Greater Weight Loss from Running than Walking during a 6.2-Yr Prospective Follow-Up
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PURPOSE: This study aimed to test whether equivalent changes in moderate (walking) and vigorous exercise (running) produce equivalent weight loss under free-living, nonexperimental conditions. METHODS: Regression analyses of changes (Δ) in body mass index (BMI) versus exercise energy expenditure (ΔMET-hours per day, 1 MET = 3.5 mL O2·kg·min) from survey questionnaires completed at baseline and 6.2 yr thereafter in 15,237 walkers and 32,216 runners were used in this study. RESULTS: At baseline, walkers spent less energy walking than runners spent running (mean ± SD; males = 2.22 ± 1.65 vs 5.31 ± 3.12 MET·h·d, females = 2.15 ± 1.63 vs 4.76 ± 3.03 MET·h·d), and walkers were significantly heavier than runners (males = 26.63 ± 4.04 vs 24.09 ± 2.58 kg·m, females = 25.44 ± 5.14 vs 21.61 ± 2.49 kg·m). During follow-up, energy expenditure declined less for walking in walkers than for running in runners (males = -0.19 ± 1.92 vs -1.27 ± 2.87 MET·h·d, females = -0.30 ± 1.93 vs -1.28 ± 2.85 MET·h·d). ΔBMI was inversely related to both ΔMET-hours per day run and ΔMET-hours per day walked, but more strongly to ΔMET-hours per day run than walked in men and in heavier women. Specifically, the regression coefficient for ΔBMI versus ΔMET-hours per day was significantly more negative for running than walking in men in the first quartile (differences in slope ± SE: -0.06 ± 0.03, P = 0.01), second quartile (-0.10 ± 0.03, P = 0.001), third quartile (-0.17 ± 0.03, P < 10), and fourth quartile of BMI (-0.14 ± 0.03, P < 10) and in the fourth BMI quartile of women (-0.32 ± 0.04 kg·m per MET-hours per day, P < 10). This represented 90% greater weight loss per MET-hours per day run than walked in the fourth BMI quartile for both sexes. Age-related weight gain was attenuated by running in both sexes (P < 10) and by walking in women (P = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Although ΔBMI was significantly associated with both ΔMET-hours per day run and walked, the ΔBMI was significantly greater for Δrunning than Δwalking.
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A prospective study with 47,453 participants demonstrated greater weight loss from running than walking the same distance daily.
“a prospective study with 47,453 participants demonstrated greater weight loss from running than walking the same distance daily [16].”
From A Comparison of Leg Muscle Oxygenation, Cardiorespiratory Responses, and Blood Lactate between Walking and Running at the Same Speed (2024) · cites this paper as [16]
The Abstract Methods report 15,237 walkers and 32,216 runners, totaling 47,453, surveyed 6.2 years apart. The Abstract Results find a stronger association between changes in running and BMI than between changes in walking and BMI in men and heavier women. The comparison is per change in energy expenditure, not between people running and walking the same distance daily; the observational study also does not establish that running caused greater weight loss. (LLM, conf=0.89)
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- Authors
- WILLIAMS, P. T.
- Affiliations
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (US)
- Corresponding author
- WILLIAMS, PAUL T.
- ORCID
- WILLIAMS, PAUL T.
- Venue
- Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise
- Published
- 2013-04
- Volume
- 45
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 706-713
- ISSN
- 0195-9131 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC4067491
- OpenAlex
- W2084146983
- Cited by
- 29
- References
- 41
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 3 · 2015: 1 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 3
- FWCI
- 1.62
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (HL094717, R01HL094717)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Physical Activity and Health
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
- Keywords
- running, walking, weight loss, body mass index, exercise energy expenditure, free-living physical activity, sex differences, obesity, energy balance, weight loss maintenance, weight regain, body fat percentage, total body water, bone mineral density, bone mineral area, bone mineral volume
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Energy Metabolism, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Humans, Male, Obesity, Prospective Studies, Surveys and Questionnaires, Regression Analysis, Running, Weight Loss, Body Mass Index, Walking, Young Adult
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