Is walking good exercise? And does it count as cardio?

The short answer

Yes. Brisk walking is moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, which is the same category as the “cardio” in every exercise guideline. The CDC lists walking briskly, at 2.5 mph (4 km/h) or faster, as a moderate-intensity activity, and the US Physical Activity Guidelines ask adults for at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity a week. So a brisk half-hour walk on five days covers it. A slow stroll is still good for you, but it is the brisk part that counts as exercise.

Does walking count as cardio?

Cardio, or aerobic exercise, is any activity that keeps your heart and lungs working harder than at rest for a sustained time. Brisk walking does exactly that, and trials show it: a meta-analysis of walking studies (Murtagh and colleagues, 2015) found that walking programs raised aerobic capacity, lowered blood pressure, and reduced waist size and weight.

How to tell you are walking hard enough

Your steps a minute. Researchers found that about 100 steps a minute is where walking becomes moderate intensity for adults aged 21 to 40, and 130 is where it becomes vigorous (Tudor-Locke and colleagues, 2019). Count your steps for 15 seconds: 25 or more is brisk.

The talk test. At moderate intensity you can talk but not sing. At vigorous intensity you cannot say more than a few words without pausing for breath. That is the CDC’s own rule of thumb.

Your speed. At 3 mph a mile takes about 20 minutes. Slower than 2.5 mph is an easy pace. What is brisk walking? has all three in one table.

How much walking counts?

The US guidelines ask adults for 150 to 300 minutes a week of moderate activity, preferably spread across the week, and say that more than 300 minutes brings additional benefits. Since 2018 they also count activity of any length, so three ten-minute brisk walks do the same job as one half hour. How many steps in 30 minutes of walking turns that into steps.

What walking does not cover

Strength. The same guidelines ask adults to do muscle-strengthening activities that work all the major muscle groups on two or more days a week, on top of the aerobic minutes, because they bring additional benefits. Walking counts as aerobic activity, not muscle-strengthening, so it does not cover that part. For older adults, the guidelines add balance training as well.

Walking that keeps happening

The guideline is minutes every week, which makes walking a habit question more than an exercise question. reTrek turns your daily steps into distance along a real route, with a short film about the place waiting at each milestone and your progress on the map every evening, so the walks have somewhere to go. Everest Base Camp is free. Start walking it.