The best thing about interval walking is that anyone—at any fitness level—can do it. And you can do it anywhere. You can try interval walking training on a treadmill at home or at the gym, on the streets around your neighborhood, a park path or a local school track.
“This sort of exercise is accessible even to people who use mobility devices, like a cane or walker,” says Webert. “Because intensity is relative—it’s okay if your challenging pace is another person’s easy one.”
The key is to amp up your routine gradually and not try to do too much too soon. Start by timing how long your typical walk takes you (or noting what pace you walk on the treadmill).
“From there, think about how you can increase the intensity,” says Webert. On a treadmill it’s easy—just increase your speed slightly or increase the grade by 1 or 2%.
If you walk outdoors, you need to be more intentional. You’ll want to keep track of time, measure your heart rate or at least focus on your perceived exertion. “Perceived exertion is a measure of how hard a workout feels,” says Webert. “For your faster intervals, you want to be working hard enough that it feels difficult. You could still have a conversation, but you’d need to pause and catch your breath between sentences.”
Start with an easy-paced five-minute warmup walk, then begin your intervals. Do two minutes of high intensity, followed by two minutes of recovery. Then walk a five-minute cooldown at an easy pace.
Once you can easily do six rounds of hard/easy intervals, it’s time to increase the intensity of the hard ones. Now, what was once your hard pace becomes your easy one, and you increase the intensity another notch for the hard intervals. “Don’t be afraid to push the envelope a little,” says Webert. “You want to be safe, but if you’re going to go out and walk, make sure you’re really getting the benefits from it.”
Reviewed by Pamela Webert, MS, ACSM-CEP, an exercise physiologist at Henry Ford Health.
