Increasing numbers of people are starting to realise the benefits of walking as a means of exercising. It’s easy to do - in fact you do it every day without even thinking about it. It’s a low impact workout that requires no special equipment, training or expertise. It’s suitable for a wide range of ages - which is probably one reason why it has such a low “drop out” rate. You can do it wherever you like and you can fit it into your daily schedule whenever it’s convenient for you.
If you’re trying to lose weight then walking is ideal. Keeping an eye on the amount of calories that you take on board is great - but dieting alone is not a very efficient way to shed the pounds. The combination of dieting with regular exercise will give you much better results. First of all, you will burn calories whilst you exercise - and that’s good. But secondly, regular exercise will actually raise your metabolic rate - the rate at which you burn calories. Even when you’re not exercising the rate at which you burn calories will be higher and this will help to deliver good weight loss results for you.
The benefits to be had from walking are numerous. It can increase your lung capacity, lower the risk of heart disease and stroke and also help to lower your blood pressure level. It can lower bad cholesterol levels whilst raising good cholesterol levels, reduce the risk of developing two types of diabetes and even reduce the risk of developing certain forms of cancer. It will help you to sleep better at night and is effective in combating anxiety and depression. It will give you more energy and you will feel less fatigued throughout the day.
That’s got to be enough motivation for you to consider including walking in your exercise program. As mentioned previously, you don’t need any special equipment. A good pair of comfortable shoes is all you need to get started.
Although not strictly necessary, you might find that a pedometer is one piece of equipment that you would find useful. It will help you to stay motivated by recording your progress and displaying it in terms of the number of steps taken, the distance covered or the number of calories burned - whatever is most interesting for you.
You should seek the advice of your doctor before commencing any new exercise programme. It’s also worth remembering that whilst walking may be a low injury risk way to take exercise, it is still exercise. A few stretches before you begin - repeated when you’re done - will help to avoid any strains or sprains and will ensure that you get the maximum benefit from your walking workout.
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Tags: diet, exercise, fitness, health, lose weight, Uncategorized, walking, weight loss, workout