Who doesn’t like walking? It’s one of the best free activities that you can do either in the morning, during the afternoon, or my personal favorite, at night. It’s a unique experience that clears your mind, lightens up your mood, and offers a lot of other benefits. Some of the common questions that I get asked a lot are: What about skinny guys, can they walk without worrying too much about losing more weight? Is walking good for skinny guys?
Walking is good for skinny guys as long as it’s slow-paced so it doesn’t increase your heart rate that much which can result in burning more calories and thus, losing weight.
In this article, we’ll talk more in-depth about if walking is good for skinny guys, its benefits, and if it’s gonna make you even skinnier.
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Is Walking Good For Skinny Guys?
In order to answer this question, I’ll talk about my own experience in this matter. Growing up skinny, I used to absolutely love walking since I would do it every time I went to school and it was always the best moment of the day. Same thing as going back home and enjoying that evening breeze of air. Every time I wanted to go somewhere, I would always prefer walking over any other means of transportation since I knew it was the most beneficial for me.
Since I was a skinny guy, my cardio options were pretty limited. I rarely went on runs or jogs because I knew that it was just gonna make me even skinnier. The best alternative I had was walking since it offers somewhat the same benefits as running and jogging while keeping calorie consumption down low.
Walking is honestly one of the best activities that you can do as a skinny guy if you want something that doesn’t consume too much energy, and here are the main reasons why:
It’s The Best Alternative For Running
As I mentioned earlier, being a skinny guy, your options are really limited when it comes to cardio and physical activities. Since you’re probably sensitive to weight loss, any activity that burns a decent amount of calories will cause it. You want to avoid any unnecessary physical activity unless it’s some form of sport, resistance training, or in this case, walking. A 30-minute walk will only burn about 150 calories compared to 300-500 calories that you’ll burn while running for 30 minutes. It’s the best alternative for running and jogging and offers the same benefits.
It Builds Your Muscles
What’s the one thing that all skinny guys work towards? That’s, of course, to gain weight and build muscles. Did you know that walking will actually increase your muscle mass, especially in the lower area of your body, the core, and even the arms if you pump them while doing this unique activity? I’m pretty sure that the walking that I used to do during my teen days is one of the main reasons behind the increase in muscle mass in terms of my quads and calves. The increase is not gonna be as impressive as if you were weight-lifting, but it’s still better than nothing and you should definitely consider it as a skinny guy.
It Lightens Your Mood
Whenever I used to walk, I noticed something very interesting. That’s the fact that I always felt happy whenever I did it. I remember one time I did some research about it and found out that walking releases endorphins which are pretty much the “feel-good” hormones that control your happiness (It’s more complicated than that but you get the idea). I was shocked when I found out about this and it made me realize how much of an emotional benefit walking had on me when I was growing up. And to this day, I still go on walks on a regular basis.
It Improves Sleep
If you’re always struggling to sleep, go on a 30-minute walk before you go to bed and watch how you’ll magically fall into the other world in mere minutes. It’s an activity that won’t have much of a heavy toll on your body but enough to make you tired and need rest.
Did you know that the lack of sleep could be one of the main reasons why you’re skinny and can’t seem to gain any weight even though you eat and train? According to the Physiological Reports, lack of sleep increases the risk of metabolic dysfunction and loss of muscle mass and function.
Can Walking Make You Even Skinnier?
Based on my own experience, since I used to go on walks all the time while being skinny, walking definitely didn’t make me even skinnier, especially since I always made sure to not make it fast-paced.
Walking will not make you skinnier if you keep it low-paced to avoid increasing your heart rate which results in burning more calories than necessary.
Another thing you should keep in mind is to pay close attention to your calorie intake. Before going on any kinda walk, make sure that you’ve eaten enough so your body has enough energy and resources to fuel itself. And the best advice that I can give is to always be on a calorie surplus (eating more than what your body needs so that the excess can fuel any extra activities during the day and actually gain weight). This way, even if you go on a 1-hour walk, you don’t have to worry about even getting skinnier.
In addition to that, as I mentioned earlier, walking if done correctly and with enough energy to spare, can actually build your muscles which is always a plus for skinny guys.
Conclusion:
As you can see, being skinny and having limited options in terms of cardio, walking is the best alternative for running and jogging. It offers the same benefits and it doesn’t consume as much energy as other exercises. Just make sure that you eat enough, stay on a calorie surplus, and use the proper form while walking.
