Study Revises Calorie Expenditures in Walking

Individuals trying to keep fit and, hopefully, lose some weight depend on walking as a major component of their exercise program. So it is discouraging for them to learn that the leading standardized equations that are currently used to track the calories burned while walking are relatively flawed. These equations, which, according to Rhodi Lee, writing for Tech Times, have been used for nearly half a century. They were based on data collected from a limited number of individuals. The old standards, a new study revealed, are “relatively inaccurate and significantly biased.”

Lindsay Ludlow, Ph.D., Southern Methodist University (SMU) physiologist, said that the leading standards estimate too few energy expenditures in 97% of the cases that they have examined. She and hercolleagues have come up with a new standardized equation that, she claims, “is up to four times more accurate than the leading standardized equations, which assume that one size fits all.”

The older equations developed by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), were based on data from a small set of adult men. Known as “ACSM” and “Pandolf” equations, they were initially intended for the military.

The new SMU equations improve the existing standards by taking into account different-sized individuals and using the data from a larger database. As study researcher Peter Weyand, Ph.D. explained, “There is an economy of scale. Big people get better gas mileage when fuel economy is expressed on a per-pound basis.”

The researchers said that their new equation can be applied regardless of the weight, height and walking speed of the person and thus is far more accurate than the older equations.