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darcyf

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Apr 25, 2011
781
1,266
Toronto, ON
About to try my hand at running now that the weather is warming up and thinking I’ll likely be doing a mix of running and walking until I get my running stamina up.

Would you set your workouts to just run, just walk, or would you keep hitting the add button and switching back and forth between the two as you run then slow to a walk then get back to a run and so forth during a single outing?
 

Howard2k

macrumors 603
Mar 10, 2016
5,288
5,123
I’d just leave it as a walk unless it was a consistent run. But I suspect it won’t make much difference in either case.
 

ApfelKuchen

macrumors 601
Aug 28, 2012
4,334
3,011
Between the coasts
Walk and Run workouts have different criteria for heart rate and other factors. If you use the Run workout and mostly walk you will likely not receive much credit for the walking portions of the workout. If you use the Walk workout, running will count towards your overall calorie burn but you may not get much credit otherwise for having run for portions of the workout... I'd lean towards going with Walk until you've significantly increased the running portion of the workout, then switch to Run once running becomes predominant - the under-performance on the Run will be an incentive to make the transition to an all-run workout.
 

darcyf

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Apr 25, 2011
781
1,266
Toronto, ON
Walk and Run workouts have different criteria for heart rate and other factors. If you use the Run workout and mostly walk you will likely not receive much credit for the walking portions of the workout. If you use the Walk workout, running will count towards your overall calorie burn but you may not get much credit otherwise for having run for portions of the workout... I'd lean towards going with Walk until you've significantly increased the running portion of the workout, then switch to Run once running becomes predominant - the under-performance on the Run will be an incentive to make the transition to an all-run workout.
Gotcha, so basically if I’m 40/60 run/walk I should set it to walk. If I’m 60/40 run/walk, I should set it to run.

I’m planning on taking maybe a one minute walking interval between 3-5 minute running intervals so I’m thinking I’ll set it to run and see if my performance can keep up with my ambitions ?

Thanks!
 
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millerj123

macrumors 68030
Mar 6, 2008
2,580
2,580
Gotcha, so basically if I’m 40/60 run/walk I should set it to walk. If I’m 60/40 run/walk, I should set it to run.

I’m planning on taking maybe a one minute walking interval between 3-5 minute running intervals so I’m thinking I’ll set it to run and see if my performance can keep up with my ambitions ?

Thanks!
It really depends on the effort you are putting in, and if you meet the internal thresholds. I'd start with a walk and make sure it's logging correctly for you.
 

tobefirst ⚽️

macrumors 601
Jan 24, 2005
4,612
2,335
St. Louis, MO
I'll go against the grain and say to set it as running, as that is your ultimate goal. I think it'll be easier for you to track and compare long term if you stick with one type of workout.
 
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darcyf

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Apr 25, 2011
781
1,266
Toronto, ON
So I went out for my first run today and managed an uninterrupted 2k before ending the run workout and switching to walk for the last half k home. Pretty pleased with that result, credit the rowing machine I’ve been using the past couple of months for helping me build up a little stamina. So I guess I’ll stick to setting the workout to run and see how much further I can push it uninterrupted as I progress. Thanks all for the discussion!
 

MJ22

macrumors 6502a
Oct 3, 2017
591
762
I use the stopwatch function to time track intervals, but I start a run workout and let it run the entire time, which will include any rest walks which is sometimes the prescribed rest interval. It doesn’t seem to adversely affect the stats.
 

tobefirst ⚽️

macrumors 601
Jan 24, 2005
4,612
2,335
St. Louis, MO
So I went out for my first run today and managed an uninterrupted 2k before ending the run workout and switching to walk for the last half k home. Pretty pleased with that result, credit the rowing machine I’ve been using the past couple of months for helping me build up a little stamina. So I guess I’ll stick to setting the workout to run and see how much further I can push it uninterrupted as I progress. Thanks all for the discussion!
Congrats on your first run! Just keep getting out there and remember that it is at the end of your runs–where it is difficult–that you're making your gains.
 
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