Which burns more calories - Walking or Running?

It's a common misconception that you burn far more calories when you go for a run instead of going for a walk – but is this actually true?

You will indeed burn calories at a faster rate if you're running, but whether you cover a 5k distance in 25 minutes or 50 minutes, your body would have done the same amount of work energy-wise.

To move your body over distance takes energy. If you burn 20 calories to move a certain distance, going 5 times farther will burn 5 times the calories regardless of how fast you are going.

Your weight plays a crucial factor in how many calories you actually burn. The heavier you are, the more energy it will take to move your body.

So if you want to burn more calories quicker, then running is the answer, you'll also get a good cardiovascular workout with that “after-burn” effect. As the saying goes, no pain, no gain.

However, if you want to burn extra calories then walking really does work.

Living a healthier life style

Many children participate in team sport or enjoy it, but it is important that even children who don’t, have access to a healthier life style. Sport and fitness is well known to have many benefits including building self confidence, building relationships with fellow students, releasing endorphins - giving you the ‘feel good factor’ and reducing childhood and adult obesity. One in three children between 2 and 15 are overweight or obese. Children should be given the tools and knowledge at a young age to make this a lifestyle that will continue into adulthood.

One of the main issues with childhood obesity is the lack of education at an early age. If parents are feeding them the cheap, easy and unhealthy food, how are they supposed to know what’s good and what’s not? Schools try hard to educate them and include sport in the curriculum and many schools now follow a healthy schools option. However, young kids often don’t make the connection between sport and health.

Humans are very good at living for the now and not seeing the effect of their actions on the future. Obesity is the biggest killer in the UK above smoking and alcohol related disease. Obesity is a hugely contributing factor to non alcoholic fatty liver disease (and cirrhosis), heart disease, diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, gall stones, poor skin, breathlessness. Diabetes itself causes many additional complications all as a consequence of high blood sugar levels, not to mention a life time of carbohydrate counting.

With this in mind, how can we educate society to live a more healthy lifestyle?

Author Kiko Matthews