WALKING: THE MIRACLE ANSWER TO HEALTH
What is the one thing we can do anytime and anywhere to energize and improve our health? Walking is the answer. We can take a morning fitness walk, a walk during lunchtime to stretch and an evening stroll to destress. We can walk on our own, with our partner, kids, or our pet. Walking can be high intensity or low and slow. If we have to stop for a while, we can start right up again and resume. We can even walk during COVID-19, but remember to wear a mask and social distance. Here are some of the benefits of walking.
Physical Benefits
Walking benefits our bodies by aiding in the treatment of many ailments. It is often much better than taking drugs as all the side effects are positive ones. A 12-week study of people who walked 20 minutes for five days per week found that those individuals who walked took 43 percent fewer sick days than those who exercised one day per week or less. It is believed that walking helps improve our immunity. Also, walking briskly for a total of one hour or more a week helps reduce disabilities by reducing joint pain. Walking is a cardio exercise that is healthy for our hearts. The Nurses’ Health Study which tracked more than 100,000 women since 1976 found that women who walked three or more hours per week (about 25 minutes per day) were 35 percent less likely to develop heart disease. Studies also found that people ages 60+ lowered their risk of heart disease by up to 11 percent by walking one or two days per week.
Mental Benefits
When healthy, inactive adults with an average age of 44 started logging in 10,000 steps on their Fitbits, they noticed improvement in their sleeping habits within four weeks. They advised that they fell asleep faster and slept more soundly. Walking also helps sharpen our minds. Every step sends blood to our brains which helps improve verbal memory and lessen the likelihood of cognitive decline. Walkers have also found that the exercise stimulates their thinking process. They generated more ideas. Famous walkers include Henry David Thoreau and Virginia Woolf, two famous authors. Taking a 15 minute stroll can also lessen food cravings for people who are emotional eaters. It can also help if we are trying to quit smoking. Partners also found that walking together helped them to resolve arguments by removing stress and improving their moods.
Let’s Get Walking!
The most important thing when starting a walking regimen is to have a good pair of walking shoes. Many brands such as Asics, Reebok, Saucony and New Balance make great ones. Next is to strive for continuity. Using an app like Streaks ($5, IOS), an electronic calendar, or a written journal to keep track of each day we walk is so important. It is a visual reminder to get out and walk to try to maintain our streak. If we break our regimen, don’t despair, just get back out there and resume walking. Some people like to walk a different route each time while others prefer a set route or high school track. It can be helpful to make an outing every week such as meeting friends or our significant others at a park on a Sunday where we walk a trail, get a healthy breakfast and then do some shopping. We won’t want to miss that event, so it will keep us in walking mode. If the weather is not conducive to walking, we can do some time on a treadmill or on an inside track at a gym. Walking to music can be very beneficial. Choosing songs that have 100 beats/steps per minute will keep us at a moderate intensity and will deliver those walking benefits. Some songs that have that 100 beats per minute are “Sweet Home Alabama” by Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Stayin Alive” by the Bee Gees and “Dancing Queen” by Abba. If we want to up the pace, some songs with 130 beats per minute include “Moves Like Jagger” by Maroon 5 and “On the Floor” by Jennifer Lopez. Mixing it up by speeding up for brief spurts and then returning to our usual pace is a great way to keep our walk interesting. Many people will time their spurts by their recorded music on their phones or by certain roadside markers like utility poles or street signs.
People who have started and kept a walking regimen say walking has changed their lives and they have fallen in love with it. Any amount of time we spend walking will help us be healthier, live better and hopefully live longer.