“Walking is the closest thing people have to a wonder drug.” Dr. Thomas Frieden, Former director of the Centers for Disease Control.
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Walking is one of the best and simplest forms of exercise. Making walking a daily habit comes with excellent physical and mental benefits. One of the most studied ways of exercise, walking has been shown to improve everything from heart and lung health to brain power and memory, not to mention adding years to your life.
This blog post will provide the necessary information about the multiple benefits of walking for your mind and body. I will include a list of the physical benefits and one of the mental benefits. There are many studies about the benefits of walking. Walking is more convenient, easier in your joints, and inexpensive than running.
Whether you want to start exercising for the first time or add or change your workout routine, you may consider starting walking after reading this article. This form of exercise offers numerous health benefits to people of all ages, and it’s particularly beneficial to fitness novices.
Getting exercise through walking is a safe way to get a workout without needing a gym. It can boost your mental and physical health in several important ways. Walking is essential and is the most basic foundation of movement. A sedentary lifestyle increases your risk of obesity and other chronic diseases, so getting active is vital to your overall long-term health.
Before the pandemic, I used to go to the gym five to six times a week. The gym was an essential part of my life. Then Covid-19 hit, and our lives changed forever. I knew I would not give up exercising, much less now with nowhere to go, so I started walking daily. Truth be told, I never went back to the gym. And to be completely honest, if it were not for those daily walks in nature during these pandemic times, my sanity would have been compromised.
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According to Dr. Mark A. Slabaugh, an orthopedic sports medicine surgeon at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland, “Walking outside, being in nature, and getting out of the same place allows you to decompress, understand what’s been going on and refocus. In my experience, it helps you to be able to almost meditate, to get in touch with your thoughts, to understand what’s important, and to relax.”
I can assure you by my own experience that for me walking is therapeutic in so many ways. Besides the physical and psychological benefits (which I will list later), walking clears my mind. It reduces stress and boosts my creativity. Many of my blog posts’ ideas started during my daily walks. Additionally, walking keeps anxiety and “depressed” moods at bay and helps me to keep focused.
I should add that walking in nature-I walk through a beautiful park everyday-has been proven to offer gains in feelings of comfort, relaxation, and vigor, while decreasing feelings of tension, depression, and fatigue.
Walking is a hard habit to break. Says Stephanie Thurrott in her article, Why getting in the cold for a walk is worth the effort, quoting Slabaugh again,”Once you start your walking habit, you’ll probably find that you like it so much you’ll increase it. It starts to spiral upwards. If you’re walking for five minutes, you might increase it to 10. That good upward trend helps you in many different ways. You’ll be more motivated, have better mental health, make better food decisions, and make positive choices that maintain your walking habit.”
I could not agree more. Even during my busiest times, squeezing that daily walk (even if it’s for only 20 minutes) is very important to me; it makes a big difference in my overall mood. Let’s not forget that very needed dose of vitamin D (and all the benefits associated with it) that you get from the sun. It’s a bit surprising that more people don’t do this simple, free, and easy activity every day.
So, walk your way to fitness and mental health! Here are some of the many reasons how walking every day can help you achieve or maintain that healthy lifestyle.
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PHYSICAL BENEFITS OF WALKING
- Increases your Lifespan.
Walking can add years to your life. A new study has shown that frequent walking can add up to 7.2 years to an individual’s life. In another study, researchers found that walking for roughly 3 hours a week was associated with an 11 percent reduced risk of premature death.
- Strengthens your heart.
Your heart health is incredibly important for your overall health. Frequent walks can keep many heart-related diseases and conditions at bay, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. A daily walking habit is one of the best things you can do for your heart and preventing heart disease from developing.
- It Burns fat and helps to manage your weight.
People can walk to burn calories and maintain or lose weight. The number of calories burned will depend on how briskly people walk, the distance they cover, their body weight, and the terrain on which they walk. You don’t need to go on extreme diets or exercise rigorously to begin losing weight. Just walking regularly can be enough to drop a few pounds.
- It strengthens your bones and reduces your risk of osteoporosis.
This benefit is particularly important for us women ages 50 and beyond. Walking improves bone mass. Thirty minutes of walking a day can reduce hip fractures by 40%. Osteoporosis is a serious condition that causes the bones to weaken and become brittle. When doing a weight-bearing exercise like walking, you’re fighting against gravity to put pressure on the bones, which forces the bones to work more and gain strength.
- It boosts immune function.
Walking can help protect you during cold and flu season. Stay healthy with daily steps. A walk every day may help your body fend off illness better.
- It keeps your lungs healthy.
A study of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients, published in the journal Respirology published in 2014, found that those who walked the least were more likely to be hospitalized.
- It Lowers blood pressure and cholesterol.
Walking for at least 30 minutes daily can help with blood pressure reduction.
The National Walkers’ Health study found that regular walking was linked to a 7 percent lower risk of high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
- It can steady your blood sugar.
Walking can help improve your blood glucose levels at any time of the day or night but perhaps even more so right after a meal.
High blood glucose levels are a risk factor for diabetes. Walkers have a 12% lower risk of type 2 diabetes.
- Reduces joint pain.
This benefit is very relatable with women our age going through menopause. Walking improves blood flow and helps protect the joints. This can keep people from developing arthritis and other stiffness.
- Boosts your energy.
Walking increases oxygen flow through the body. It can also increase levels of cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine. Those are the hormones that help elevate energy levels.
- It strengthens your muscles.
You are using your legs when walking, so those muscles get toned, but as a bonus-and, many people don’t know this-so do your abdominal muscles and your buttocks.
- Boosts your vitamin D.
Vitamin D is crucial to our health and happiness. The best way to get enough of the necessary vitamin is by spending time in the sun.
If all these amazing body benefits weren’t enough, there are also incredible mind benefits that come with walking regularly.
5 MENTAL BENEFITS OF WALKING
- It sharpens your brain, and it wards off dementia.
Walking for exercise may become increasingly important as we age, and our risk of dementia and other brain disorders increases. It can reverse the effects of aging. Walking doesn’t just clear your head; it gives your mind a lasting boost. According to several studies, regular walking lowers your risk of Alzheimer’s.
- It improves your mood and reduces depression.
If you are feeling down, the solution may be to walk it off. Numerous studies have linked walking for exercise with improved mood and reduced stress levels. And it’s even better if you take a stroll through nature. Walking outdoors near greenery has been shown to help reduce feelings of frustration. A happy walk brings a happy mood.
- It bolsters your memory.
When we are physically fit and take care of our bodies, we usually experience higher levels of cognitive function. By only completing 20 minutes of walking each day, we can improve our memory and ward off cognitive diseases that can drastically decrease our quality of living.
A study found that age-related memory decline was lower in those who walked more. Walking frequently appears to help specifically bolster the hippocampus, the part of the brain involved in verbal memory and learning.
- Reduces stress.
While you walk, you are getting exercise while still taking the time to appreciate your surroundings, allowing you to forget about your stresses and worries. Whether you choose to walk alone or bring a friend with you, walking is a good exercise in a non-stressful environment.
- Helps with creativity.
If you need to get creative, take a walk to get the ideas flowing. Or if you are stuck on a problem at work, get away from your office and take a few laps around the block. A study published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition found people who needed to boost creativity thought of better ideas while walking than just sitting. If you need to be creative, take a stroll and get the ideas flowing.
CONCLUSION
This post had a goal to promote the simplest physical activity, walking. Walking is something most people can do, regardless of their individual level of fitness. Regardless of your lifestyle, increasing daily walking has significant health benefits for both the short and long term.
If you want to live longer, taking a walk is an easy place to start. Walking can fulfill daily recommended exercise for people of all ages and fitness levels.
Walking has it all. Simple and easy, it doesn’t require any specific skill or instruction. You can walk alone for solitude or with friends or family for companionship. You can walk indoors or outside (I reiterate the benefits of walking in nature). You can get all the benefits of moderate exercise with a very low risk of injury, and it’s free.
So, ladies, what are you waiting for? Lace-up your walking shoes and get moving!
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