Need a Change of Pace? Try Walking on an Incline

Walking on an incline can increase your heart rate and target specific muscles, among other benefits. But it can also result in soreness, especially as you get used to iIt’s no secret that walking uphill leaves you out of breath. Adding incline training to a walking or running workout also gives your muscles a challenge, increases your heart rate, and boosts calorie burninLike any other type of exercise, walking on an incline has some benefits and downsides.

This article covers common incline gradients, benefits, downsides, calories burned, and how incline walking compares with regular walkinmicrogen/Getty Images Common incline gradienThe gradient or incline is determined by how steep the land or treadmill is below your feeWhen outdoors, you may notice road signs that indicate the grade of a hill. For example, a sign signaling 6% grade means the road elevation changes 6 feet for every 100 feet of horizontal distance (1).

You can see how this could become complicated when trying to determine the incline or grade of every hill or uneven terrain you’re walking on outdoorsUnless you’re walking or running up the same hill each time, the landscape constantly changes, which means the incline or grade also changesWhen walking outdoors If you want to know the elevation gain or loss during your walk, consider using a smartphone app like MapMyRun or MapMyWalk.

Was this helpfulWhat makes treadmill training ideal when tracking inclines is the ability to set the gradient yourself. Most treadmills come with preset programs that change the incline as you progress through the workout. However, you can also manually adjust or set the inclineMost treadmills offer settings that start at

0% and move up by 0.5% increments to a maximum of a 15% incline or gradTo match the changes you experience with outdoor terrain, consider using one of the workouts that simulate uphill and downhill walking in a varied pattern.