3 Reasons Why Walking More Leads to More Fat Loss
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As we navigate busy schedules and fluctuating energy levels, finding time for intense workouts can be challenging. However, by reframing our approach to movement and embracing activities like walking, we can prioritize our health and fitness without added pressure or stress.
In this bonus episode of Embrace Your Real, we explore the often overlooked benefits of walking for fat loss. I share insights on how incorporating walking into your daily routine can be a game-changer for achieving our body goals. Tune in to discover the transformative power of walking!
What I discuss:
Walking taps into fat stores.
Walking boosts your metabolism.
Walking taps into your parasympathetic nervous system.
If you loved this episode, be sure to tune in to…
Episode 292: 5 Unexpected Lessons I Learned Throughout My Fitness Journey
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Transcript:
[00:00:00]:
Hey. Hey, beautiful human. Can I steal five minutes of your time? I have something super important to share with you, but I promise I'll be really quick. You're listening to my weekly bonus episode of embrace your real with me, Julie Ledbetter. I'm about to give you a quick tip for building your confidence, honoring your body, and unconditionally loving your authentic self. Stay tuned if you're ready to embrace your real. Let's get it. Let's go.
[00:00:28]:
Hello. Hello, and welcome back to another bonus episode. Really excited about today's episode. Three reasons why walking more leads to more fat loss. So if you want to build a body that you want this year, I know that I preach resistance training in order to do that. That's my number one kind of recommendation always. And you will always hear me talk about that because it is so, so important and there are so many benefits to resistance training. But here's one thing.
[00:00:55]:
I want us to go kind of back to our roots when talking in terms of movement. Yes, resistance training is one of the most unbelievable tools for building the body that you want and changing your body composition. That I don't want to say it's impossible, but it's very difficult to change your body composition without resistance training. But with that being said, it's not something that you should be doing every day. And I talk about this a ton in terms of prioritizing rest days and prioritizing recovery days, but also just being realistic and speaking in realistic terms, like some days fitting in a resistance training, strength training workout just isn't going to work. Whether we don't have time, we don't have the energy. And this is where I really want you to look at movement in a different way and kind of get back to your roots. I used to preach all the time, and I still talk about this a lot in my group and just on the podcast here, about honoring your body with movement for at least 30 minutes a day, whether this is a proper workout with weights, whether it's walking around target for 30 minutes.
[00:01:50]:
When I was in a rut with exercise, simply kind of opening up my standards on what movement was, that helped me to get excited about working out again. And there was really, I didn't put pressure on myself to crush a gym workout or workout a strength workout every single day. If I could do three strength workouts a day, great. But then for me, it was like, okay, but then what am I going to be doing the other four days of the week? And so really just learning how to simply honor my body with other types of movements those other four days. And so that's why in today's episode, I kind of want to help you break free from your mindset. That movement has to be with weights. It has to be a movement with Julie strength dumbbell workout or a workout in the gym. And talk about the benefits of walking, because walking has single handedly transformed my life in the last 15 to 16 months.
[00:02:40]:
I really prioritize walking and my steps daily. And man, it's one of those movements that is so easy to implement, and it's one of those things that will just make you feel so much better. And also, again, just opening up your mindset to movement and honoring different types of movement and saying a workout in your mind doesn't have to always be this structured strength training workout, like really opening up your mind in that sense. Before we dive in, though, I wanted to share this review. It comes from Pamela. She gave a five star view and said, I feel normal now. This podcast has helped me feel kinder to myself. Julie has made me feel like a human being.
[00:03:16]:
I do not feel like I have to punish myself and I can accept who I am, where I'm at right now. Just signed up for her course. Looking forward to learning her wisdom and get more cozy in my body. Thank you, Julie, for being a source of warm comfort for me when I feel out in the cold. I love that so much. Man, that analogy of just feeling cozy in your body, feeling at peace in your body, feeling educated and feeling empowered, that is my goal. That is my hope for this podcast. Every single episode we put out, I hope that it either encourages you, it empowers you, it educates you in some way, shape or form.
[00:03:50]:
And same goes for my two programs, my nutrition program and my training program. That is always my hope. That is always my prayer. And so thank you so much, Pamela, for taking time out of your day to send in this review. Okay, so at its core, walking is a form of low intensity exercise that can really give you super significant benefits for fat burning. Yes, fat burning. So here's the deal with walking and fat loss. It might not be as intense as, say, sprinting or lifting heavy weights, but it's still pretty darn good at burning fat.
[00:04:17]:
So, believe it or not, we're actually going to kind of dive into the science of walking. Never thought that I'd say that before, but here we are. But there is a science to walking and fat loss, and it kind of needs to be addressed. And so that's why I want to dive into that today. So number one, walking taps into these fat stores. So when you engage in walking, even at a moderate pace, your body goes through a series of metabolic processes. And one of these is activating your aerobic energy system, right? So unlike high intensity exercises like sprinting or hit, which is high intense interval training, this primarily relies on an anaerobic energy system for short bursts of activity. So walking predominantly utilizes this aerobic system.
[00:04:59]:
So I'm not going to dive into kind of comparing these two in this episode. This could be a whole nother episode in and of itself, but this is what you need to know. Utilizing your aerobic system is the best way to tap into fat burning. And this is because when you're in this state, you're allowing your body to efficiently utilize stored fat as a fuel source, whereas your anaerobic system, which is what you tap into, into high intensity workouts, that turns to stored carbohydrates as fuel, not fat. So an easy way to know that you're utilizing your aerobic system is when you can carry an easy conversation throughout the activity. So if the conversation is hard, that's when you're not utilizing your aerobic system, that you're utilizing your anaerobic system. And this is something for me. I have implemented a walking pad for my desk.
[00:05:46]:
Both I sometimes use the tread, which is downstairs, but then I also have a walking pad in my office, and I use that with a stand up desk. And, man, it is amazing. I take meetings, I take Zoom calls, I take phone calls, and I'm able to just get some steps in, but I'm able to have that easy conversation. And so for me, I know when I'm able to have that conversation, when I'm able to carry on a meeting, I am in that aerobic system, not the anaerobic system. Number two, walking can actually boost your metabolism. So, in fact, walking can help to regulate and increase your basal metabolic rate, which is essentially your bmr. So if you ever hear of people talking about your bmr, that's your basal metabolic rate. And this is the number of calories that your body needs to perform basic functions at rest.
[00:06:28]:
So, for example, the amount of calories that you would burn if you laid on the couch all day did absolutely nothing. If you make walking a part of your daily routine, this number will naturally go up, meaning that you'll actually burn more calories at rest, which is pretty cool. Number three, walking taps into your parasympathetic nervous system. So you have a parasympathetic nervous system. And a sympathetic nervous system. So your parasympathetic nervous system is when you are resting and digesting. So that's basically resting and digesting mode, whereas your sympathetic nervous system is your fight or flight mode. So we personally get into a state of fight or flight when we are not resting and digesting enough.
[00:07:06]:
And this is triggered from too much physiological and psychological stress, meaning that there's too much stress, whether it's from our workouts, it's from our life, our day to day stuff. And when this happens, you live in this fight or flight, right? Which is your sympathetic nervous system, which triggers hormonal imbalances due to too high levels of cortisol. So when this happens, when you have too high levels of cortisol in your body, your body actually starts to hold on to fat instead of burning fat. Plus, this can also mess up your hunger hormones, triggering you to overeat, amongst many other things that lead to adverse effects. So walking actually engages in this parasympathetic nervous system, which promotes a hormonal imbalance that is kind of calming, and it has this calming effect on the body. And so by reducing those stress hormones like cortisol and stimulating the release of mood enhancing neurotransmitters such as serotonin and endorphins, which is essentially just your happy hormones, walking can actually bring you back to that state of rest and digest, which leads to more effective fat burning. So you're like, okay, great. I just learned about kind of the science behind walking, what goes on in my body, kind of the benefits to it.
[00:08:14]:
But how can I actually start implementing walking more? So I kind of just want to give you nine simple tips, tricks, things that you can implement throughout your day that will help you to start walking more throughout your day. Number one, skip the elevator. Take the stairs when you can. It's a simple change that can really add up over time. Number two, do not stress about finding the closest parking spot. Park further away. Get some extra steps in on your way, wherever you're going. Number three, after dinner, instead of just plopping down on the couch for the next two or 3 hours, go for a stroll.
[00:08:46]:
Go for a walk around the park. Go for a walk around your neighborhood. This is not only going to help with digestion, but also keep those late night cravings that you might have at bay. Number four, don't forget about the weekends. Use this as an opportunity and a chance to explore new walking routes, new areas, new hiking trails, things like that in your city, in your town, maybe even traveling 30 40 minutes out of where you live to explore a new place, explore a new city and new town. Number five, this is really important. We all got to start walking our dogs more. I know that it's something that is less than our priority sometimes, but, man, they look forward to those walks so much.
[00:09:25]:
And it also can benefit you so much as well. Number six, take your calls while you walk. This is awesome. And this is a great opportunity. So whether you have a walking pad or you're walking outside, whether this is a personal or professional call, try to commit to. I'm going to be on a 1520 minutes phone call. All right, great. I'm going to do a walk around my neighborhood as I do that.
[00:09:44]:
Number seven, instead of doing brunch all the time, or dinner or lunch or whatever with your friends, grab a coffee, go for a walk, go for just a leisurely stroll through the park, through a town, whatever it is. Not only will this allow you to get more steps in, but also I really do think that it will allow you to have a better conversation because we are designed for movement. And when we are in movement, there's so many ideas that flow. I don't know, I just find that I have the best conversations when I'm actually doing some sort of movement instead of just sitting there the whole time. Number eight, if you have a treadmill, this is amazing. A great opportunity for you to use the treadmill, utilize it for just walking. You don't have to utilize it for sprinting or running. I know that so many of us don't like those high impact movements, and that's okay.
[00:10:28]:
You don't have to. You can use that as an opportunity to maybe watch a show while you're walking on the treadmill. Or like I had mentioned a few times, I bought and invested in just an Amazon walking pad. I think it was maybe 200, $300. But, man, I'm telling you, is one of the best investments because I got a stand up desk, I have a walking pad underneath it. When I'm just doing my work on the computer, I'm utilizing that time and I'm just walking slow. 1.11.4, sometimes 1.7 speed. And those steps add up and it also gets your brain going because you're creating those happy hormones in your body as you're walking.
[00:11:05]:
And number nine, like I said earlier, go walk around target, go to the mall, dance, clean your house. You will be amazed at when you intentionally clean your house. You actually are getting so many more steps in than you would if you were just stagnant the whole day. So I really hope that this episode encourages you to start including walking more into your daily life. I know that 10,000 steps can be super unrealistic. So if you're going from like maybe hitting 2000, 3000 steps a day, try to aim for four to five or five to six. There's no magic number in 10,000. I think 10,000 for some people can be very attainable for six, seven days a week.
[00:11:43]:
For other people, it's too overwhelming. And don't stress yourself out. So figure out a realistic goal. I would say if you're going from honestly like zero walking steps intentionally throughout the day, aim for 4000. That's a great place to start. Stay consistent there. See if you can do that five, six, seven days a week. And if you can consistently for three or four weeks, then you can scooch it up and say, okay, I'm going to aim for five to 6000.
[00:12:07]:
But don't immediately go from zero to 10,000 because that's just not going to be attainable. It's not going to be enjoyable. It's going to feel overwhelming for you. And just remember that it is a great opportunity. Walking is a great time to help you clear your mind, reconnect with yourself, flush out ideas or thoughts, release stress. Take time for you. Incorporate movement that is outside of your strength training workouts on a regular basis and just kind of redefine what movement is in your life and utilize walking because man walking is one of the most underrated things in my opinion. And it has transformed so much of my life.
[00:12:42]:
Like I said in the last 1516 months that I've been very intentional about that. Just utilizing steps to work, utilizing steps to hang out with friends, to walk the dogs more, to just connect and reconnect with Joshua on a daily basis. It is amazing. Aim to get those 30 minutes of movement every single day. Again, doesn't have to be a workout. Shouldn't be a workout seven days a week. It should be a workout three, four, five days a week. Strength training the other days of the week you're prioritizing walking movement, other forms of movement.
[00:13:11]:
Regardless of what you think movement should look like, try to challenge yourself to redefine that. If you love this episode, I know you'll also love episode 292. Five Unexpected lessons I learned throughout my fitness journey. I will link that in the show notes so that you can easily go tune it in. Also, I will also link the exact walking pad that I have from Amazon. It's been, like I said, a great investment, fairly inexpensive with how much I utilize it on a daily and weekly basis. So I will link that there so that you can go check that out. It's a great opportunity to, if you don't have a stand up desk, use it while you're watching a show, a 30 minutes 45 minutes show, you will be amazed at how many steps in you'll get just in that time.
[00:13:51]:
And then also how good you'll feel when you do that on a consistent basis. But that is all that I have for today's episode. I love you so dang much. I mean it. I'll talk to you in the next one. All right, sister, that's all I got for you today. But I have two things that I need you to do. First thing, if you are not already following me on the gram, be sure to do so. Julie A. Ledbetter yes, it's with an a in the middle for that daily Post workout real talk, healthy tips and tricks, and honest accountability to keep your mind and heart in check. The second thing, be sure to subscribe to Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. Thank you so much for joining me. It means the absolute world, and I'm going to leave you with one last thought. The most beautiful women that I have met in my life are the ones who are completely confident and secure in being authentically themselves. Remember that beauty goes so much deeper than the surface. So go out there and embrace your real because you're worth it.