The Japanese Walking Method: What It Is, What the Research Says, and How to Start

Your social media feed is right about this one. "Japanese walking" is one of the few fitness trends that started with real research instead of an influencer. Better still, the research was done on people our age.

What is Japanese walking?

The real name is Interval Walking Training (IWT). Researchers at Shinshu University in Matsumoto, Japan, led by Hiroshi Nose and Shizue Masuki, developed it. The recipe is simple:

• 3 minutes fast: a brisk pace that feels a bit hard, where talking takes effort.
• 3 minutes easy: a relaxed, comfortable stroll.
• Repeat 5 times for about 30 minutes, 4 or more days a week.

What the research found

In a study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 679 men and women with an average age of 65 did interval walking for five months. On average, their aerobic fitness rose about 14%. A combined score for lifestyle-related disease risk (things like blood pressure and blood sugar) improved about 17%.

The surprising part: the gains tracked the total minutes of fast walking each week. Total time spent walking didn't explain them. The university put it bluntly: the easy strolling on its own didn't improve fitness. The brisk minutes did the work.

So the slow minutes aren't the workout. They're the rest that lets you do the fast part again and again.

How to start this week

1. Week 1: 3 rounds (18 minutes). Get used to switching paces.
2. Week 2–3: 4 rounds.
3. Week 4 on: 5 rounds, 4 days a week.

Use a phone timer or the interval setting on a smartwatch. A flat park loop or a high school track is ideal. Bad weather? Many local malls open early for walkers.

Who should check with a doctor first

Ask your doctor before you start if you have heart disease, chest pain, dizziness, uncontrolled blood pressure, or a recent joint replacement, or if you're getting back to exercise after a long break. "Fast" means fast for you. For some people that's a stroll with purpose, and that counts.

Dana's take

This is the rare trend I'd tell my own mother to try. It's free, it doesn't need a gym, and the research was done on people in their sixties, not twenty-somethings. Push the fast minutes and enjoy the easy ones.

Sources: Masuki S, Morikawa M, Nose H. "High-Intensity Walking Time Is a Key Determinant to Increase Physical Fitness and Improve Health Outcomes After Interval Walking Training in Middle-Aged and Older People," Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 2019 (PubMed 31477320); Shinshu University Institute for Biomedical Sciences summary; Nose H., "Interval Walking Training for Middle-Aged and Older People: Methods and Evidence," IEICE Transactions, 2014. This article is general education, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor before starting a new exercise program.