We Tried It: 6-6-6 Walking Challenge

The 6-6-6 walking challenge involves a 60 minute walk at either 6 a.m or 6 p.m with an additional 6 minutes each for warmup and cooldown.

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The 6-6-6 walking trend is a new, low-impact exercise trend.

It comes after the 12-3-30 trend, which involves walking at a 12 percent incline for 30 minutes at a 3 mile per hour pace on a treadmill.

I tried the 6-6-6 workout for a week. Keep reading for my honest thoughts on the workout below.

How to do the 6-6-6 walking workout

Warmup: Walk for 6 minutes at a slow pace to ease into the workout.
Workout: Walk for 60 minutes at a brisk pace that you are able to maintain without stopping.
Cooldown: Walk for 6 minutes at a slow pace to conclude your workout.

As on optional step, you may consider stretching before your warmup and after your cooldown.

My setup

I thought it would be important to share my circumstances before I dive into my review.

Where I live, the sun has not yet risen at 6 a.m. and has already set by 6 p.m. Temperatures routinely dip below freezing when the sun is down. To avoid freezing to death, I completed this challenge on a walking pad.

However, you don’t have to use a walking pad to complete this workout — it can be done virtually anywhere. Some places you may consider are:

a greenway or nature trail
on a treadmill at the gym
an indoor track
outside of your office building

I also attend a Pilates class most mornings, so for consistency’s sake, I chose 6 p.m. as my workout time.

Did you lose weight?

As I was only able to do this trend for one week, I did not notice any significant changes in my weight.

Weight can fluctuate day-to-day and even week-to-week for a number of reasons, and everybody is different. While this may not have had any particular effect on me, it could lead to different results for you.

If you are trying to lose weight, losing one to two poundsTrusted Source per week is generally considered safe. It is important to talk to your doctor about your weight loss goals before making any drastic changes to your diet and exercise habits.

If you’re just starting out

If you are new to exercising, you do not have to complete the entire 60 minutes the first time. You can start out with 30 minutes, or however much time you can complete, and work your way up from there.

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Did it affect your mood?

I felt that this challenge had a positive effect on my mood.

Since my start time was at 6 p.m., it gave me time to decompress from work. I could catch up with friends, hang out with my cat, and otherwise separate myself from my working mindset before I started.

I find that I am usually tired after work, so I had to motivate myself a little to actually get up and start the workout. However, once I started walking, I enjoyed it.

After the walk, I felt a little happier and less tired. I could jump into making dinner and other evening household tasks in a better mood compared to my usual post-work routine of sitting on the couch and doom scrolling.

Do you have any tips for motivation?

During my workout, I watched shows that nobody else wants to watch with me (specifically The Legend of Korra, if anyone is interested.)

One of the reasons I looked forward to the workout was because I could watch my show. I did not watch it at any other point in my day — even if the last episode ended on a cliffhanger — reserving it specifically for the workout.

I’m not saying you have to watch a show to do this workout, but pairing the walking with another habit helped. To me, an hour is a long time to focus on one thing.

If you are like me and need another form of stimulation, you may consider pairing your walk with a:

You could also ask a friend or family member to do this challenge with you. That way, you can hold each other accountable and keep each other company during your walk.

Would you recommend this exercise?

Yes!

Takeaway

The 6-6-6 walking trend is an exercise routine that is easy to incorporate into your daily routine. Since it can be done at either 6 a.m. or 6 p.m., you can fit the workout in before things get busy during the day.

After doing this challenge for a week, I can say that my mood and energy levels have improved. However, for me personally, I did not notice a change in weight.

It is important to talk to your doctor before making any changes to your exercise routine.

Reference:

Medically reviewed by Micky Lal, MA, CSCS,RYT — Written by Sarah Choi on January 27, 2025