Don’t Underestimate The Benefits Of Walking Your Dog
Just because your dog is not burning many calories during a walk, you should not underestimate the benefits it provides to your dog. A walk provides the foundation of your dog’s mental and physical good health.
Going for a walk with your dog appeals to your dog’s instinct to be part of a team with you. Also, by exposing your dog to new situations, your dog will become more adaptable to things in the world, and your dog will regard you as its teacher and protector. Walking reinforces that sense of partnership in your dog and fortifies the bond between the two of you.
As indicated earlier, walking your dog burns off excess energy in a way that letting them out in your backyard will not. Regular walks will help your dog relax at home. You will find that a relaxed dog is easier to train and better behaved at home.
Think of your dog as an athlete. Most dogs need an hour of physical activity each day to help them stay in optimal health free of disease. Certain breeds, such as working or herding breeds, need more than an hour every day. Regardless of the breed or size of your dog, research shows one clear fact: sedentary dogs usually become overweight dogs. Overweight dogs eventually develop a host of health problems, such as joint problems and heart disease. Daily walking is the best way to keep them happy and healthy.
This discussion is not to discourage exercise. It is merely meant to point out my often repeated phrase that “we tend to underestimate calories and overestimate exercise.” The expenditure of 64 calories for a 20 pound dog is not insignificant, but it is not monumental and easily cancelled by feeding practices.
Exercise is healthy. It also creates a stronger bond between owners and their dogs. The key is not to overestimate the value of exercise, especially for your pet. It is not going to contribute to 30% of weight loss but it is not wasted effort. As long as you are exercising at a pace that makes you sweat and the dog pant it is promoting a healthier lifestyle for both.
A more recent study estimated that a 22 pound dog trotting on treadmill submerged in approximately 10 inches of water would burn about 64 calories in 30 minutes if maintaining a pace of 6.8 miles per hour. This pace is only 2 miles an hour less than the pace of a competitive marathoner! Could your overweight pet maintain this pace for 30 minutes? And it would still mean a paltry 64 calorie burn.
It is amazing how much we know about calorie expenditure in humans during exercise. Charts are available that list countless types of exercise and the number of calories that are burned at various levels of intensity. Exercise machines equipped with monitors can also calculate calorie expenditure. So how many calories do animals burn during exercise?
We know a little more in dogs. One study suggests that a dog walking at a pace of 3.7 -4 miles an hour (~15 minute miles) will burn .8 calories per pound per mile This means a 20 pound dog will only burn about 64 calories during a one hour walk. This calorie loss is easily cancelled by the treats the dog receives when it gets home to reward its athletic efforts. Furthermore, it is unlikely that most owners can maintain a 15-minute mile pace so the average one hour walk for a dog would burn fewer calories. How many? Again we don’t know as there are no studies at slower paces.
Rough estimates of calories burned walking
On average, someone walking at a typical walking pace (approxiamately 2.5 to 3.5 mph or 17 to 24 minutes per mile) will burn 65-160 calories per mile (source).
Increasing your walking speed to a brisk walking pace of 4.0 mph, or about 15 minutes per mile, will burn, on average, 68-170 calories per mile.
Increasing to a vigorous walking pace of 4.5-5 mph, or about 13.3-12 minutes per mile, can increase your calorie expendeture to 76-218 per mile.
Burn more calories walking your dog
Enter your weight and the number of minutes spent participating in the selected activity (walking the dog) to find out approximately how many calories you have burned. Search Exercise Database Again