Is walking at a leisure pace (slowly) on a flat surface considered cardio?

Question

and if it is, how long should I walk to get my recommended daily?

Answer 1

Anything is considered cardio if your heartbeat goes up past your resting rate.

Find your pulse and count the beats for 30 seconds. Times the total by 2. That is your resting heartrate.

Click on the link below, enter your age and resting heartrate to find your minimum and maximum training rates.

Anything is better than nothing at all.

Answer 2

Sorry but walking at a leisurely pace doesn't get your heart rate up and therefore isn't considered a cardio workout. Power walking for half an hour on the other hand gets your heart rate up to where it needs to be to get an effective cardio workout

Answer 3

A cardio work out is generally considered one that increases the heart rate for at least 30 minutes.
Peak heart rate should be 80% of your maximum heart rate (if you're on medications that control your heart rate, this may not be possible). And your maximum heart rate is 220 minus your age.

so for example, if you are 45, then your max heart rate is 175 (220-45). and your excercise heart rate should get up to about 140 (80% of 175). This is just an approximation, but if your heart rate is only getting up to 90 during a walk, then you're probably not excercising hard enough.

more info can be found through the USPTF

Answer 4

How old are you?
If you're under 30 and in relatively good health, then you need to push it a bit more. Cardio refers to your heart. So cardio-exercise is something that exercises your heart.
The older we get the less it takes to get the heart pumping and the easier is it to wear and tear the body.
So unless you've been doing cardio-type exercises all your life. I'd suggest you start slow and work up to a routine that actually gets your heart rate up and causes you to breath harder.
Of course, if you're under 30 you can pretty much fore go the slow start. Just remember to stretch really well before any physical exercise.

Answer 5

it is but you must increase the intensity at some point. if you have never exercised before, then walk at your own pace for 30 minutes 4 times a week. don't stop though to smell the flowers. keep moving. cardio is supposed to keep your body and your heart moving for a minimum of 30 minutes. every month, increase your intensity and your time until you are walking for an hour, 5 days a week, at a fast pace. speed walking, sprinting, rollerblading, swimming, and dancing will help to tone your body as well. as you get more fit, add weight and resistance exercises to build lean muscle. don't worry about becoming bulky. women lack the testosterone to become big and bulky like men. but, more muscles and moderate eating of snacks and meals, will rev up your metabolism. the goal is to get healthy not skinny.

Answer 6

No, it's not cardio. You need to walk briskly enough to get your heart pumping at an increased rate for about 30 minutes.

Here is how you can calculate your target heart rate. http://www.sportfit.com/sportfitglossary/energetics_aerobic_krvnn.html

If you don't want to do all the math and measurements, a good natural gauge is if you walk briskly and you're breathing harder, but not breathing so hard that you can't talk.

Answer 7

try adding just a little skip or bounce in your step. Or walk briskly. Get your heart rate up. Walk 30 or more minutes a day. the first 20 minutes is just burning sugar in the blood, the rest of the time, you burn fat.

Answer 8

No, it does not increase your heart rate enough to ne considerd cardiovascular fitness. On the other hand, it IS better than no exercise at all.

Answer 9

i dont believe so, if you don't get your blood pumping and your face sweating, you're pretty much doing nothing. Of course, it is a lot easier than the tredmill on high!

Answer 10

as long as you get your heart pumping above your normal heart rate (standing) you are doing "cardio"