Our society loves the quick fix. We take the get-it-yesterday approach to all walks of life. When it comes to our health, we will do our best to achieve our goals quickly and effortlessly. What if there was a better way?
When it comes to aerobics, walking is by far the safest approach, period. Walking will help you strengthen your bones, condition your heart and lungs, and help you control your weight. Being consistent in your walking exercise routine is one of the most important factors in developing a healthy physical activity program. Research has shown that people who walk about 20 to 25 miles a week outlive those who don’t walk by many years. Twenty miles a week sounds difficult? How would you like to break it down? Let’s see, an average person can walk about 3 miles in an hour. In 30 minutes that would mean about 1.5 miles or so. So if we’re looking at a 7-day week and a 30-minute investment per day, we’re looking at a total of 10.5 miles per week. Just go the full hour once a day, take the dog with you, then you’ll hit 21 miles a week. Folks, it doesn’t get any easier than that and the reduced stress factor of this is invaluable to your overall health and wellness.
Here are some quick facts about walking:
On average, every minute you walk can prolong your life by 1.5-2 minutes. How is that to return the money?
Walking an extra 20 minutes each day will burn 7 pounds of body fat per year.
Still want that candy you’ve been looking at all day? You would need to walk the full length of a football field to get rid of that desire.
Longer, moderate-paced daily walks (30 minutes at approximately 70% of maximum heart rate) are best for weight loss.
Are you simply looking to condition your lungs or improve your heart muscle in general? Shorter, faster walks (20-25 minutes at up to 85% maximum heart rate) are best.
Walking will also provide the following benefits:
Improves the efficiency of your heart and lungs
burn body fat
Boost your metabolism so you’re burning calories faster, even while you’re resting.
increase your energy
Reduces cholesterol levels in the blood
lower high blood pressure
Helps control and prevent diabetes.
It reduces the risk of some types of cancer, including colorectal, prostate and breast cancer.
Promotes bowel regularity
Helps promote restful sleep.
Strengthens the muscles of the legs, hips and torso.
Strengthens bones and reduces bone density loss in older women
Reduces joint stiffness due to inactivity or arthritis
Walking is much preferable to running or jogging because it puts less stress on your joints, including your hips, knees, and ankles. Remember to warm up properly before and cool down after each walking session… your muscles will thank you! so what are we waiting for ‘ Get to twenty miles a week and then see where it takes you. Think of the joy of going to Nordstrom and having to buy all those new clothes and for the right reasons for a change. Take a step in the right direction and do it walking.
