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IN SEENwalking seems pretty intuitive. These are skills that you (and many babies) learn in the first year of life. When you grow up, you probably have walked thousands of miles. You might not think of it as exercise—but these days, walking has become a trendy exercise thanks to its great fitness benefits.
Social media is flooded with viral walking challenge: from ‘hot girl / walk man’ for all number-based protocols that have you wondering if you are exercising or going back to math class. There is also tai chi walking, walking backwards, Nordic walking, rucking—the list goes on. If you want to add some more focused activity to your fitness routine, how should you start?
Don’t just trial and error every walking trend that shows up on your FYP; There is no single walking trend that will work for everyone. Janet Dufek, PhDa biomechanist and kinesiology professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, says the most important takeaway is to find a walking style that you can maintain. To help you determine what that might look like for you, it helps to identify a list of “red” and “green” flags for your needs. Here’s how you can do that.
5 Popular Walking Trends and How to Wear them
Walk Back
As the name implies, walking backwards involves people moving in the opposite direction. Reversing your steps helps strengthen the joints, especially for those with knee problems, as it takes pressure off the front of the knees while still strengthening the quads and hamstrings. Here’s how to do it:
- Find a clear space (such as an open path of a running track) or a treadmill set at a slow walking speed (1 mph is recommended).
- Turn around and reach one leg again, landing on the toes and then the heel before straightening your knees.
- Keep your body upright and if on a treadmill, use the handrails for stability.
6-6-6 Walking challenge
Unlike other walking trends that promise weight loss or muscle gains, the 6-6-6 walking trend is a workout to help people stay consistent in their daily movement goals. The walks are one hour, slotted between 6 am or 6 pm
- Six minute warm up stretches.
- 60 minutes of brisk walking.
- Six minute stretches for cooldown.
12-3-30 Walking challenge
The 12-3-30 workout is one of the most popular TikTok walking challenges (over 11,000 people have posted themselves doing the challenge or showing their before/after results). You will need a treadmill, which will be set to incline for ramping up the challenge.
- Set the treadmill incline 12.0.
- Set a speed of 3.0 miles per hour.
- Walk for 30 minutes (recommended five times a week).
Ruking
A strength-based walking challenge is rucking. This was the first military conditioning exercise. Basically, it’s a long walk with a heavy pack.
You need a bag, although you could technically start with a backpack. Rucksack should be strong, comfortable, and hold weight close to your body to prevent the bag from bouncing or shifting. The weight can be an actual ruck plate or you can DIY it with a bag of rice, a water bottle, a brick, or a book. Be sure to keep track of how much weight is packed and adjust if necessary.
The Japanese Interval Walking Method
Similar to interval running, this method uses alternating rounds of slow and fast paces. You can do it on a treadmill, walking pad, or outside.
- For the first few minutes, start with a leisurely stroll to warm up the muscles.
- For the next three minutes, pick up the pace and reach 70 to 80 percent of your maximum heart rate. You may be breathing heavily but still able to hold a conversation or speak in short sentences.
- Slow down for another three minutes, return to your initial pace or 40 percent of your maximum heart rate.
- Repeat five times until you hit the 30 minute mark.
‘Green Flags’ To Look For In Walking Trends
Match Your Fitness Level
Walking workouts that use specific numbers to make the most impact for beginners, he says Kyle Sanchez, PT, DPT, CSCSphysical therapist at Bespoke Physical Therapy. Think 12-3-30 and the 30-minute Japanese walking trend. He finds the structure in the numbered exercises is what makes this beginner-friendly, especially since it usually doesn’t require as much time as other methods. “I found it if I suggested it [the 12-3-30 method] to my patients, it’s definitely a good thing where people change,” added Sanchez.
He also stated that at least 30 minutes of movement at least five days a week is enough to meet the recommended 150 minutes of physical activity every week.
Increases your Heart Rate
Leisure walks are less beneficial for the heart than brisk walking. Sanchez says a walking trend that promotes fast-paced or purposeful stride can put you in zone 2 cardio. This is where you are at 60 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate. “If you’re doing it for heart health, maybe use some kind of wearable like an Apple Watch or an Oura ring to track your heart rate zones,” she says. Sanchez adds that brisk walking that gets the heart pumping is especially beneficial for people with diabetes or high blood pressure.
Increase Your Endurance
If your schedule allows you to walk longer, Sanchez recommends leveling up to a walking protocol that has moved for an hour or even up to 90 minutes. One example is the 6-6-6 workout, or changing the 12-3-30 challenge for more than 30 minutes.
“Thirty minutes is a good starting point, but if you move to something like the 6-6-6 trend where you do an hour of walking, build up to it,” Sanchez explained. “Schedule a 30-minute walk with your neighbor and try to maintain a good conversational pace. Then bump it up to 60 minutes, then 90 minutes if you can still maintain a good conversation while walking.”
It Relieves Stress
Your walking activity doesn’t have to be something you dread. Dufek emphasizes choosing a fun and achievable plan that keeps you motivated every day. In addition, he recommends walking trends that take you outside or on scenic routes because being in nature calms the body. “If you’re indoors on a treadmill, and you have a visual aid or a monitor where you can choose the scene, it can help release stress,” Dufek said.
It Increases Social Connections
Dufek says any walking trend that encourages having a friend can be more valuable than just giving you a chance to talk. Creating your own social outings can help reduce stress and be a great source of accountability. “You don’t want to be the one who doesn’t show up at six in the morning when your other three friends are there,” she says.
‘Red Flags’ To Avoid In Walking Trends
Cause Pain
Both Dufek and Sanchez advise listening to your body for unusual aches or pains while walking. If your knee starts to swell or your plantar fasciitis flares up, Sanchez advises to stop or pull back to a shorter session. Dufek also recommends lowering the intensity of walking if pain or soreness persists. For example, he said that people who jump into high-intensity walking and have never done it before may be more likely to experience prolonged soreness and increase their risk for injury.
If you’re someone who occasionally experiences knee pain, Dufek recommends walking backwards. He says the biomechanics of walking backwards is different from walking forwards. “The impact is reduced and the ground reaction force is reduced, especially in the knee joint,” explained Dufek. “The range of motion is reduced, but it can improve flexibility.” He says that when you increase the flexibility in the hamstrings it can reduce the tension in the back and lower legs.
Your weight is too heavy
Dufek warns that carrying heavy loads can affect your posture and strain your muscles. For this reason, he recommends that people doing heavy walks be more conservative in their initial efforts. The goal is to gradually increase to the desired weight rather than piling it all at once.
“I would advocate or encourage people to start slowly, lightly,” he says. “If you do something wrong, your body will give you signs like pain. Pay attention to those signs.”
What is the Best Walking Plan for Weight Loss?
Despite what TikTok influencers may say, no single walking trend is guaranteed to help you lose weight. According to Dufek, the most important factor in using walking as a weight loss strategy is staying consistent. Once you establish a routine, he recommends gradually increasing endurance through weight, intensity such as mountain climbing, or increasing duration.
Sanchez says the priority for weight loss is not hitting 10,000 steps every day. Instead, he says it’s important to maintain a pace that maintains a zone 2 or zone 3 heart rate. “If that’s the case [walking] For weight loss, the heart rate zone is the most important thing to be aware of and be aware of and what you can use,” added Sanchez.
You can also try a routine that is specially programmed with weight loss in mind, instead of jumping on a viral trend. Check out the new one MH 4-Week Walking for Weight Loss Plan, which is designed to check several boxes for your walking routine to get you moving and moving with intention.
What Are the Best Walking Trends for Building Muscle?
For those looking to increase the intensity of their workouts, Sanchez recommends using a heavy vest or rucksack. Just be sure to add weight according to your fitness level. Dufek recommends starting small with a fan pack with light weights or even two water bottles.
“Find a trend that works for you or just get up and start walking,” says Sanchez. “Movement is medicine. There are no certified rules for it. Just move.”
Jocelyn Solis-Moreira, MS is a health & wellness associate for Men’s Health and previously written for CNN, Scientific American, Popular Scienceand National Geographic before joining the brand. When he can’t work, he’s doing circus arts or working towards the perfect pull-up.
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