Fitness trainer explains whether you should try running or walking if the goal is to ‘lose more belly fat’
While both walking and running are considered excellent forms of cardiovascular exercise that raise the heart rate and burn calories, a critical question remains for many fitness enthusiasts: which workout is superior if the goal is to lose belly fat?
Fitness coach and founder of Sculpt by Science, Michael Diamonds, took to Instagram to weigh in on this common dispute, offering a perspective that prioritises sustainability over intensity.
The consistency conundrum
On November 30, Michael posed the question to his Instagram followers: “Who will lose more belly fat? Runner or walker?” He acknowledged that, on the surface, running appears to be the more effective option. He explained: “Running burns more calories per minute, yes. But it also makes you more tired.”
He argued that this high-intensity burnout is the runner’s undoing. While the runner may appear to be putting in more work initially, the physical and mental toll can lead to a crash: “In the short term, it looks like the runner is putting in more work, but after a few weeks, he feels burned out and isn’t able to keep up with the schedule. Meanwhile, the walker doesn’t have any issues with this. He doesn’t feel the mental or physical strain from consistently finishing his steps.”
For Michael, the core principle of successful fat loss is not intensity, but adherence. “The game of fat loss is the game of consistency,” he stressed, adding, “He who can do it for a longer time wins.”
Why walking wins the long game
According to the fitness coach, the commitment required for a challenging running schedule is simply harder to maintain than a dedicated walking routine. “It’s hard to consistently run 2-5 miles every day for a few months. But it doesn’t take much of a commitment to walk 10,000 steps every day and slowly work on increasing that number,” Michael said.
To illustrate his point, Michael provided a comparison of two hypothetical individuals over a set period. He compared a typical weekly routine for a runner and a walker: the runner, who included high-intensity sessions like a 4-mile run and 30 minutes of interval running, but also took a day of no cardio, only lost 0.5 pounds (0.22 kg).
In contrast, the walker, who maintained daily activity ranging from 10,000 steps to a 30-minute incline walk and 15,000 steps on one day, achieved a loss of 2.5 pounds (1.13 kg), demonstrating that consistent, daily effort yields significantly better results for long-term fat loss.
The side-by-side comparison made a clear case: the runner’s high-intensity but inconsistent schedule led to minimal results, whereas the walker’s daily, sustainable activity resulted in five times the weight loss.Therefore, if the primary goal is to shed belly fat, Michael’s advice is to choose the path you can stick to – while running burns more calories per minute, walking offers a greater opportunity for the daily consistency that ultimately wins the fat loss battle.
