Could it be time to quit the gym wholly?

Not precisely, but researchers from the London School of Economics and Political Science did find that walkers tend to be thinner than gym-goers. In its examination of 50,000 people over persons under the age of 13, those who did at least 30 minutes of brisk strolling per day were more likely to have smaller waistlines and lower BMIsthan people who did high intensity workouts.

This is exceptional news for several reasons: Walking is free, low-impact and can be performed virtually anywhere. The activity even has support from U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, who lately prescribed strolling for all Americans as a route to reduce risk of diabetes, obesity and heart disease.

“I firmly believe that everybody in America needs a safe place to walking or to wheelchair roll, Murthy told The Associated Press.

It’s important to note that this latest study is correlational, entailing people who reported strolling have generally been thinner, but researchers don’t know if the strolling itself caused this outcome. In other words, if lifting weights and training for 5Ks is your bag, keep at it. But for the gym averse, this is a sure sign it’s time to get your walking on.

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