June 25, 2025, 2:24 pm | Read time: 5 minutes
Many recreational athletes often ask the same question: Which sport is best for burning body fat? A study compared incline walking with running–and the results were surprising.
For many recreational athletes, the focus is not on building muscle but on reducing body fat. On one hand, because severe obesity is responsible for many chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, and on the other, to shape the body. However, reducing body fat is a complex issue. First, calorie intake must be reduced to create a calorie deficit. This means consuming fewer calories per day than the body uses. But the type of exercise or sport you engage in is another important factor. Researchers have now investigated whether it is more effective for fat burning to walk uphill slowly over a longer period (Incline Walking) or to run.
Follow the FITBOOK channel on WhatsApp now!
Overview
Walking Uphill on the Treadmill? A Good Idea!
In the cardio area of a gym, you’ll find people engaged in various endurance sports: some are running on the treadmill, others are rowing or using a stepper or elliptical trainer. And then there are those who walk uphill on the treadmill at a steep angle. This method is called Incline Walking. It may look a bit unusual at times, but it is actually an effective means of burning fat, as a study shows.
In recent years, a specific workout with Incline Walking has become established: it’s called “12-3-30” and was invented by fitness influencer Lauren Giraldo. The American spread the workout on social networks and claimed to have lost about 29 pounds in two years with it alone, without dieting. The formula is easy to break down:
- The treadmill is set to a 12 percent incline.
- The walking speed is three miles per hour, which is about five kilometers per hour.
- The workout lasts 30 minutes.
- You must not support yourself with your arms.
Researchers Compared Incline Walking with Running
In a study published in the journal “International Journal of Exercise Science,” American researchers wanted to compare the metabolic activities of the 12-3-30 workout with those of self-paced running.1 They recruited 16 participants who were at least 18 years old. Seven were female, nine male. All were from the university environment of the University of Nevada in Las Vegas (USA). The average age of the participants was 25.3 years, and the average weight was 166 pounds. They were healthy participants without significant overweight who exercised regularly.
Excluded from participation were individuals who were pregnant or could be, suffered from chronic underlying conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, or kidney disease, or did not meet the inclusion criteria for physical fitness.
Within one week, participants had to complete a self-paced run and a 12-3-30 treadmill workout. During the self-paced run, they chose the intensity and speed that felt comfortable. However, participants had to stop running once they burned the same amount of calories as during the 12-3-30 workout.
The duration of the self-paced run and the energy consumption, broken down into carbohydrate and fat consumption, were measured.
Incline Walking Led to Better Fat Burning
The analysis of the data provided interesting results. Participants burned calories faster while running. However, they relied more on carbohydrates than fat as an energy source. In contrast, during Incline Walking at lower intensity, fat was the preferred energy source. As the results show, 33 percent of the calories burned while running came from fat, while 40 percent came from walking at a 12 percent incline. Although participants burned the same number of calories, Incline Walking is seven percent more effective at burning fat than running, according to this study.
The catch is that the 12-3-30 workout is more time-consuming because you burn calories more slowly overall than when jogging at your own pace, which is usually over five kilometers per hour. Additionally, it is a small study with healthy and fit participants. Whether the results can be applied to overweight individuals requires further studies. Nevertheless, Incline Walking, as described here, seems to be an effective method to particularly activate fat burning.
Incline Walking vs. Running: Study Shows More Fat Burned
Want strong shoulders? We recommend the reverse butterfly exercise.
Discipline, Pain, Applause! My Childhood as a Dancer on the World’s Largest Theater Stage
How Better Fat Burning Occurs
Although Incline Walking is a mild form of exercise, it provides better results than jogging. This is due to the well-known principle of Zone 2 training. In this, you run or walk for a longer period at a relatively low heart rate. Specifically, you should train at 60 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate (HRmax). To determine this accurately, you must first calculate your HRmax. We explained how to do this in a previous FITBOOK article.
However, there is also a simple rule of thumb: if you can talk to a training partner while running without getting out of breath, you are likely in Zone 2. This can also be well assessed in other sports such as swimming. As long as the effort feels easy and you feel like you could continue for hours, it is likely Zone 2 training. It should feel like a “sweet spot” between effort and relaxation. To benefit from fat burning, the training should last at least 30 minutes.
Our expert Enrico Zessin recommends 45 to 60 minutes (or more) of Zone 2 training, two to three times a week.