Not quite up for super-intense workouts every day? Try walking.
Walking is the one thing you should do to improve your health and lose weight. Why walking? There’s nothing wrong with more intense exercise like jogging and swimming, but walking is the one thing that nearly everyone, regardless of age and fitness level, can do. Walking can help people of all ages step into fitness and health by burning calories, staying fit, and keeping pesky health issues at bay.
We all get up in the morning and spend hours walking around to get things done, but if you understand the benefits of walking for health, you can redefine how you walk to reap the benefits.
There are different ways to walk to improve well being, and the discussion below explains how you can improve your walking activities the easy way.
What you should know about walking
- It helps to burn fat and to lose weight
Walking helps to burn fat, strengthen your heart, and tune up your body for optimum performance. Brisk walking is acknowledged as one of the best exercises to lose weight, and get slimmer for a healthy life. Walking just one mile burns approximately 100 calories.
- Learn to walk for better posture
Approach your walking style to build better walking posture and general body control to tap the maximum health benefits from walking. Stand upright, take long strides, imagine a thread at the top of your head, pulling you toward the sky. Ensure you are using not just your legs, but calves, glutes, lower back, and arms, when walking. When you ‘walk tall’, you’ll improve your overall posture.
- Your walking shoes matter
Choose the right walking shoes for a better result. You must mind the type of footwear you put on when walking. Getting a flat walking shoe with good heel cushioning is a good place to start. Consider visiting a running store, where they can better fit you with a proper walking shoe compared with a generic shoe store. Your body will thank you.
- Get motivated to walk
You should have a way to monitor the result of your walking by making use of a piece of technology. Here, a fitness band, a smart watch, or even a simple pedometer is a great way to get feedback to see how you are doing. It helps you meet your daily walking goals and burn more calories required to get the fit body you need. 10,000 steps a day is a good start for most people. I like to listen to music or podcasts while I walk (unless I’m with friends!) because studies have shown that music can increase your endurance by up to 15%.
- Think outside the box
Sometimes, you don’t need to hit the street or go up a mountain path to meet your walking goal; a treadmill could be a game-changer to get you to walk more without undue exposure to dangers. Even walking inside the mall is a great way to beat the heat (or cold) and check out some sales while you’re at it. Sometimes all you need to make walking more fun is to change the venue once in a while.
- Up your walking goal for better result
Do you want to up your walking game a bit more? You can start with walking a 5K and move to a 10K or even a marathon. You need not be a runner in order to participate in most events, many of which give a portion of the fee proceeds to charity, so you’re doing something good for others while improving your fitness.
- You can solve health issues by walking
Walking keeps your body in shape and active; a 30-minute walk a day could mean fewer health troubles. Losing weight and improving your cardio can have significant benefits for people who are diabetic, struggle with a high BMI, or simply lack energy throughout their day.
- Socialize while you walk
If you are going the distance, get a walking partner. Although you don’t need a partner to start walking, the right walking partner could mean a lot more for you. Connect with positive people, and it doesn’t have to be humans, your dog is a brilliant idea of a walking partner who will appreciate the time outdoors.
- It can improve your mood
A healthy body is a prerequisite for a happy life and a great mood. As you walk to rid your body of stress and clear up a cloudy mind, your body will release endorphins…a ‘feel good’ chemical that some have described as a ‘runner’s high’. A happy mood can help you accomplish more than you can ever imagine possible.
- Change the paceย
There is fun in variety, and you can learn to vary your walking style and schedule to create better excitement for yourself. During a walking session, you could do slow walking, brisk walking, and even speed walking when you feel like doing so to vary your rhythm.
Tips for veteran and beginner walkers
No matter your level of proficiency in walking, it’s essential to be mindful of your walking posture to give you better gains of walking. I want to believe the veteran walkers know what to do. For beginners, it’s crucial to take stock of your walking knowledge and materials before starting. Get the right shoe, clothes, and the mood for result-oriented walking.
Both pros and beginners will benefit from using the right walking technique to maintain good posture, arm motion, and excellent walking stride. When deciding on walking exercise, it’s crucial to have a plan to include timing and technique.
Have a treadmill for your indoor workout and a well-planned trail for outdoor. Your outdoor environment should feature exciting sightseeing to give you both the physical and psychological benefits of walking for fitness and health. Don’t walk the same path twice in a row…change your route to keep it interesting and fresh.
Ways walking can improve your life
A well planned and executed walking routine done every day will rewards you for all your hard work.
- You get to know more about your environment when you walk on foot often. It helps to appreciate your surroundings more.
- It will help you have a better mind map of your environment, and you give you the benefit of knowing more than your neighbors who don’t walk; such knowledge has more benefits than you can imagine for great memories.
- Walking encourages you to vary your means of transportation, and going on foot to nearby places could significantly have a tremendous impact on your lifestyle.
- You can build a unique walking culture by starting on a low scale for about 15 minutes daily and improving with time. Make it a habit to walk the stairs instead of the elevator. Take a walk to buy groceries instead of going in your car.
ย Step Up Your Walking Life
Once you make walking a habit, you can begin to challenge yourself by aiming for some bigger goals.
- Going on a walking holiday. There are beautiful getaways to put your walking skill into better use. Take a trip where you can have the pleasure of taking a trail trek at several stop points. The therapeutic environment on the getaway will mean more for your health than you can imagine.
- Make a bold walking trek adventure to exciting places. Going for a walk along the Amalfi Coast in Italy, around the city center shops in Dublin, Ireland or through the pristine settings of the Cotswold region of England, or simply embarking on some long-distance trail in a neighboring city are ways to step up your walking discipline while enjoying something out of the ordinary.
- Walking is not something to be hurried or a goal to achieve. Life itself teaches us to learn one thing at a time and on a gradual basis. Before we could make a complete sentence as a child, life taught us how to walk first. When we first started to walk, it was gradual, and with time speed was developed. Now we can jog without stumbling! Take your walking lifestyle with the same approach. Enjoy the journey.
- Don’t stop walking. What you do every day will soon become a part of you. If you have a dream to make a reality, don’t rush it; keep walking and walking, very soon you will do it as second nature.
- Here is another article on walking we wrote that you might enjoy.