Lacing up your sneakers and heading outdoors for a walk is more than simply hitting your step goal for the day. With just the right walking workouts on deck, you can make strides toward leaner, sculpted legs and glutes. By incorporating variety into your walking routine, such as intervals and different inclines, you can burn calories and build lower-body strength. We spoke with experts who outline the best walking workouts for lean legs and glutes, so get ready to upgrade your cardio routine.
“Walking has been associated with greater longevity, staying active longer, diabetes management, depression, and mental health support, and [it] has a positive effect on a whole host of other chronic health issues,” explains Joy Puleo, NPCP, ACSM and director of education at Balanced Body. “Simply put, walking is just good for us. It helps maintain strong cardiorespiratory fitness and [increases] overall strength, balance, and flexibility.”
All of these amazing benefits add up, and when you establish a consistent walking habit, you’re setting the foundation for a healthy lifestyle. Puleo recommends walking three to five times during the work week and at least one weekend day.
Now, let’s explore the best walking workouts for lean legs and glutes. These workouts are designed to intensify and challenge your walking regimen.
Intervals
Interval walking workouts are an excellent way to sculpt your legs and glutes.
“Vary your speed by creating intervals where you are walking at a relaxed pace followed by short intervals increasing speed,” instructs Puleo. “This will challenge your cardio threshold and increase general cardiovascular health. Even adding short intervals of light jogging will do the trick—as little as 20 to 30 seconds for every two minutes of walking can reap excellent results.”
Outdoor Hill Walking
This stellar workout can be completed on any hill in your surrounding area—and the stepper it is, the better.
“The uphill walks provide better results when performed at a slower pace,” says Monique Bell, CPT, WLS, FNS, NASM, and SCHI-certified at Monique Bell Fitness. “It’s highly effective because it focuses on driving through the whole foot and maintaining a nice stride. It’s important to be mindful when descending downhill since it’s more strenuous on the knees, and I recommend [maintaining] a slight bend [of] your knees and a slow pace on the way down.”
Steady-State Incline Treadmill Walk
The treadmill is a great tool to turn to on inclement weather days or when you simply don’t feel like leaving the house. Bell recommends stepping up your walking game with a steady-state incline treadmill walk. She suggests setting the incline anywhere from 8% to 10%, depending on your fitness level.
“As an NPC Bikini Competitor, I have implemented this type of walking workout into my regimen post-weight training,” she tells us. “It’s effective because it leans out the legs and preserves the fullness in the glutes. ‘Steady state incline treadmill walking’ is effective for anyone who wants to prevent water retention in their lower extremities post-workout day, and it’s the perfect low-impact cardio to help lean out the legs.”
Hiking
Exploring different hiking trails is a fun way to burn calories and get your legs and glutes into shape.
“Outdoor hiking with different elevations makes the climbs fun [and] challenging, and they are great endurance walking workouts,” explains Bell. “Hikes are a great way to tone and lean the legs; however, note that this exercise is not the best way to target glutes. Hikes are more effective when durations are at least 30 to 45 minutes at a moderate pace.”
Walking With Lunges
On longer walks, consider incorporating bodyweight lunges to bump up the intensity for your lower body.
“Take lunge breaks where you do 10-30 lunges in a row, [and] then resume walking,” suggests Dr. Milica McDowell, a doctor of PT, certified exercise physiologist, and VP of operations at Gait Happens. “Lunges target your glutes, hamstrings, and core and will isolate these muscles if you incorporate this strength challenge. Shoot for a total of 100 lunges total during your workout and you’ll notice those muscles are slightly sore (in a good way) the next day!”
Alexa Mellardo
Alexa is the Mind + Body Deputy Editor of Eat This, Not That!, overseeing the M+B channel and delivering compelling fitness, wellness, and self-care topics to readers. Read more about Alexa
