I've recently started walking/jogging on a treadmll for 40 to 60 minutes 4 days a week. My goal is to lose 10-15 pounds over the course of the summer. I'm getting mixed advice and am now confused. My friend read a book that recommends I walk for 2 minutes run for 1 minute -- that 2/1 interval for the entire time I'm on the treadmill. I did this and my heartrate measured in the "cardiovascular zone" the entire time. Well, the machine has a "fatburning zone" so I asked a personal trainer what the difference was? He told me that with my goal of simply losing 10 pounds that I should be exercising in the "fatburning zone". He said weightloss occurs more steadily by staying in this zone, rather than increasing the intensity to the cardiovascular zone. So, the next day I walked for an hour and kept my heartrate in the fatburning zone. The problem is that I mentally feel like I'm not exercising hard enough. I also burn more calories when I walk/jog. I'm confused, can anyone help me figure which is my best option?

In actual fact, there is a similar calorie burn between power walking and jogging when doing the ame distance. Jogging takes less time because you are going faster, but it is harder on your joints. Also, know that if people want to exercise for about half an hour a day, but do not have that "chunk" of time available at one time.. the time is "cummulative" that means you can bring your heart rate up and do several smart short periods of exercise for the same benefit as one long session would. You really do NOT need Pain to Gain (or accomplish your goals). Hope that helps.

But remember to change your eating habits if you want to lose weight. Excercise along with healthy eating will help you lose weight. Excercise alone will do very little with your weight.