Health Tips: Burn Fat While You Walk

Increase the incline on your treadmill, or conquer a more challenging walking path. You’ll not only firm up your butt and legs, but you’ll also maximize the calories you burn by up to 60 percent.

Your Fat-Burning Walking Plan

Don’t lean:

Maintain an upright posture; keep your shoulders over your hips; your hips over your ankles.

Start easy:

Do a 5-minute slow walk and then a 10-minute brisk pace before adding your first hill.

Get an interval walking workout: Go 5 and 5. Alternate 5-minute hills with 5 minutes of level walking. Repeat as often as you like. Cool down for 5 minutes.

Inch up:

You may only be able to walk a 1 percent incline initially. The key is to maintain the same speed during the hills as you do with no incline. Aim for a 3.5 mph speed, and keep your hills moderate; a 5 percent incline is a great goal, and go no more than 7 percent. (Steeper inclines put too much strain on your back, hips, and ankles).

Stretch longer:

Spend at least 10 minutes afterward on your lower body, back, and shoulders.

Do every other day:

Rest your muscles for 48 hours between hill workouts.

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