BASIC TRAINING CALORIE-COUNTING CONFUSION.

Q: I've started walking on a treadmill and it seems like I burn more calories when I walk for a longer period of time, as opposed to when I walk faster and for a shorter time period. I assumed that walking faster would burn more calories. Can you explain?

A: Well, the confusion begins with distance, time and speed. In order to compare the amount of calories you burn walking at a slow pace to the amount of calories you burn walking at a fast pace, you must keep the distance the same.

You can only compare apples to apples. Let's compare a two-mile walk to a two-mile run. A run or a fast walk over the same distance will always require more work/calorie expenditure than a slow walk over the same distance. Take time out of the equation and just think logically. If I told you to walk from your house to a store that is two miles away, and then I told you on the second day to walk fast to the store, which one is going to cause you the most fatigue? The fast walk is always going to require more work and burn more calories.

Let's look at what parameters we can change to make someone burn more calories: Speed, terrain, distance, weight and time.

You will burn more calories walking fast or running compared to walking slow. You will burn more calories walking uphill compared to walking on flat land. You will burn more calories walking a longer distance. You will burn more calories wearing a 10-pound walk vest. You will burn more calories walking the same speed for 30 minutes compared to walking the same speed 20 minutes.

Now let's look at the device you are using to measure your calorie expenditure. Calorie counters that you find on treadmills and cardio machines are calibrated for an average person. If the machine allows you to enter your age and weight, at least the calorie estimate is going to be a little more accurate. However, the most accurate way to measure your calorie expenditure from a walk or any other activity is to purchase your own personal heart-rate monitor that allows you to enter your own data: age, height, resting heart rate and weight. When you use your own heart rate monitor, it will calculate how many calories you are burning based on your specific training heart rate.

FITNESS TIP

What you get out of a workout is directly proportional to what you put into it. Try not to focus on calories, fat burning zones and equations. Each time you step into the gym, put 110 percent effort into your workouts, and focus on how your body feels. Are you really challenging yourself, or are you just putting in your 20 to 30 minutes?

The overload principle, one of the basic principles of physical training, states that the body will adapt to the stresses placed upon it. The more you do, the more you are capable of doing. The human body is an amazing machine. This is how people get stronger, bigger, faster and increase their physical fitness level.

ABOUT THE TRAINER

Jeanette Jenkins, founder and president of The Hollywood Trainer fitness company, has a bachelor of science degree in human kinetics from the University of Ottawa. A 14-year industry veteran, she has worked with actors and professional athletes, including Queen Latifah, Taryn Manning and Terrell Owens. For more information, visit www.thehollywoodtrainer.com.

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