<\/p>\n One of the best ways to do this is by adding speed and incline intervals.<\/p>\n Latest Videos From \u201cThis can offer a range of cardiovascular and metabolic benefits without putting too much stress on the joints,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n \u201cIt also engages your glutes<\/a>, quads <\/a>and core <\/a>much more effectively than steady pace walking, which in turn burns more calories in less time.\u201d<\/p>\n You may like<\/p>\n Davies has designed the following routine for both outdoor and treadmill walking, including speed and incline options. \u201cI would recommend outdoor walking over a treadmill personally, as treadmills are built for convenience more than anything,\u201d says Davies. \u201cOutdoor walking has more health and wellbeing benefits.\u201d<\/p>\n 20-minute walking workout<\/p>\n \u201cDepending on your level and age, I would recommend doing this three to four times per week,\u201d says Davies.<\/p>\n She recommends that older adults or those with joint issues seek professional advice before attempting this frequency.<\/p>\n \u201cIf the above routine is too intense, then slow down your pace and lower the incline,\u201d says Davies.<\/p>\n She suggests working towards the suggested intensity when you feel more comfortable and ready.<\/p>\n What to read next<\/p>\n \u201cIf you are looking for more of a challenge, each week increase your pace by 0.5 mph or add a 0.5% incline,\u201d says Davies.<\/p>\n \u201cAs your body adapts, you can progress more.\u201d<\/p>\n No matter how often you do the workout, Davies recommends making a conscious attempt to maintain good walking posture.<\/p>\n \u201cMake sure you hold your shoulders back, keep your core engaged and your eyes forward, with your arms bent at a 90\u00b0 angle,\u201d says Davies.<\/p>\n 1. Warm-up <\/p>\n Time: 2min Treadmill pace: 2.8mph-3.0mph Treadmill incline: 0%<\/p>\n Outdoors: Walk at an easy pace, where you can easily hold a conversation.<\/p>\n This stage helps to elevate your heart rate, getting you ready for the workout.<\/p>\n 2. Tempo walk <\/p>\n Time: 3min Treadmill pace: 3.8mph-4.0mph Treadmill incline: 0%<\/p>\n Outdoors: Walk at a brisk pace where conversation is difficult to maintain, but still possible.<\/p>\n This stage establishes an aerobic baseline and activates your leg muscles.<\/p>\n 3. Incline push <\/p>\n Time: 3min Treadmill pace: 3.5mph-3.8mph Treadmill incline: 4-5%<\/p>\n Outdoors: Find a hill to climb or maintain a brisk pace on flat ground.<\/p>\n This engages your glutes and quads more intensely, building lower-body strength. Keep your shoulders back and your core engaged<\/a>.<\/p>\n 4. Recovery<\/p>\n Time: 2min Treadmill pace: 2.8mph-3.0mph Treadmill incline: 0%<\/p>\n Outdoors: Reduce your pace to maintain an easy, conversational pace.<\/p>\n This stage will allow your heart rate to drop slightly before the next push.<\/p>\n 5. Speed intervals<\/p>\n Time: 4min<\/p>\n Complete the following twice:<\/p>\n Time: 30sec Treadmill speed: 4.2mph Treadmill incline: 0%Time: 90sec Treadmill speed: 2.8mph-3.0mph Treadmill incline: 0%<\/p>\n Outdoors: Walk the first 30 seconds at a faster pace, return to an easy or brisk pace for the 90-second recovery.<\/p>\n This will challenge your cardiovascular system with brief high-intensity bursts and build leg power.<\/p>\n 6. Tempo walk<\/p>\n Time: 3min Treadmill pace: 3.8mph-4.0mph Treadmill incline: 2%<\/p>\n Outdoors: Maintain a brisk, challenging pace.<\/p>\n Finish strong, elevating your heart rate before the cool-down.<\/p>\n 7. Cool-down<\/p>\n Time: 2min Treadmill pace: 2.8mph-3.0mph Treadmill incline: 0%<\/p>\n Outdoor: Maintain an easy, conversational pace.<\/p>\n This final stage lowers your heart rate gradually and allows your muscles to start recovering.<\/p>\n Shop walking shoes<\/p>\n If you need to upgrade your footwear, consider these top picks from my guide to the best walking shoes<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \n \n \n <\/p>\n \n <\/a><\/p>\n Follow Fit&Well on Google News<\/a> and add us as a preferred source<\/a> to see all our workout ideas and wellbeing advice in your feeds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Any walking you do is good for you, but if you want to improve your fitness it\u2019s worth…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":718161,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[337,97],"class_list":["post-718160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-fitness","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=718160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718160\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/718161"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=718160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=718160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=718160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![](\"https:\/\/cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net\/flexiimages\/7uepuckkxv1645106070.svg\")
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