What To Expect When You Walk 3 Miles A Day
Regular walking is an excellent way to improve your health and fitness. For most people, walking 3 miles a day is an achievable challenge. Before you commit to a regular walking program, find out what you can expect from walking 3 miles a day. How long does it take to walk 3 miles? How many steps is it? What will it do to your body?
The time to walk 3 miles depends on how fast you walk. For most people, it takes an hour or slightly longer, but some can power walk at 4 miles per hour (mph). At this speed, 3 miles will take just 45 minutes.
A daily walk has numerous health benefits, from improved cardiovascular fitness to lower blood pressure and better mental health. Brisk walking can help you lose weight. This guide explores the number of steps and time it takes to walk 3 miles, from an easy walk at a slow pace on the flat to walking uphill, walking briskly, or on a treadmill.
How Far Is 3 Miles?
3 miles is 5,280 yards or 4,828 meters or approximately 5K. 5K = 3.1 miles.
How Many Steps Is 3 Miles?
Using a fitness tracker or pedometer is an easy way to keep track of how much walking you do every day. The number of steps it takes to walk 3 miles depends on fitness levels, average step length (stride length), and pace.
Walking 3 miles is the same distance as approximately 6000 to 7200 steps.
How Long Does It Take To Walk 3 Miles?
How fast you walk dictates your walking time. If you’re walking briskly, the average person walks at 3 to 4 miles per hour (mph). A brisk pace is when your heart rate is elevated, but you’re still able to walk and talk. You’ll need to make some effort to maintain your pace.
At a brisk pace of 3 to 4 mph, it will take 45 to 60 minutes to walk 3 miles. When you’re not in a hurry, for example, strolling along the beach watching the sun set, times for 3 miles can be over 90 minutes.
It’s not the speed that matters if you’re trying to get fit; it’s how hard you’re working. Your speed will naturally improve as you get fitter and take regular walks.
Walk faster using trekking poles, or try power walking. Some people can sustain a fast pace of up to 5 mph. At this pace, it takes just 36 minutes to walk 3 miles!
If you know your walking pace, you can find out how long it takes to walk 3 miles from the following chart:
| Walking Speed (mph) | Walking Pace (min/mile) | Time Taken To Walk 3 Miles (min: sec) |
| 2.0 | 30.0 | 90:00 |
| 2.25 | 26.7 | 80:06 |
| 2.5 | 24.0 | 72:00 |
| 2.75 | 21.8 | 65:24 |
| 3.0 | 20.0 | 60:00 |
| 3.25 | 18.5 | 55:30 |
| 3.5 | 17.1 | 51:18 |
| 3.75 | 16.0 | 48:00 |
| 4.0 | 15.0 | 45:00 |
| 4.25 | 14.1 | 42:18 |
| 4.5 | 13.3 | 39:54 |
| 4.75 | 12.6 | 37:48 |
| 5.0 | 12.0 | 36:00 |
What’s The Average Walking Speed?
Typically, a good walking pace is 3 miles per hour. For many people, this is a normal pace – the pace you walk at naturally without trying to walk faster.
If you’re walking for fitness, the Centers For Disease Control And Prevention (CDC), gives an example of moderate-intensity exercise as walking briskly at 2.5 to 4 mph. That’s a walking pace of 15 to 24 minutes per mile.
Walking speed decreases with age but not as much as you might think. This study by Schimpl, Moore et al found that the difference is just 1.2 minutes decline when walking a distance of 1 km, aged 20 compared to 60 years. That works out at less than 6 minutes difference over 3 miles.
The same study found that differences in walking speed based on sex or BMI were insignificant. Sex, height, muscle mass, stride length, and body weight can impact your speed, but the greatest differences come from your fitness level.
The fitter you are, the faster you can walk. An older person who’s stayed fit and healthy all their life will walk much faster than the average speed.
How Does Distance Affect Your Average Walking Pace?
It takes a good level of fitness to maintain a brisk pace over a long distance. Most people will set off at a fast pace but slow down when they get tired. When you’re walking for fitness, practice walking at different speeds. This way, you can gauge how fast to start walking based on the distance you’re aiming to cover.
Walking Pace On A Treadmill
3 miles on the treadmill will often be faster than walking outside. Instead of uneven pavements and street furniture to dodge, you have a flat consistent treadmill belt to walk on.
On a treadmill, you can set the speed setting to your target walking pace. If you set the speed to 3 mph, it will take you 60 minutes to walk 3 miles. At a speed of 4 mph, it will take 45 minutes to walk 3 miles.
Walking Uphill
If you want to burn calories, lots of calories – try walking uphill! On a steep hill, you can burn almost twice as many calories compared with walking on a flat surface.
It takes longer to walk uphill. Expect to take an extra 30 minutes for every 1000 feet of climbing. A 3-mile walk with 1000 feet of elevation gain can take 90 minutes.
Is Walking 3 Miles A Day Enough to Lose Weight?
Walking 3 miles a day burns approximately 240 to 300 calories, and you can expect to lose about 2-3 pounds a month just from walking. That may not sound like a lot, but if you combine walking with a healthy lifestyle and make some improvements to your diet, weight loss can be as much as 1 – 2 pounds a week.
Walking further every day will yield faster results, but weight loss depends on other factors, not just exercise. Your diet will have the biggest impact on your weight.
However, it’s important to know that weight loss is never sustainable unless you exercise. When a body is in a calorie deficit, it looks for an energy source and will break down both body fat and muscle tissue to get the calories it needs.
When you lose lean muscle mass, your metabolism is negatively affected. That makes it extremely hard to keep the weight off. You’re stuck in a yo-yo dieting loop with very low daily calorie needs.
To avoid muscle breakdown, use those muscles and eat sufficient protein as part of a balanced diet. Walking is terrific for working your leg muscles, but for a full-body workout, add some strength training twice a week to target your upper body and core. These can be bodyweight exercises or using weights.
Getting enough sleep, reducing stress, and having a positive relationship with food are all important for losing weight. A daily walk will have a positive impact on your mental health. When you feel good about yourself, it’s much easier to have a healthy relationship with food.
