Ways to Make Your Daily Walk Feel More Like a Walking Workout

1. You don’t need to obsess about gear, but dressing the part helps.

Getting everything ready the night before, especially if you’re a morning walker, can make it easier to get out the door in the time you’ve allotted

2. Kick things off with a dynamic warm-up.

Before you start striding, take some time to boost blood flow and activate the muscles you’ll use while walking, like hip flexors and quads, recommends Kristine Theodore, coach and co-owner of Runaway Fitness in Chicago. Spend a few minutes doing leg swings, lunge walks, calf raises, toe taps, or whatever combination makes you feel loose.

3. Go a little bit longer than you have before.

One of the simplest ways to step up your walk is simply to add more steps

4. Focus on your form.

5. Pick up your pace with intervals.

Intervals—short periods of harder efforts—not only make your walk more challenging, but they can also make it more engaging and fun. mailbox ahead of you, walk fast until you reach it, then spend a few minutes walking at an easy recovery pace before selecting another destination.

6. Add some oomph with weights.

Walking already involves your calves, quads, hamstrings, glutes, and core. Integrating weights can further challenge those muscles and also recruit more of your upper body

7. Take along some resistance bands.

Prefer to travel lighter? You can still work in some strength moves by wrapping a stretchy resistance band around your wrist to have at the ready for some strength moves, Better yet, take two—a small mini-band and a longer, looped elastic resistance band

8. Use elevation to your advantage.

Heading up hills naturally increases the intensity of your walk even if you’re moving at the same pace or slower. “A walking incline can be even harder than running,” Declines also serve their purpose, activating your core and strengthening your mind-muscle connection as you focus on each step.

9. Do an out-and-back where you can do some stair climbs at the halfway point.

One simple way to add extra intensity into your workout is to incorporate some stairs into your routine. A common way to do this is to map your route to include regular walking as a warm-up, then hitting a flight of stairs for some higher-intensity work, and then walking back home as a cool down.

10. Mix in some bodyweight moves.