‘Tis the season to indulge (no amount of pigs in blankets will ever be enough) – which means that, come January, many choose to focus on their health.
But rather than set lofty fitness goals for 2026, there’s a manageable new work-out that you might want to give a go instead.
According to PureGym’s annual report, Japanese walking is set to be the fastest-growing fitness trend next year, as in 2025 alone, the exercise had a 3,000% surge in online searches.
It’s included in a list alongside walking yoga (unsurprisingly, a combo of yoga and walking) and the plank hover (a move that levels up the plank, including subtle lifts and holds)
Japanese Interval Walking is easy to master. All you need to do is walk at a quick pace for three minutes, then slow down for three.
The fast pace should be enough to get your heart rate up considerably (if you have an exercise watch, it should be between 70 and 85% of your maximum, which you can calculate by subtracting your age from 220).
During the slow pace, you can take it easy again and whack it down a notch. For this little break, you should be strolling – and letting your heart rate come down to between 40 to 50% of your maximum measure.
Got the gist? You just need to repeat five times for a 30-minute period. And the best bit? All you’ll need is your trainers and something to time yourself with – even if it’s just your phone, or even a good old-fashioned watch.
Naturally, it’s taken the internet by storm.
Over on TikTok, @paigepaxtonsnyder tried it as a ‘fun way’ to get her steps in. In her view, it kept exercise ‘interesting’ – and she levelled it up by wearing a weighted vest, all while staying in Zone 2.
@organicpilates is also a convert, and particularly enjoys doing it on a ‘sunny day’ to ‘increase happiness.’ We could all do with topping up our dopamine levels, that’s for sure.
What are the benefits of Japanese Interval Walking?
The benefits of interval walking are myriad, too – with one study published in UC Davis concluding that it typically helps you to burn more fat and muscle, if that’s something you’re looking to do.
Plus, HIIT exercises can lower both blood pressure and heart rate – both things that can help you live longer – but you’ll need to make sure you come prepared, as if you go too hard too soon, then you risk being left with injuries to either your muscles or joints.
We tried the trend…
Metro’s Lifestyle Editor, Rachel Moss, tried Japanese Interval Walking on her lunchbreak. Here’s how she got on:
‘Call me old before my time, but I’m obsessively into walking. I put up with a 90-minute commute into London for easy access to the Chilterns at weekends, I holiday in the Lake District, and I’m currently nerding out with Kerri Andrews’s book, Wanderers: A History of Women Walking.
‘But Japanese Interval Walking? Never again.
‘It’s somehow the worst of both worlds. Not quite the calm joy of a walk, not nearly the endorphin-pumping release of a run. Instead, it feels like I’m perpetually late for a train I never catch.
‘Just as I start to enjoy the slow pace and notice my surroundings or, I don’t know, breathe, my phone buzzes and its sprint-ish mode again.
‘Speaking of phones, you’re glued to it the whole time. Never mind being good for your blood pressure, interval walking is so annoying, I can feel mine rising through sheer frustration.
‘The one benefit, I suppose, is that I’ve squeezed some exercise into a day that I wouldn’t have done otherwise. But the hyper-scheduled trend destroys everything I love about walking – the mindfulness, the freedom, the quietly revolutionary rhythm – so for me, it’s a no.’
This article was originally published on May 25, 2025.
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