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- Walking speed reflects overall health, with faster paces linked to lower disease risk, better brain function, and longer life.
- A “normal” pace depends on age and individual factors like fitness, gait, and environment.
- Focus on maintaining or gradually improving your pace over time rather than hitting a specific target.
Over the last few years, walking has finally come into its own, both as a great way to move your body and to boost your mood. Hit any trail this spring, and you’ll likely see tons of people getting their walk in, whether with a buddy, in a group, or on their own.
That may also spark the question: How does your walking pace compare with other people who are lacing up? Recent research suggests that walking speed can tell us important information about our health—so, is there a pace we should shoot for? Here’s what you need to know.
Why Walking Speed Matters
“Walking speed can be a great window into how your body systems are working together,” sports physical therapist Kimberly Melvan, DPT, CSCS, owner of RunCoachPT, told Health.
So it’s probably not surprising that a quicker walking pace has been linked to some better health outcomes, like a lower risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. A faster walking speed has even been associated with better brain function as you age.
A brisker walking pace might hint at a longer life, too: According to a 2024 meta-analysis published in the Journal of Sports Sciences, people who walked the fastest were 43% less likely to die of any cause during follow-up than those in the slowest-walking group.
It may also help keep you more self-sufficient in your later years. “Walking speed is one of the best predictors of functional independence,” said Melvan. It can help you continue with activities of daily life, such as climbing stairs, going grocery shopping, or catching yourself from a fall.
Average Mile Times by Age
A small 2022 study of 103 middle-aged and older adults published in the Journal of Sports Sciences looked at the speed of self-paced walks in three conditions: slow, normal, and brisk. Here’s what they found for average walking speed by age in kilometers per hour, followed by miles per hour and minutes per mile:
- Ages 40–49:
- Slow: 4.7 km/h (2.91 mph, or 20.6 min/mile)
- Normal: 5.8 km/h (3.60 mph, or 16.7 min/mile)
- Brisk: 6.9 km/h (4.28 mph, or 14 min/mile)
- Ages 50–59:
- Slow: 4.6 km/h (2.85 mph, or 21.1 min/mile)
- Normal: 5.6 (3.47 mph, or 17.3 min/mile)
- Brisk: 6.5 (4.03 mph, or 14.9 min/mile)
- Ages 60–69:
- Slow: 4.6 km/h (2.85 mph, or 21.1 min/mile)
- Normal: 5.6 (3.47 mph, or 17.3 min/mile)
- Brisk: 6.6 (4.10 mph, or 14.7 min/mile)
- Ages 70–79:
- Slow: 4.5 km/h (2.79 mph, or 21.5 min/mile)
- Normal: 5.4 (3.36 mph, or 17.9 min/mile)
- Brisk: 6.2 (3.85 mph, or 15.6 min/mile)
And according to Melvan, these ranges can serve as overall benchmarks for a healthy walking pace:
- Young adults (ages 18–35): 14–18 min/mile (3.3–4.3 mph)
- Middle age (ages 36–64): 15–20 min/mile (3.0–4.0 mph)
- Older adults (ages 65–79): 17–24 min/mile (2.5–3.5 mph)
- Elderly (80+): 20–30+ min/mile (2.0–3.0 mph)
What Your Walking Pace Says About You
Walking at a brisk pace requires proper functioning of your heart and lungs, strong muscles, solid joint health and range of motion, and appropriate balance and coordination. And people who walk faster tend to have higher VO2 maxes—a measure of aerobic capacity—and better mitochondrial function, which allows their muscles to use oxygen more efficiently, said Melvan.
But while your walking pace can be an important factor to consider for your overall health, it shouldn’t be the only thing. Your walking speed “is an integrated measure of whole-body function not just a single puzzle piece,” said Melvan.
Rather than looking at it as a test you need to “pass,” consider focusing more on patterns that emerge—particularly quick dips. “What is more important to note is if your pace or speed is noticeably declining over time,” she said.
Keep in mind too that there are lots of other factors that can influence walking pace, such as height and leg length, the efficiency of your gait, health conditions or pain, and terrain, said Melvan.
How to Improve Your Walking Speed Safely
“Improving walking speed is very doable—and you don’t need to turn it into race-walking to see benefits,” said Melvan. “The goal is to build a more efficient, stronger, and better-conditioned gait.”
Focusing on proper form can help. You want to stand tall—think “head over shoulders over hips”—leaning forward slightly at your ankles and keeping your shoulders relaxed so you aren’t hunching forward or hiking them up. Allow your arms to swing naturally, and try to take quicker, shorter steps. “Over-striding actually slows you down,” Melvan said.
To improve your walking pace, you can try implementing intervals, or periods where you pick up the pace before slowing back down, during your walks. Start with cycles of 1–2 minutes of your faster pace followed by 2–3 minutes of your normal pace, said Melvan. Aim to walk four to six days per week, with workouts starting at 20–30 minutes.
Don’t forget about strength training, either. “Walking is about force production, so strength training can help walking speed by improving the push-off, increasing cadence, and improving stability,” Mevlan said. “This helps improve VO2 max, so you can sustain that faster pace more easily.”
Work in exercises that target your hamstrings (deadlifts or hamstring curls), quads (lunges or split squats), glutes (bridges or step-ups), calves (calf raises), hip flexors (banded knee drives), and core (planks or dead-bugs), according to Melvan. Aim to strength train two to three times a week, focusing on gradually increasing the weight you use or the reps you do to keep challenging your muscles.
When Slower Pace Could Signal a Concern
Not all slow walking is a cause for concern—it might simply be what your body and mind are looking for at that moment. “It can reflect a leisure walk, a recovery day, family time, or stress relief,” said Melvan.
But because so many bodily systems are at play when you walk, a noticeable decline in your speed can suggest that something might be amiss. If you notice you can’t maintain the speed you normally do, or that it’s taking more effort to do so, you may want to check in with your healthcare provider.
“For most people, it’s not something to get hung up on on its own,” said Melvan. “There is a variety of ‘normal,’ and a lot of influencing factors. You want to look at how your pace changes over time.”
