Walking is a complete physical activity. It is one of the best ways to maintain and improve your mental and physical health. It addresses a lot of medical issues and helps you maintain a healthy body by taking care of your cardiovascular fitness. Walking on a regular basis will also help you cut down excess body fat, boost muscle power, strengthen bones and increase endurance.
Try to make walking a part of your routine. It makes you feel more active. If you are maintaining a regular walking schedule, try to take short walking sessions at different times in a day. This way it will be easier for you to carry on with your routine of physical activities. The amount of energy you use when walking can make a lot of difference in terms of your health and well-being no matter what time of day you pick to walk.
You need to walk at least half an hour every day, which can be difficult for people if they are planning to walk for 30 minutes in one go. You can walk for 10 minutes and then take a break. This way it’ll become much easier. To make your walking session even more interesting, you can find an activity partner. It can be anyone from your family, close friends, or your neighborhood who can take a walk with you daily.
As the title of this article suggests, here we have put together 7 amazing benefits of walking for your health and well-being. So, without further ado, let’s get started!
Good for Heart Health
According to many health experts, walking is a type of aerobic exercise, which is also the easiest one. It is a simple yet very effective way to increase your movement and physical activity, which can have a great impact on your heart health.
It is a complete physical activity that is bound to increase your heart rate, strengthen your cardiac system, and help regulate and even improve blood circulation in your entire body. You should be walking for at least 30 minutes a day, for a minimum of five days a week to significantly lower your risk for different types of heart diseases.
Brings Down Blood Sugar Level
Do you sit down and don’t do any physical activity after taking a meal? Well, you need to give up those lazy habits if you don’t want to be a victim of Type 2 diabetes. Try to take a short walk whenever you eat food. It may help maintain your blood sugar.
According to a medical survey, researchers have found that taking a 15-minute walking session after having breakfast, lunch, and dinner (three times a day) results in reduced blood sugar levels. This technique is even more effective than taking a 45-minute walk in one go every day.
Helps You Fight Obesity
Want to lose some extra pounds? You’d be surprised to know how effective walking can be when it comes to losing weight. It is also one of the best health benefits of walking. Yes, walking helps you lose weight and burn fat. Along with following a healthy diet plan, walking can be an amazing way to burn some extra calories, which helps you fight obesity. We all know that the basic thing to maintain or lose weight is to burn calories.
Well, the actual calorie burn as a result of walking sessions depends on different factors will depend on several factors. They include the pace at which you are walking, the distance of your daily walking track, walking uphill will burn more calories and of course, your weight.
Aids the Functioning of Immune System
Walking doesn’t only help you stay physically fit but also boosts your immune system by reducing your vulnerability to developing symptoms of the flu or other types of viral infections. A study was conducted on thousands of individuals during flu season, which found out that those who walked for around 30 to 45 minutes every day at a moderate pace had fewer sick days and were less vulnerable to respiratory tract infections compared to those who weren’t walking on a daily basis. Their symptoms were not severe even if they had fallen sick. This means improved functioning of the immune system is one of the most amazing health benefits of walking.
Boost Your Energy and Mood
Feeling tired? Well, instead of grabbing a cup of coffee, you should be going for a walk. Wondering why? Actually, walking naturally increases the flow of oxygen throughout the body. It can also increase the levels of many different types of hormones that are the natural energy booster.
It is incredible to know that walking can also help you to work on your mental health. Research shows that regular walking sessions can help bring down the levels of anxiety, depression, and all the other mental factors resulting in a negative mood. As discussed, aim for at least 30 minutes of walking at a good pace to experience all these benefits.
Strengthen Your Leg Muscles
When you are walking, you are working on your leg muscles. This physical activity becomes even more effective if you are brisk walking. Along with benefiting your entire body, walking can help you tone your legs. It also increases the strength of the muscles in your legs. If you are looking to work out even more on your leg muscles and build up more endurance, you should walk in a hilly area, or if you are indoors pick a treadmill with an inclined surface. You can also skip the elevators and take the stairs. Other exercises to tone your legs include running, cycling, and jogging.
Lowers the Intensity of Joint Pain
Joint pain is very common especially in people belonging to older age groups. There are many different causes of arthritis and other types of joint pains but the best way to deal with them is through daily walking sessions. They can help protect the joints and pain trigger points, for example, your knees and hips. Physical activities that involve walking or constant movement of legs make the muscles supporting the joints in your body stronger.
Walking may be a great remedy for people to reduce the intensity of arthritis, like reducing pain. Also, if you walk for at least 5 to 6 miles a week, you may be less vulnerable to arthritis.
There you have it — the 7 amazing benefits of walking for your health and well-being. Walking is one of the easiest, harmless, and most beneficial types of physical activities, which should be a part of your daily routine if you want to live a healthy life.
