Outdoor Walk
Walking outdoors on roads, paths or trails, from an easy stroll to a brisk pace. It trains the legs and builds aerobic fitness with little impact on the joints, and suits easy cardio, recovery days and a first step back into training. Log the time and distance of each walk.
Updated
Primary muscles: quadriceps, glutes, calves. Supporting muscles: hamstrings. Equipment: bodyweight.
Muscles worked
Primary
Secondary
Equipment
How to do it
- Start at an easy pace for the first few minutes.
- Walk tall with your eyes ahead and your shoulders relaxed.
- Bend your elbows and swing your arms from the shoulders, close to your body.
- Land on the heel and roll through the foot to push off the toes.
- Pick up the pace with quicker steps, not longer ones.
- Shorten your steps on climbs and lean slightly forward from the ankles.
- Slow down for the last few minutes before you stop.
Watch for
- Overstriding, with the foot landing far ahead of the hips.
- Looking down at the ground or a phone, which rounds the upper back.
- Arms swinging across the body or above chest height.
Breathing
Breathe steadily; at a brisk pace you breathe harder but can still talk.
Tip
Add time or distance before speed, and pick a hilly route when flat ones feel easy.
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