British doctors have calculated how many calories you lose during a one-mile walk, which converts to a mile and a half. Good news: there are more than you think. Minus? Not everyone burns calories at the same rate.
Thursday, February 1, 2024 at 2:42 PM
The number of calories you burn primarily depends on your weight. Your walking pace and additional challenges along the way, such as climbing a hill, also have an impact. With these things in mind, the team of Heidi Moawad, a neurologist at the Case Western School of Medicine, calculated how much adults can burn on average during a one-mile walk.
Weight and pace
If you weigh less, you will burn fewer calories compared to someone who weighs more. The heavier you are, the more energy your body needs to function and that costs calories.
The team found that a 300-pound person can burn 160 calories in one go by walking one mile at a moderate pace of 2.5 to 3.2 miles per hour. If you keep that pace, it will take you about twenty minutes to walk a mile. Walking faster can help you burn more calories, although the differences are small. If the person in the example above increases the pace to 5.6 kilometers per hour, he could burn 171 calories. At that pace the walk is shortened by about three minutes.
Men versus women
Important note. According to the experts, men burn calories faster than women because they naturally have a higher metabolism. Men owe this faster metabolism to the fact that their body has more muscle than fat. A woman weighing 90 kilograms will burn about 90 calories during a walk at a moderate pace, while a man of the same weight will burn about 100.
A table for illustration:
If you are planning to go outside or to the gym in good spirits, then preferably opt for a walk in a hilly area. Or set the treadmill to a higher incline. Then, according to Moawad, you can burn up to 200 calories.
