Published on April 9th, 2010 | by thevyne

Walking vs. Running

By Siddiqu “The Personal Trainer”

I get this question a lot. “Should I walk for my workout or run for my workout? Which one is better for you?” Which one you should do for your workout depends on the person; there isn’t a better or worse, just different. Walkers will tell you running is bad for you, runners will tell you walking isn’t really a workout. Both are right and both are wrong. Here are three ways to know which you should be doing.

1. Are you overweight? Check out the weight chart on my website to find out for certain. If you are overweight by 20lbs or more, running is a bad idea. Why? Because of the pressure it puts on your knees. Excess weight and bouncing up and down is terrible for your joints. If you are not overweight and have never run before, start off with light jogging it will really benefit your cardiovascular endurance.

2. What is your age? If you are under 35 and have no serious injuries, then walking is unacceptable as a form of cardio. You are just too young to do the same workout as my grandmother. I’m sorry but all those people who are hitting the trail with “big mamma” walking, you need to pick it up and I’m not talking about a sandwich.

3. Do you have time? If you only have 30 minutes on your lunch break, then you obviously can’t run 3 miles because you have to get back to work. But if you have 30 minutes after work then you need to run. If you run for 20 minutes or walk for 50 minutes, you end up burning about the same amount of calories. But if you walk for 20 minutes or run for 20 minutes, running will create the biggest calorie deficit.

Calories burned based on speed and weight per mile:

Speed/Pounds	100 lb	120 lb	140 lb	160 lb	180 lb	200 lb	220 lb	250 lb	275 lb	300 lb
2.0mph	57	68	80	91	102	114	125	142	156	170
2.5mph	55	65	76	87	98	109	120	136	150	164
3.0mph	53	64	74	85	95	106	117	133	146	159
3.5mph	52	62	73	83	94	104	114	130	143	156
4.0mph	57	68	80	91	102	114	125	142	156	170
4.5mph	64	76	89	102	115	127	140	159	175	191
5.0mph	73	87	102	116	131	145	160	182	200	218