Walk With Me Challenge!

Denise Austin
by Denise Austin | 
 | 
Workouts
 

Happy Tuesday everyone!  I love Interval walks to jump-start my metabolism and get a more effective workout in a shorter amount of time. An interval workout is where you intersperse fast-paced intervals of exercise with moderate-paced intervals. For example, let’s say that you typically walk at a pace of three and a half miles per hour for thirty minutes. If you mix things up and sprinkle in a few minutes of walking or running at, say, a 5 mph pace, you’ll burn more calories in the same thirty-minute workout.

One of my favorite metabolism-boosting walks is to mix two-, three-, and five-minute intervals. To determine the intensity of these intervals, think of your effort on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being a very easy stroll and 10 being so hard you can’t carry on a conversation. You shouldn’t stay at either of these extremes for too long, but you should challenge yourself and be honest with yourself about how hard you’re working.

Here’s my favorite 30 minute interval walk:

1. 5 minutes: Warm Up (intensity of 5)

2. 5 minutes: Walk at a moderate pace (intensity of 6)

3. 3 minutes: Power walk (intensity of 7)

4. 2 minutes: Walk at a moderate pace (intensity of 6)

5. 3 minutes: Speed walk (intensity of 8)

6. 2 minutes: Walk at a moderate pace (intensity of 6)

7. 3 minutes: Speed walk or jog (intensity of 9)

8. 2 minutes: Walk at a moderate pace (intensity of 6)

9. 5 minutes: Cool down at a moderate pace (intensity of 5)

You can mix things up by varying whether you walk on flat terrain or an incline, or whether you walk inside on a treadmill or outside. Put on your favorite music and get “burn that butter!”

Let me know when you complete the challenge!  Feel free to challenge a friend!

Love always from Your Personal Trainer,

Denise