Everyone knows that working out for at least 30 minutes 3 to 5 times a week is good for the body and mind. Having your regular dose of exercise offers so many benefits, ranging from building muscles to warding off heart disease. Choosing a form of exercise that suits your needs and preference is essential, and two of the simplest and perhaps most popular are walking and running.
Having a hard time choosing between the two? Read on. At the end of this article, hopefully, you will have a better idea on the advantages and disadvantages of walking and running.
The Pros of Walking
• It’s very easy and cost effective. Walking is a wonderful exercise regardless of a person’s current fitness level. It is also inexpensive as you don’t have to buy costly tools or equipment, although it’s a great idea to invest in a great pair of footwear, in particular something intended for walking for your utmost comfort and safety.
• Walking is a low-impact exercise. This means that it is friendly to the joints and tissues. It’s exactly for this reason why walking is ideal for you regardless if you have been exercising religiously for several years now or you just embarked on having a healthier lifestyle, of course starting from a less intense form of exercise until you are ready to take on more challenging ones.
• Regularly walking allows you to achieve a variety of health and fitness goals. This form of exercise is amazing for regulating the blood pressure. It’s also something suited for you if you are recuperating from a physical injury and your doctor has given you the go signal to start exercising for accelerated recovery. Walking is a perfect for those who wish to lose excess pounds or stay in a great shape. It’s also very good at combating stress.
The Cons of Walking
• Walking may fail to yield your advanced fitness goals. If you are used to all sorts of intense forms of exercise such as running, swimming and boxing, you may find that walking is not enough to maintain your objective of having an intense workout each time you wish to get your dose of exercise.
• It may not allow you to burn a lot of calories per hour. Because walking is not as intense as running, it’s quite obvious that you may not be able to burn the amount of calories you may expend when running for the same amount of time.
The Pros of Running
• Running allows you to burn more calories than walking for the same amount of time. This does not really come as a surprise because it is evidently more challenging than walking. It’s safe to assume that if you intend to shed off excess weight in a shorter period of time, running is the form of exercise that you should opt for.
• This exercise keeps you from the need to workout for a long period of time. Because of its intensity, burning the number of calories you wish to zap for the day can be obtained much faster. That’s why running is good for busy individuals who don’t have plenty of time for extended workouts.
• It’s just as inexpensive as walking. Again, you really don’t have to spend lots of cash just to make running a part of your regular workout routine. There is no need to buy any fancy tool or equipment, although it is certainly beneficial for you to invest in a great pair of running shoes. Also, getting yourself a nice music player and exercise-friendly earphones can help keep you engaged and pumped to run.
The Cons of Running
• It’s not ideal for someone who just decided to exercise on a regular basis. Especially if you had been leading a sedentary lifestyle for a long time, it is a good idea to opt for a less intense workout routine at first. As you become fitter, opting for a more challenging form of exercising such as running may be done.
• Running puts you at risk of getting injured. Because it’s a high-impact exercise, ending up with a strain, sprain or any other form of injury is likelier.
