Does Walking 3 Miles Burn the Same Amount of Calories as Jogging 3 Miles?

A friend on Facebook asked me a question about cardio that threw me off.

“Will walking burn the same amount of calories as jogging, if the distance is the same?”

I had to think about it for a second.

I live a couple of blocks away from a lake that is close to downtown Seattle, called Green Lake.

There is a walking, jogging, biking path around the lake.

It’s roughly a 3-mile path.

It is surrounded by tons of trees, but only a couple of miles to get to downtown.

If I walk around the lake in 60 minutes will it burn the same number of calories as jogging it in 30 minutes?

Walking is way less intense, but I’m doing it for twice as long.

I found a Calories Burned Online Running Calculator and plugged in the numbers.

First, I entered the 1-hour walk around the lake.

Here’s the estimated calories burned.

Then, I entered the 30-minute run around the lake.

Here are the estimated calories burned.

According to this calculator, both ways of getting around the lake, walking or jogging, burn about 442 calories.

These calculators aren’t extremely accurate, but the idea is correct.

Walking 3 miles should burn close to the same amount of calories as jogging 3 miles.

Why should we do intense exercise at all?

It’s a good idea to incorporate intense efforts that get you slightly out of breath, in order to improve your VO2 Max (aerobic capacity).

I discuss this in detail in Visual Impact Cardio.

I also wrote a blog post about the fat loss advantages of increasing your Aerobic Capacity.

How Aerobic Fitness Speeds Up Fat Loss

Basically, the more aerobically fit you are, the more calories you will burn performing any activity.

So…

I recommend a mix of walking and more intense HIIT type of exercise to get lean.

Works well.

Here’s a killer testimonial from a 40-year-old dad who lost 25 pounds in 8 weeks with Visual Impact Cardio.

“Just finished Visual Impact Cardio. The results are remarkable. I’m an everyday 40-year-old dad that gained a lot of weight after having kids.

In 8 weeks I lost 25 lbs (195 to 170) and cut 4 inches from my waist (35 to 31). I don’t measure my body fat but it’s absurdly lower. Before I found this course I had given up hope that you could really get ripped without using harmful drugs and stimulants. I was dead wrong.

The program enabled me to smash through fat loss plateaus I’ve been struggling with for 5 years. I’ve spent my entire adult life in gyms all over the world, I’ve always enjoyed comparing ideas with others and remaining open to strength / fitness advice.

No trainer or athlete I’ve ever met has Rusty’s level of expertise on using science and diet to cut fat. Aside from shrinking out of all my favorite suits, this was the best investment I’ve made in myself in years.

Thanks Rusty.”