Losing just from walking?

[charlibets]

I'm interested in hearing anyone's story and routine who have been successful at losing weight just from walking.  If so, what amount of walking have you done and how often?

Thanks.

[DarleneM]

Over the past 40+ years my weight has gone up and down, right now it's up. Years ago I started out walking about 30 minutes a day, and found that it helped me drop the weight plus it helped keep me from being so depressed... it got me out of the house and in the sunshine. I live in NC and we have lots of sunshine : )   On days that it was too cold, I'd go to a shopping area and walk. I bought a $10 pedometer to help me gauge the distance and time. I'd walk for 10-15 minutes down to the end of my road and back and it's a half mile. I did that twice a day, starting slowly. It will help. As you get accustomed to the distance, take 1# weights with you or quicken your pace.  I had four small children and I would pull two of them in a wagon and sometimes would carry the youngest. They seem to enjoy our walks as well. We lived out in the country so very little traffic and it was a dead end road.

Now that I'm in my 50's I can't exercise like I did when I was 20-30 yrs old, just not physcially able to, but I can still walk every day.  I gained weight after my job was terminated and I was just sitting home upset... so this past year I started back walking daily and doing resistance band stretches. I'm slowly loosing the pounds and can get around better than I could a year ago. I sleep better, my moods are better and I get out of the house more so I'm not sitting around being depressed.

The first week of March I bought my Fitbit and I love it. It has helped me stay on track and stay active. I set alarms on it to remind me to do my walk or exercise. I found staying on a routine helps me stay on track. I've lost over 10# just since I bought the Fitbit and started tracking calories/steps/etc.

Walking is a great way to start being active. You'll find that the more you do it, the better you feel and the better you feel the more you want to do. It just works that way, energizes you, so give it a try, just walk for a few minutes at a time, once or twice a day, then add a minute or two and before you know it you'll be doing a mile like it's nothing. Just be mindful and safe, you'll be fine. Good luck!

[Heybales]

Diet is for weight loss - done right just fat loss, done wrong includes muscle mass.

Exercise is for heart health and body improvements - done right can support just fat loss, done wrong can help muscle loss.

You don't even need to exercise to lose weight.

The walking just increases your daily burn, so when you eat a reasonable amount less - you get to eat more than if you didn't walk.

Plus the health benefits of it of course.

Don't mix the 2 together though.

Good phrase is "abs are made in the kitchen".

Meaning do all the crunches you want - if you don't control the diet you won't see them.

[goal-gal]

My husband passed away in 2010 after being in and out of hospitals and rehab centers for a couple of years. In 2008 when my husband was in the hospital, I started consciously walking around in the hospital while he was sleeping. If I wanted a diet soda I had to walk to the next building to get it. I walked to get to the cafeteria, etc. By the time he died I had lost about 30 pounds. In September 2011 I started a weight loss program and walked in my neighborhood. As time passed I increased the amount of time and distance that I walked. As of October 2013 I reached my goal weight after losing 114 lbs and have worked to maintain that loss since then. I continue to walk regularly outside, sometimes on my treadmill or with a walking exercise DVD. I am now able to walk 4 miles 3-4 times per week.

[badminton]

I lost 30# when I was in my 30s - I was walking 3 miles evey day, at a fairly quick pace. My dad had been doing th walk by himself, and I started joining him. He had always walked fast, and even though he was in his early 60s at the time, for the first few weeks, I had a hard time keeping up, and every day would think about whether I really wanted to do that again. But, then I would feel that if he could do it "at his age" then I could too! My weight actaully dropped a little too much, so I increased my calories, but when I changed jobs and we stopped walking together, I did not decrease my calories. So, I have yo yo'd a bit since then.  

Fast forward to 2013 - I was only walking 2,500 steps a day, according to my new gadget - fitbit! I was horrified.  I started increasing my steps gradually. A year later and I average about 11,500-12,000 most weeks. Persistance pays off!