If you are walking to lose weight and as a cardio exercise, you have to cut out the leisurely strolls. In other words, pick up the pace.

Walking is a great form of cardio exercise, because you can do it anywhere without any equipment other than good shoes. However, if you are walking to lose weight, you have to walk briskly enough to actually achieve the proper exercise levels that you need in order to make it a cardio workout. In fact, there was a Mortality and Morbidity Weekly Review in which they found that only 26% of the people in the United States are walking at an intensity level that the US Surgeon General recommends as a baseline.

So, what should you be doing to make sure that you are on track for a cardio workout? There are a lot of things you can focus on, but the basics involve being focused and looking at your form. Walking briskly is your first attack point. This means that you should be able to cover over 3.5 miles in an hour. This means that you should be completing a mile within 15 minutes. Along the same lines, you should be making your walks anywhere from 30-60 minutes while keeping your intensity up the entire time. Be sure to keep the intensity levels up the entire time!

While you are trucking along at that pace, be sure to keep your stride nice and short. The power comes from pushing the back leg and foot, so put your focus there, and aim to push your power from the back leg and foot.

Your form is elementary as well. Get your arms going; you can only move as fast as your arms can. Keep them at a 90 degree angle, and swing them as you walk. Along with putting focus on your arms, your posture is very important too. You should be standing up straight. People with better posture will be able to breathe better as well as put less stress on their body.

Walking can definitely be a carido exercise, but you must do it properly in order to achieve the full benefits.