Power-Walking: 5 Ways to Make it Work For You
Call it Race-Walking or Speed-Walking or Power-Walking: whatever form you choose, it can be a great alternative to running - particularly for those whose joints can no longer take the pounding running demands.
Yet hardly anyone seems to take advantage of this cheap, convenient, calorie-blasting, joint-friendly workout. Why is that?
Simple: it's Fear of Looking Ridiculous.
It must be, right? Because otherwise, race-walking makes sense for so many reasons. With proper form, you can get an intense aerobic workout. (Top competitors can walk way faster than most joggers can run). And similar to running, race walking can be done almost anywhere. It's practically free! You don't need a gym membership or a lot of fancy equipment, just a good pair of shoes and maybe a heart rate monitor. And all this without further trashing your aching joints.
But next time you're out running or strolling on a busy trail, just count the number of Race Walkers who zip by. Usually: that would be zero.
Because no matter what the cheerful magazines articles say, just "walking briskly" in a normal manner won't get your heart rate up the way running does. To get the same sort of aerobic benefits from walking, you're going to have to really go for it. And you know what? You're going to look a bit silly. Pump your arms. Vigorously! Swing your hips! The North American Racewalking Foundation has a lot more helpful information on proper form.
But what if your concern is not "how to," but, "how can I make myself swing my hips and pump my arms in public where people might actually see me? Here are a few tips:
- Find a Race Walking Club in your area or get hooked up with a partner. It's amazing how much less goofy you'll feel when you've got someone with you, proving you're not the only other person in the world who actually does this.
- Try to avoid busy commercial streets. The more "exercisey" your course looks, the less self-conscious you'll feel. Tracks, known running trails, bike paths-for some reason, these help.
- Get up Way early in the morning. Less traffic fumes then too!
- Even if you don't compete, consider buying a T-shirt from a Race or Race Walking Association-sort of a walking explanation for why you're walking in such a frantic way without actually breaking into a run.
- Decide not to give a hoot what anyone else thinks! You're doing a great thing for your body. If anyone stares at you funny, just smile happily and figure they're secretly jealous. After all, you're out doing your cardio without needing an ice pack, a bottle of ibuprofen, a big cumbersome knee brace or a smelly tube of Ben-Gay when you get home.
Walk Proud!
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29 Comments
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Created / Updated: October 30, 2011
Yep brisk walking is definitely not enough to stimulate fat loss. That's one misconception that most people have. Something more intensive like power-walking will help a lot more.
Replyi love speed walking. I dont care how silly i look. i have autoimune authoritis so this exercise is great for me, as a matter of fact, my joints feel less stiff after walking. i even lost 10 lbs just by doing this exercise for 45 minutes a day.
ReplyI always walk fast, to the point that I'm breathing hard, sweating and my heart rate is up, on the way home from work. After a day in the office (my first and last desk job - I don't know how people sit down all day) it feels really good to be moving and I'm using that 30 minutes to do 2 things at once. I don't pump my arms though, I haven't got past the looking silly thing. Maybe I'll try that tomorrow.
ReplyThanks for the website link. I would also like to know how to raise my heart rate more just by walking!
ReplyI have been walking for since March and have dropped 80+lbs (310 to 228) although now I have added weightlifting.
Without looking stupid (aka using good walking form) I can (now) walk about 5 miles at 4.1 to 4.5 mph. That is in 100+ temps or pouring raing or whatever. Mind you I made about 1/2 a mile on my very first walk at something like 1.5 mph no doubt.
The only way I can go faster (about 5 to 5.5 mph) is to use the correct form. However, being a socially conditioned guy, the correct form is so silly looking that I only do it on isolated sections of my route.
So I agree that the social considerations of looking silly can overwhelm the more important goal of a better workout. Eh, maybe I will get over it some day (when I have the super hot bo) but for now not wanting to look silly restricts my behavior.
Which in itself is silly.
ReplyJogging very slowly also looks pretty silly. I've seen quite a few people out on the road running so slowly that cartoons of parched explorers crawling across the desert come to mind. Race walking would look a lot better...
(Not that I look like much while running)
ReplyIn our local mall, I usually see some older ladies power-walking past the stores - in proper form, I'm sure, because it does look pretty silly. I've always thought it was funny, but they are probably getting in better shape than I am by shopping!
ReplyI have nordic poles and people always stare at me, so much so that I'm incredibly embarrassed doing it, I'm going to start getting up super early when nobody will be out to stare. Stupid...I know...
ReplyI'm so glad to discover I'm not the only one who feels self-conscious doing this!
I know I should get over it, but it actually helps to discover there are others who feel a bit silly too.
Perhaps if more of us just said "what the heck, I'll go ahead and look like a dork" people would get used to us. I'm not holding my breath though.
ReplyHmmm Jim... if you post pics of you doing this, then I will :-)
Use hills! Get your heart rate up without looking silly :-) Or like you say, join a group and you can all look silly together.
ReplyOops!
We seem to have some byline confusion. As much as I too would love to see pics of Jim power-walking, I'm afraid it was I who submitted this post, not Jim. And no, no pics of me either!
I totally agree about the hills--much easier to get the heart-rate up without walking funny. The problem, at least for my creaky knees, is getting back down again!
ReplyI would photo myself, but, er... um... the light is not so good at 4am.
ReplyLOL, Quito, I know what you mean about the slow joggers. There's this one guy I always see jogging when I'm out...he may as well just walk because it'd be faster. There's also a lady in my neighborhood that's out every day, speed walking with her nordic poles and she's probably in her 80s or so...she's probably in terrific shape. I don't know why more people don't do it; it seems like it'd be a pretty decent workout.
ReplyI have never been able to just power walk. I have always needed more stimulation, but "training." I like running, sprinting, climbing, doing things that will get my heart rate up rapidly.
Reply:-)
Reply