Walking for Health and Fitness

Walking is one of the best things you can do for overall health and wellness. Walking is a great low impact exercise that utilises most of our muscles.

There is not much involved in starting a walking program. You can start immediately and you do not need a coach to teach you how to walk. The equipment required to start is minimal and relatively inexpensive.

Important Equipment

The most important piece of equipment you will need is a good pair of walking or running shoe. If you plan to walk mostly around town, then trainers are ideal .However, if you plan to g ohill walking or mountain walking, then a good pair of walking boots are essential as they provide extra support to the foot and ankle. Most shoe stores and sporting goods stores should be able to supply you with a good selection. You may also want to think about getting yourself a pedomete, which measures the number of steps you take, and can give an estimate of distance walked.

Why Walk for Fitness?

Now that you have your equipment and are ready to go, it might be nice to know why you are starting a walking program. The health benefits of walking are many and include the following:

• Helps with weight loss.
• Helps to reduce blood pressure
• Reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes
• Relieves stress
• Boosts overall energy levels
• Strengthens the heart and reduces the risk of heart
• disease
• Studies have shown that walking relieves depression and anxiety
• Strengthens your body
• Burns almost the same amount of calories as running

How should I start?

Since walking uses almost all 650 of your muscles it is a very good idea to warm up before you begin a walk. This will loosen up your body and help to avoid injury. Click on the link for some great warm up exercises.

How long should I walk?

You should build up to walking for about one hour. Your current fitness level will determine the length and time of your first walk. Some people will only be able to walk around the block, others will able to walk the full hour. Do what you feel comfortable with and build from that point. Keep a log to measure your progress.  As you become fitter, increase the pace and distance.

A pedometer will be of great assistance. Measuring your walk in distance helps to compensate for days when you might walk a little slower or faster. After your first few walks try to achieve a brisk pace where you may be puffing a little but you can still talk. Remember, there is not much difference in the amount of energy (calories) expended by walking or running a specified distance.

After you have finished your walk do not forget to cool down. Try to spend about 5 minutes walking slowly. This will allow your heart, lungs and blood flow to return to normal gradually. This decreases strain on your heart and can help to prevent muscle strain and soreness.

Walking in the Gym

Walking can be effectively done in the gym too. Most gyms have running machines that can incline up to 15%. If you walk on maximim incline you will work much harder and get a much better cardio workout. This exercise mimic hill walking, which is excellent for fitness and endurance.

Now you just have to commit yourself to walking on a regular schedule. It's easy to do and does not require special training or equipment. Just do it!