We’ve heard about the benefits of movement, and as mentioned in an Oprah magazine article, moving every day is the single best thing we can do for a longer life. This is a tough time of year for us Northeasterners, we have winter to deal with, so walking outside isn’t always an option. Community centers however, often have great tracks for walking and running and let’s not forget the gym equipment, whether it’s in your living room or the actual gym, there are ways to get around the weather.
Here are the steps to getting started on your walking habit:
- Warm up before starting! Just because it sounds benign, walking (especially if you aren’t in the habit of it yet) is as hard on the body as any other exercise. Stretch the hamstrings, quads, knees and hips most especially before you start.
- Pick a route that you know to be not only safe, but motivating as well. I love to walk through the local park that has the paved paths and the always inspiring scenery. Our walking park here even has exercise stopping points with various equipment available for stretching, pull-ups and the like.
If you don’t have a nice park to walk through, stay to the left side of the road facing traffic; share the road and be courteous to those that give you a wide berth.
- Start modestly, maybe a mile or two a day until you get into shape. Increase your distance when you feel motivated and confident to do so.
- Drink plenty of water- stay hydrated- you will need it!
- Listen to your body; if you feel pain, don’t ignore it.
- If available, walk with a buddy! If not, load your ipod or phone with your favorite inspirational music or pod-cast.
- Reduce your caloric intake so that all of your hard work isn’t thrown away by binge eating.
Medicine.net provides the following information on the benefits of walking:
Walking 150 minutes per week and losing just 7% of your body weight can reduce the risk of diabetes by 58%!
Walking strengthens your heart! For males, mortality rates among retired men who walked less than a mile per day were nearly twice that of those who walked more than two miles per day. In a study of female nurses, those who walked three hours or more per week reduced their risk of a heart attack or other coronary event by 35% compared to women who did not walk at all.
Walking is good for your brain. Researchers found that those who walked the equivalent of 1.5 hours per week had significantly better cognitive function and less cognitive decline than those who walked less than 40 minutes per week.
Walking is good for your bones: postmenopausal women who walk approximately one mile each day have higher whole-body bone density than women who walk shorter distances.
Walking for 30 minutes, 3 to 5 times per week for 12 weeks reduced symptoms of depression by 47%!
The list goes on! Let’s walk people!!