9 Ways to Take Your Walking Workout to the Next Level

Any style of walking that gets you moving is good at first but, eventually, you’ll have to pick up the pace, get your heart rate up and break a sweat if you want to get the calorie-burning, muscle-toning and health-boosting benefits. “We’re not talking a major overhaul, just a few strategic tweaks to your walking posture and technique, so it’s easier for you to go farther and walk faster,” explains Lauren Jawno, certified high-performance coach, speaker and author. 1. Take smaller, quicker steps. Speed up by taking smaller, more frequent steps. You don’t have to sprint but you do need to step with purpose during your walk. Pretend you’re running late. Walk like you’re on a mission. If you’re walking at the proper pace, you should find talking difficult but not impossible. 2. Use a heart rate monitor. You should be walking at a brisk enough pace to maintain your heart rate in your target-training range. This ensures you’re working hard enough to benefit your heart but not so hard that y...