Walking and running are both excellent exercises if you want to lose some extra pounds and of course, maintain a healthy heart. The benefits and risks involved in both exercises depend on the person’s end goals and their level of health and fitness. Both of these physical exercises help to burn calories, lose some extra pounds, and lower the risk of heart disease. But, if you see no change after constant workouts and diet, it is smart to seek medical help and use the online chemist for weight loss pills. There is a rising debate over which one is more beneficial. Keep reading on to learn more about the benefits and risks.
It is observed that the people who regularly perform either of the activities have a healthier heart, stronger bones and lower body weight as compared to their sedentary counterparts. The Department of Health and Human Services has issued physical activity guidelines that call for a minimum of 150 to 300 minutes per week of moderate activity or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous activity. So, does it matter whether you complete those minutes either walking or running? Arguments can be made for both. But, which one is right for you depends on your goals and your current fitness level.
Pros of choosing cardio as a preferred form of exercising -
Cardiovascular exercises are also called cardio workouts. It tends to use the majority of the muscles of the body. The exercise gets the heart pumping faster, and also increases the breathing rate. Both walking and running are considered cardio exercises.
Cardio exercises offer many health benefits, including:
- Burning calories and fats.
- Lowering the cholesterol levels.
- Aids in preventing and managing health conditions which including high blood pressure, diabetes, as well as heart diseases.
- Strengthening the heart muscles.
- Enhancing sleep patterns.
- Reducing stress.
- Improving stamina.
- Improving mental health conditions by reducing stress, anxiety and depression.
- Increased bone density.
- Stronger immune system
Many research studies have elaborated on the benefits of exercising to improve mental health. It is found that 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity, such as walking is mostly sufficient to reduce anxiety and depression, along with other health benefits.
What should you choose if you aim to burn calories?
Both running and walking are great and convenient workout options and provide more or less similar health benefits. However, running in this case has an edge over walking. It is because it has the potential to burn more calories as compared to just walking. Let’s compare the two by taking into account the calories burned while performing both activities. A person weighing approximately 70 kilograms burns around 15.1 calories per minute when running. On the other hand, an individual of the same weight burns about 8.7 calories per minute with walking.
That said, the calories burned by a person while running or walking also depend on other factors, which includes -
- The individual’s body weight.
- The duration of the exercise.
- The intensity of the exercise.
So, we can safely conclude that running burns more calories than walking. However, a person can burn the same number of calories with walking if he or she does brisk walks for a longer duration. At the end of the day, it is dependent on personal goals.
Some extremely overweight people also tend to rely on slimming and weight-loss supplements. These are available at the online pharmacy UK. Use these only after consulting with your doctor to keep side effects out of the away.
Both running and walking are good for a healthy heart:
Study reveals that walking has a potential to improve cardiovascular health, as it lowers your blood pressure and reduces the risk of contracting coronary heart disease. It is also believed that people who take small steps and gradually increase the intensity lowers cardio-metabolic risk such as diabetes and heart disease. People who take more steps in a day generally have smaller waist circumference, lower weight and improved insulin levels. A study further states that both running and walking
Running is also considered as an effective measure to improve heart health. But, some research suggests excessive long-distance running can be harmful. Though, this is a controversial and debatable topic.
A few experts say that excessive running can put excess stress on the heart, and that could be a potential explanation as to why running may not provide unlimited benefits, but sometimes may cause damage. ‘The more, the better' may not be an ideal statement when it comes to running. We would like to mention that this mainly applies to marathon runners. If you are a marathon runner, we suggest you speak to your GP to draw your limits and use pain relief as and when needed from the pharmacy online UK.
Walking is safer -
Running is a high-impact exercise than walking. Hence, it poses a greater risk of injury. Walking has a minimal risk of injury. To avoid any such unprecedented circumstance, use the pharmacies online to keep the first aid kit handy. The logic is simple here, the faster you run, higher you are prone to injuries. Running could lead to tripping; you could fall, or twist an ankle. Though all of these are also possible with walking, it is less likely because you are walking at a slower pace. About 60% of runners tend to experience an injury that prevents them from doing the activity for a couple of weeks. If you are a frequent runner, use the chemist online to stock up on anti-sprain medications to aid faster recovery.
Some common injuries in runners include -
- Plantar fasciitis.
- Inflammation of the Achilles tendon.
- IT band syndrome.
- Shin splints
Moreover, if you fall under the obese category, walking is highly recommended as opposed to running. This is because it has less loading and less stress on the knees and ankles. If losing weight has been a major struggle, the pharmacy online UK has weight-loss medications that can help you lose weight modestly.
Conclusion -
Whether you decide to walk, run, or do both alternatively, what matters the most is that you take the time to exercise daily. It is also important to always work towards keeping your mind and body healthy. All these healthy measures will help in boosting the immune system leading you towards a healthy lifestyle.
