What’s the 6-6-6 Walking Challenge and Does It Actually Work

You’ve probably seen it on TikTok or Instagram. It’s not a horror fitness ritual (would be a first one), but a viral routine that might work for some people. A quite simple challenge goes like this: walk for 60 minutes at 6 a.m. or 6 p.m. with a 6-minute warm-up and 6-minute cool-down.

There’s no magic to the “6-6-6”. It’s a simple but brilliant idea to get people going. The name is just something that made it even more interesting. When something is measurable, it tends to be easier to make a routine

Healthwise, walking for 60 minutes reduces heart disease risk drastically for people who are not very active. On average, that’s around 7,000 steps made, but it can be more depending on your pace.

I never lost weight by just walking, so it probably won’t work when it comes to weight loss. You still need to be in a calorie deficit to drop weight.

There’s one more important thing it involves, and that’s timing. There are numerous studies that show you shouldn’t look at the screen first thing in the morning. Your phone or laptop causes a lot of small problems to your body without you even noticing.

That’s why this 6 a.m. sounds great. You would probably have to wake up early to do this challenge, and your eyes would thank you if they are used to looking at the screen all day.

The same goes for 6 p.m., just the other way around. Your eyes will get some rest, and your body will “prepare” for going to bed even if you won’t sleep before 12. If you haven’t done something like this in a while, do it for a week, and you will notice a difference.

The first thing I noticed was that I didn’t have that buzzing sound in my head from constantly listening to music while working. And my eyes felt more relaxed before I went to sleep, but I also included that “no phone 1 hour before sleep” thing.

The last part to mention is that the challenge can differ. Some people like to flex so they do 6-mile walks, 6 times a week, in 60 minutes or less. Either way, you are doing something healthy, so choose the version you like.