Interval walking is the perfect way to amp up your walking routine. Walking is safer on your your joints than running, however to burn belly fat and lose weight you need to work at a vigorous intensity at least three days a week and ideally five days a week for at least a 30 minutes.

Interval walking incorporates speed walking in short bursts during your regular walking program. It is very simple to do and easy to customize to your fitness level. Simply change the speed of your walk in intervals. That is all there is to it.

Beginners should get their walking time up to at least 30 minutes a day comfortable before beginning an interval walking routine. Be comfortable with your ability to complete a 30 minute walk before increasing your intensity. Intermediate and experienced walkers can implement an interval routine with little effort.

Tips for interval walking success

Make sure you have plenty of water. Your heart rate will increase significantly. You will sweat more with increased exertion. Hydration is important to your success.

You will also need a timer. A stopwatch works best so that you can time your intervals.

Know your path. Make sure that you know what obstacles lay before you so that you can anticipate any areas that require caution.

Instead of lengthening your stride, remember to take faster steps. Lengthening your stride can cause injury. So keep with the proper walking posture and move faster.

Remember to implement the talking test. If you are unable to carry on a conversation and are gasping for air, you are walking too fast. If you are able to sing your favorite song with no problem, up your game.

How long between intervals

Interval length is determined by your specific fitness level. This is where every interval program is customizable. Find a level you feel you are pushing yourself and stick with it for a week then increase the interval.

Example beginners interval program

Week One

Warm up 5 minutes
Moderate pace 5 minutes
Brisk pace 30 seconds
Moderate pace 5 minutes
Continue to last 10 minutes of walking finish with 5 minutes of moderate and 5 minutes of cooling down.

Week Two

Warm up 5 minutes
Moderate pace 5 minutes
Brisk pace 1 minute
Moderate pace 4 ½ minutes
Continue to last 10 minutes moderate pace for 5 minutes, cool down for 5 minutes

Week Three

Warm up 5 minutes
Moderate pace 5 minutes
Brisk pace 1.5 minutes
Moderate pace 4 minutes
Continue to last 10 minutes, moderate pace for 5 minutes, cool down for 5 minutes.

Continue until your intervals are 3 minute moderate pace and 2 minute brisk pace. Continue to increase the intensity, with every week you will be stronger and able to go faster.

Interval walking is a wonderful way to strengthen your heart muscles, lungs, and to increase endurance. Speed walking helps with the decrease of belly fat which is connected to high rates of heart disease. Implementing an interval routine is also a great way to beat walking boredom. If you have any questions or want to share tips with others that are implementing intervals into their walking program, join in on the discussion in the Walking forum.