Calories burned running and walking

Knowing how many calories you burn during exercise can be useful both for weight loss and overall health. If you're trying to lose weight, then burning more calories may help, and if you're on a calorie controlled diet, then understanding your calorie burn becomes critical for managing your calorie intake. Understanding how fast your burning calories also has an implication for overall health, as it's a useful measure of exercise intensity. If you're running, you burn the same number of calories per mile regardless of speed. That means the rate your burning calories is directly proportional to your pace. Walking is rather different, and the faster you walk, the more calories it takes to cover each mile. The calories burnt in both running and walking are also directly proportional to your body weight, so the heavier you are the more calories you burn. In addition, you obviously burn more calories it going uphill than on the level, and for modest slopes you burn less calories and going downhill. This page will allow you to estimate your calorie burn for different paces and slopes. By default, this page shows the values for a 150 pound person, but you can use the form below to customize it.

Body Weight (optional)

KgPounds

Contents

1 The Difference Between Running and Walking

Running and walking are two different forms of movement. In running you either have one foot on the ground or both feet in the air; both feet are never on the ground at the same time. In contrast, when walking you either have one or both feet on the ground and never have both feet in the air. Sometimes people think that basic physics means that it should take the same energy to move a human over a given distance regardless of running or walking. However, both running and walking are quite inefficient, so most of the energy expended does not go to forward movement. This is most easily seen when you compare a runner with a cyclist; for the same effort, the cyclist will move far faster. This means that the energy cost of running and walking is mostly around how much energy is wasted in each form of movement.

2 Do You Burn More Calories Running or Walking?

Generally, the answer is that running burns more calories per mile than walking, but as is so often the case, the real answer is "it depends".

• If you're running at a moderate pace, you burn more calories per mile and per hour than walking at a moderate pace.
• If you're race walking, then you can burn more calories per mile than running. (Race walking here is faster than about 14:00 min/mile.)
• The relative Calories per hour for race walking and running will depend on the exact paces.

3 Should You Run or Walk in an Ultramarathon?

The table below gives some insight into when you should run and when you should walk in an ultra. This table shows how the slope would change your pace if you keep the same effort (Calories per hour). The first column is the running pace on the flat, then each column shows the pace you would travel if you run or walk on various slopes. The table is based on the available research, and there are obviously some practical limitations that make some values unreasonable for most people. As noted above, it's more efficient to walk than to run on level ground, up to the natural transition pace of about 14:00 min/mile. What's surprising is that it is also more efficient to run than walk on uphill sections, even as the equivalent pace drops. So, if you're able to run at a 10:00 min/mile on the flat, you could go up a 10% grade with the same effort at 16:35 min/mile when running or 17:39 min/mile when walking. This seems rather bizarre when both paces are below the natural transition pace (see below), but when I tested this out I found to my surprise it appears to be true. That doesn't mean you should run up the hills, as walking may be a useful break and using different muscles may help with fatigue. In addition, unless you've practiced race walking technique it's unlikely you'll be able to efficiently hit the faster downhill walking paces, where you may be able to hit the downhill running pace. For example, if you're running a 10:00 min/mile pace on the level, you may be able to handle running the 5:59 min/mile pace down a 10% decline, but few people will be able to walk at a 7:28 min/mile pace down the same slope. So it may not make much difference if you take walking breaks uphill or on the level, but you don't want to take them on the downhill sections. (In the table below, I've used a blue font where the walking pace is faster than the equivalent running pace.)

	Equiv Pace on Slope
	-10%		-8%		-6%		-4%		-2%		0%		2%		4%		6%		8%		10%		12%		14%		16%		18%		20%
Flat Running Pace	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk	Run	Walk
3:00	1:48	3:28	1:58	3:41	2:10	3:55	2:25	4:10	2:41	4:26	3:00	4:42	3:20	4:60	3:43	5:18	4:06	5:37	4:32	5:57	4:58	6:18	5:26	6:40	5:56	7:02	6:26	7:26	6:58	7:50	7:30	8:15
3:30	2:06	3:42	2:17	3:57	2:32	4:13	2:49	4:30	3:08	4:48	3:30	5:08	3:54	5:28	4:20	5:50	4:47	6:13	5:17	6:36	5:48	7:02	6:21	7:28	6:55	7:55	7:31	8:23	8:07	8:53	8:45	9:24
4:00	2:23	3:55	2:37	4:11	2:54	4:30	3:13	4:49	3:35	5:10	4:00	5:32	4:27	5:56	4:57	6:21	5:28	6:47	6:02	7:15	6:38	7:45	7:15	8:16	7:54	8:48	8:35	9:22	9:17	9:57	10:00	10:34
4:30	2:41	4:06	2:57	4:25	3:15	4:45	3:37	5:06	4:02	5:30	4:30	5:55	5:01	6:22	5:34	6:50	6:10	7:21	6:48	7:53	7:28	8:28	8:10	9:04	8:54	9:42	9:39	10:22	10:27	11:03	11:16	11:47
5:00	2:59	4:16	3:16	4:37	3:37	4:59	4:01	5:23	4:29	5:49	5:00	6:17	5:34	6:47	6:11	7:20	6:51	7:54	7:33	8:31	8:17	9:11	9:04	9:52	9:53	10:36	10:44	11:23	11:36	12:12	12:31	13:03
5:30	3:17	4:26	3:36	4:48	3:59	5:12	4:26	5:39	4:56	6:07	5:30	6:38	6:07	7:12	6:48	7:48	7:32	8:28	8:18	9:10	9:07	9:54	9:59	10:42	10:52	11:33	11:48	12:27	12:46	13:23	13:46	14:23
6:00	3:35	4:35	3:56	4:59	4:21	5:25	4:50	5:53	5:23	6:25	6:00	6:59	6:41	7:36	7:25	8:17	8:13	9:01	9:03	9:48	9:57	10:39	10:53	11:33	11:52	12:31	12:52	13:33	13:56	14:39	15:01	15:48
6:30	3:53	4:43	4:15	5:09	4:42	5:37	5:14	6:08	5:50	6:42	6:30	7:19	7:14	8:00	8:02	8:45	8:54	9:34	9:49	10:27	10:47	11:24	11:47	12:26	12:51	13:32	13:57	14:43	15:05	15:59	16:16	17:21
7:00	4:11	4:51	4:35	5:18	5:04	5:48	5:38	6:21	6:17	6:58	7:00	7:39	7:48	8:24	8:39	9:14	9:35	10:08	10:34	11:07	11:36	12:11	12:42	13:21	13:50	14:37	15:01	15:58	16:15	17:26	17:31	19:01
7:30	4:29	4:58	4:55	5:27	5:26	5:59	6:02	6:35	6:44	7:15	7:30	7:59	8:21	8:48	9:16	9:42	10:16	10:42	11:19	11:48	12:26	12:60	13:36	14:19	14:49	15:45	16:06	17:19	17:24	19:01	18:46	20:53
8:00	4:47	5:05	5:14	5:36	5:47	6:09	6:26	6:48	7:11	7:30	8:00	8:18	8:54	9:11	9:53	10:11	10:57	11:17	12:04	12:30	13:16	13:51	14:31	15:20	15:49	16:58	17:10	18:47	18:34	20:47	20:01	23:03
8:30	5:05	5:12	5:34	5:44	6:09	6:20	6:50	7:00	7:37	7:46	8:30	8:37	9:28	9:35	10:31	10:40	11:38	11:53	12:50	13:14	14:05	14:44	15:25	16:25	16:48	18:18	18:14	20:25	19:44	22:49	21:16	N/A
9:00	5:23	5:18	5:54	5:51	6:31	6:29	7:15	7:12	8:04	8:01	9:00	8:56	10:01	9:59	11:08	11:09	12:19	12:29	13:35	13:60	14:55	15:41	16:19	17:36	17:47	19:47	19:19	22:17	20:53	N/A	22:31	N/A
9:30	5:41	5:24	6:13	5:59	6:53	6:39	7:39	7:24	8:31	8:16	9:30	9:15	10:35	10:23	11:45	11:40	13:00	13:07	14:20	14:48	15:45	16:42	17:14	18:54	18:47	21:27	20:23	N/A	22:03	N/A	23:46	N/A
10:00	5:59	5:30	6:33	6:06	7:14	6:48	8:03	7:36	8:58	8:31	10:00	9:34	11:08	10:47	12:22	12:11	13:41	13:47	15:06	15:39	16:35	17:48	18:08	20:21	19:46	23:26	21:27	N/A	23:13	N/A	N/A	N/A
10:30	6:17	5:35	6:52	6:13	7:36	6:57	8:27	7:47	9:25	8:45	10:30	9:53	11:41	11:11	12:59	12:42	14:22	14:29	15:51	16:34	17:24	19:01	19:03	22:01	20:45	N/A	22:32	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
11:00	6:34	5:40	7:12	6:20	7:58	7:05	8:51	7:58	9:52	8:60	11:00	10:12	12:15	11:36	13:36	13:15	15:03	15:13	16:36	17:33	18:14	20:23	19:57	N/A	21:44	N/A	23:36	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
11:30	6:52	5:45	7:32	6:26	8:19	7:13	9:15	8:09	10:19	9:14	11:30	10:31	12:48	12:02	14:13	13:50	15:44	15:60	17:21	18:38	19:04	21:59	20:51	N/A	22:44	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
12:00	7:10	5:50	7:51	6:32	8:41	7:22	9:39	8:20	10:46	9:28	12:00	10:50	13:22	12:28	14:50	14:26	16:25	16:50	18:07	19:51	19:54	23:58	21:46	N/A	23:43	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
12:30	7:28	5:55	8:11	6:38	9:03	7:30	10:03	8:30	11:13	9:43	12:30	11:09	13:55	12:55	15:27	15:03	17:06	17:45	18:52	21:15	20:43	N/A	22:40	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
13:00	7:46	5:59	8:31	6:44	9:25	7:37	10:28	8:41	11:40	9:57	13:00	11:29	14:28	13:22	16:04	15:44	17:48	18:45	19:37	22:58	21:33	N/A	23:35	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
13:30	8:04	6:03	8:50	6:50	9:46	7:45	10:52	8:51	12:06	10:11	13:30	11:49	15:02	13:51	16:42	16:27	18:29	19:54	20:23	N/A	22:23	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

4 The Effect of Incline

It's intuitively obvious that running or walking uphill is harder than level ground. It's also reasonably obvious that modest downhill slopes are easier than level ground, but as the slope increases so the difficulty becomes greater. Scientific research has supported and quantified this, showing that the energy cost of walking or running is to lowest at about 10% decline. There is some evidence that the slope of minimum energy is independent of pace. This slope of minimum energy requirement seems to corresponds with the slope that neither requires pushing back for forward movement nor energy dissipation for braking. The two graphs below show the relationship between slope and the cost of walking/running as measured by a number of studies.

The energy cost of running for various slopes.

The energy cost of walking for various slopes.

There are a number of factors that could change these assumptions:

• A study looked at the energy cost of uphill, level, and downhill running before and after a 65Km mountainous ultramarathon. After the race, the energy cost of uphill running was unchanged, but both level and downhill running were significantly harder by 8% (level) and 13% (downhill). These differences were greatest for the slowest runners and at least for the fastest runners.
• A similar study of a rather more extreme 303 Km mountain ultramarathon found that the energy cost of uphill running and walking was lower after the race. This result is a little surprising, and it's unclear why runners would do better fatigued than fresh. (The study did not look at level or downhill running.)
• I've found no research on the effect of training on the energy cost of running uphill or downhill. I would expect that downhill training would reduce the energy cost of downhill running.

5 The Transition Between Running and Walking

The energy required to run a given distance is the roughly the same regardless of pace. This is different to walking, where the energy required to walk a given distance generally goes up with pace. This means that at slow speeds, it costs less energy to walk than run, but as you go faster it becomes easier to run. When people are put on a treadmill and the speed gradually increased, they will naturally transition from walking to running. This transition occurs at roughly the same speed for most people and is called the Preferred Transition Speed (PTS). You can see this in the two graphs below. The graph on the left shows the energy expenditure over time, showing the energy required to walk goes up faster than for running. The graph on the right shows the cost per distance, with running staying constant and the cost of walking rising with pace. (It takes more energy to walk a distance very slowly, so the graph shows the low point which is the lowest energy cost to cover a distance.)

Energy cost over time.

Energy cost over distance.

6 Calories Per Hour

This table shows the number of Calories used per hour for a person weighing 80 Kg.

Slope	Running per hour (pace in min/Km)						Walk per hour (pace in min/Km)
	8:00	7:00	6:00	5:00	4:00	3:00	18:00	17:00	16:00	15:00	14:00	13:00	12:00	11:00	10:00	9:00	8:00	7:00
0.0%	518	591	690	828	1,035	1,380	203	212	221	232	249	272	300	338	384	453	548	686
0.5%	533	609	710	852	1,065	1,420	213	222	233	248	266	286	315	355	402	473	570	711
1.0%	548	626	730	876	1,095	1,460	223	233	244	260	279	300	330	371	420	493	593	737
1.5%	563	643	750	900	1,125	1,500	233	244	255	272	291	314	345	387	438	513	615	763
2.0%	578	660	770	924	1,155	1,540	243	254	266	284	304	328	360	404	456	533	638	789
2.5%	593	677	790	948	1,185	1,580	253	265	278	296	317	342	375	420	474	553	660	814
3.0%	608	694	810	972	1,215	1,620	263	275	289	308	330	355	390	436	492	573	683	840
3.5%	623	711	830	996	1,245	1,660	277	286	300	320	343	369	405	453	510	593	705	857
4.0%	638	729	850	1,020	1,275	1,700	287	296	311	332	356	383	420	469	528	613	728	883
4.5%	653	746	870	1,044	1,305	1,740	297	307	326	344	369	397	435	485	546	633	750	909
5.0%	675	771	900	1,080	1,350	1,800	307	321	338	356	381	411	450	502	564	653	765	934
5.5%	690	789	920	1,104	1,380	1,840	317	332	349	368	394	425	465	518	582	673	788	960
6.0%	705	806	940	1,128	1,410	1,880	327	342	360	380	407	438	480	535	600	687	810	986
6.5%	728	831	970	1,164	1,455	1,940	337	353	371	392	420	452	495	551	618	707	833	1,011
7.0%	743	849	990	1,188	1,485	1,980	347	364	383	404	433	466	510	567	636	727	855	1,037
7.5%	758	866	1,010	1,212	1,515	2,020	357	374	394	416	446	480	525	584	654	747	878	1,063
8.0%	780	891	1,040	1,248	1,560	2,080	367	385	405	428	459	494	540	600	672	767	900	1,089
8.5%	795	909	1,060	1,272	1,590	2,120	380	395	416	440	471	508	555	611	690	787	923	1,114
9.0%	818	934	1,090	1,308	1,635	2,180	390	406	428	452	484	522	570	627	708	807	945	1,140
9.5%	840	960	1,120	1,344	1,680	2,240	400	416	439	464	497	535	585	644	726	827	968	1,157
10.0%	855	977	1,140	1,368	1,710	2,280	410	427	450	476	510	549	600	660	744	847	990	1,183
10.5%	878	1,003	1,170	1,404	1,755	2,340	420	438	461	492	523	563	615	676	762	867	1,013	1,209
11.0%	893	1,020	1,190	1,428	1,785	2,380	430	452	473	504	536	577	630	693	780	887	1,035	1,234
11.5%	915	1,046	1,220	1,464	1,830	2,440	440	462	484	516	549	591	645	709	798	907	1,058	1,260

7 Calories Per Distance

This table shows the number of Calories used to cover a Kmfor a person weighing 80 Kg.

Slope	Running	Walk 18:00 min/Km	Walk 17:00 min/Km	Walk 16:00 min/Km	Walk 15:00 min/Km	Walk 14:00 min/Km	Walk 13:00 min/Km	Walk 12:00 min/Km	Walk 11:00 min/Km	Walk 10:00 min/Km	Walk 9:00 min/Km	Walk 8:00 min/Km	Walk 7:00 min/Km
0.0%	69	61	60	59	58	58	59	60	62	64	68	73	80
0.5%	71	64	63	62	62	62	62	63	65	67	71	76	83
1.0%	73	67	66	65	65	65	65	66	68	70	74	79	86
1.5%	75	70	69	68	68	68	68	69	71	73	77	82	89
2.0%	77	73	72	71	71	71	71	72	74	76	80	85	92
2.5%	79	76	75	74	74	74	74	75	77	79	83	88	95
3.0%	81	79	78	77	77	77	77	78	80	82	86	91	98
3.5%	83	83	81	80	80	80	80	81	83	85	89	94	100
4.0%	85	86	84	83	83	83	83	84	86	88	92	97	103
4.5%	87	89	87	87	86	86	86	87	89	91	95	100	106
5.0%	90	92	91	90	89	89	89	90	92	94	98	102	109
5.5%	92	95	94	93	92	92	92	93	95	97	101	105	112
6.0%	94	98	97	96	95	95	95	96	98	100	103	108	115
6.5%	97	101	100	99	98	98	98	99	101	103	106	111	118
7.0%	99	104	103	102	101	101	101	102	104	106	109	114	121
7.5%	101	107	106	105	104	104	104	105	107	109	112	117	124
8.0%	104	110	109	108	107	107	107	108	110	112	115	120	127
8.5%	106	114	112	111	110	110	110	111	112	115	118	123	130
9.0%	109	117	115	114	113	113	113	114	115	118	121	126	133
9.5%	112	120	118	117	116	116	116	117	118	121	124	129	135
10.0%	114	123	121	120	119	119	119	120	121	124	127	132	138
10.5%	117	126	124	123	123	122	122	123	124	127	130	135	141
11.0%	119	129	128	126	126	125	125	126	127	130	133	138	144
11.5%	122	132	131	129	129	128	128	129	130	133	136	141	147

8 Training Status Effects

The graph on the below shows that there are slight, non-significant differences between runners and active non-runners. This indicates that training does not change the transition speed, though it's worth noting that the actual transition speed is slower than would be expected from the energy costs. Also note that the actual cost of running is not quite constant with speed, but actually goes down as you go faster.

The energy cost for runners and non-runners, showing the Preferred Transition Speed (PTS) and the Energetically Optimal Transition Speed (ETOS).

9 Formula

for those who like to create their own tables, below are the underlying formulas that I'm using. The cost of running (Cr_i) and walking (Cw_i) on a slope is given by these equations:

Cri = 155.4i5 - 30.4i4 - 43.3i3 + 46.3i2 + 19.5i + 3.6
Cwi = 280.5i5 - 58.7i4- 76.8i3+ 51.9i22+ 19.6i + 2.5

Where i is the slope and the result I in Jules per Kg per Meter.