Lose Weight Without a Gym! The 30-Day Water and Walking Challenge That’s Actually Doable
Plus learn how to modify the routine to speed results
While walking is a fantastic form of exercise and a great way to kick-start your weight loss journey, it’s not the only piece of the puzzle. If you want to boost your energy, improve hydration and build healthier habits, too, consider trying the 30-day water and walking challenge. It’s an easy, cost-free way to get moving—no gym, trainer or special equipment required. Here, experts weigh in on why it works and how you can tailor it to fit your personal health and weight loss goals.
What is the 30-day water and walking challenge?
While there’s no official guideline for the water and walking challenge, the main goal is to increase your step count and water intake for 30 days—both of which can help with weight loss. Velvette Suteau, a fitness and nutrition coach, does this annually and suggests starting out with 20 minutes of walking and eight cups of water daily.
Whether you break it up into chunks or do it all at once, 20 minutes of walking a day correlates to about 2,000 steps. And while it’s a great start toward increasing the amount of physical activity you do to rev your metabolism, it’s still well below the recommended 8,500 steps for those under 60 and 6,500 steps for adults over 60, says Milica McDowell, PT, DPT, a certified exercise physiologist and VP of operations at Gait Happens.
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The same goes for your water intake. Eight cups daily is a standard guideline, but it may not be enough for your health needs. In fact, McDowell suggests drinking half of your body weight in ounces to stay adequately hydrated.
How the water and walking challenge boosts weight loss
According to McDowell, creating a habit within a 30-day challenge has been shown to help improve motivation that can go beyond that time. After all, consistency is key for weight loss.
Additionally, combining regular walking with proper hydration can boost circulation and cellular function, support your body’s natural detox processes—like sweating and kidney function—enhance energy levels, promote a healthy calorie balance for weight management and even improve cognitive function and mood, says Rachel MacPherson, CSCS, CPT, hydration advisor at Cure Hydration.
You’ll also improve your digestion, which can slow down when you’re eating less. Macpherson notes that the weight loss might not be noticeable immediately, but adding other exercises or resistance training throughout the challenge (and beyond) will make a larger impact.
How to do the water and walking challenge for weight loss
Feeling ready to begin your wellness journey and burn more calories? Here, a few simple tips to help you get started:
Set a timer
Even though 20 minutes might not seem like much, busy schedules can still make it hard to fit into your regular routine. To stay consistent, MacPherson recommends carving out a dedicated 20-minute window each day for a walk.
“Use the timer on your phone to remind yourself to get your steps in,” she says. You can also set phone reminders to stay on top of your daily water intake. She adds that staying hydrated—especially while exercising—is key to replacing lost fluids and supporting your overall performance.
Break up your walks
If 20 minutes at one time isn’t doable, split your walks into five or 10-minute intervals. “You could pick two meals per day and walk for several minutes after each one to break up your walking over the day,” says MacPherson. “This also takes advantage of ‘habit stacking’—adding a new habit to an ingrained habit to increase the likelihood you’ll remember to do it every day.”
The same could be said for your water intake. Try using a bottle with volume markings to ensure you drink enough water and split up how much you drink throughout the day. (Learn about motivational water bottles here.)
How to burn more calories during the water and walking challenge
Walking is a low-impact, low-maintenance exercise that’s easy to fit into any routine. But if you’re craving more of a challenge and have been gradually increasing your activity levels, try adding these simple upgrades to your stroll.
- Change the pace. Mixing up your pace during your walk can help boost your cardiovascular fitness. Start at a relaxed speed, then pick it up for short bursts to challenge your heart and lungs. “Even adding 20 to 30 seconds of light jogging every couple of minutes can make a big impact and elevate your overall results,” says Joy Puleo NPCP, ACSM certified, director of education at Balanced Body.
- Add inclines or declines. Walking the same route and the same terrain repeatedly will have value, but as the body anticipates and learns your routine, the weight loss benefits may not be as impactful. However, Puleo says adding inclines and declines will both increase the challenge and change up your routine. Plus it’ll help keep your mind in tune with your body while elevating your heart rate.
- Pause for ‘fitness moments’. Adding squats, lunges and other aerobic exercises are a great way to mix up your walking routine and boost your weight loss results. “For every 15 minutes of walking, stop and do a set of 10-15 bodyweight squats and/or lunges, then continue,” says Puleo.
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