Exercise intensity, or "huff and puff", is more important than just going the distance.

Credit: Wikipedia

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SYDNEY: It's one of the most popular forms of exercise, but walking isn't as good for you as many people think, according to researchers from the University of Alberta in Canada.

"Generally, low-intensity activity such as walking alone is not likely going to give anybody marked health benefits compared to programs that occasionally elevate the intensity," said Vicki Harber, lead author of a study presented recently at the American College of Sports Medicine annual conference.

The study of 128 men and women pitted the increasingly popular 10,000-step exercise program, in which participants wear a pedometer and aim to reach 10,000 steps of exercise per day, against a cardio-based exercise regime using treadmills and stationary bikes.

The first group carried out their program at their own pace, while the second group was instructed to exercise at a moderate intensity, one that would allow them to say a couple of sentences with ease but still cause a slight but noticeable increase in breathing and heart-rate.

"When we matched the two programs for energy expenditure, we found that a more traditional fitness program improved aerobic fitness and reduced systolic blood pressure more than the 10,000-step lifestyle program," Harber said.

Peak oxygen uptake, an indicator of aerobic fitness, increased by 10 per cent among those in the higher intensity program, compared with a four per cent increase for those in the walking group. Systolic blood pressure dropped by 10 per cent in the first group and four per cent in the second group.

Other markers of overall health, such as fasting plasma glucose levels, response to a two-hour glucose tolerance test and various blood lipids were not affected by either program.

"Our concern is that people might think what matters most is the total number of daily steps accumulated and not pay much attention to the pace or effort invested in taking those steps," said Harber, who described pedometer-based walking programs as "an excellent starting point for beginning an activity program" but emphasised the need to "add some intensity or ‘huff and puff'."

"Across your day, while you are achieving those 10,000 steps, take 200 to 400 of them at a brisker pace," she said.

Kerry Mummery, of the School of Health and Human Performance at Central Queensland University, and co-founder of the 10,000 steps program in Australia, agrees that walking is not a complete solution. "At an individual level, whether you're an elite athlete or a couch potato, the more you work [at exercise] the better it is for you. The body will respond and the individual will increase their capacities."

However, "the rationale behind the promotion of walking is that it's the easiest and most accessible form of exercise and it's possible to get an entire population to be more active", he said.

The Australian National Physical Activity Guidelines for Adults recommend at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity on most, preferably all days, interspersed with some regular vigorous activity for extra health and fitness.