With busier lifestyles, time at a premium and the winter cutting the daylight hours, how can we work towards a healthier way of life? One of the simplest forms of exercise is walking! Walking is free, can be done from almost anywhere at anytime and comes with added benefits to health and wellbeing.
Benefits Of Walking
Walking can contribute to a reduction of some diseases including heart disease, diabetes, stroke, cancer and obesity.
It can help bone and joint health within the body.
Walking can help you maintain your weight or help contribute to weight loss as it is an effective way to burn calories.
Research has indicated that walking can improve wellbeing with effects on mood and stress levels and improved quality of sleep.
Improve balance in older adults.
Walking is more environmentally friendly than driving or public transport.
Tips For Getting Started
Start Slowly. If you haven't walked or exercised regularly for a long period, then start slowly and progress the amount of time you are exercising for. Listen to your body! Large jumps of activity levels may make you feel more achy or tired initially which may lead to reduced participation.
Get others involved. Make it more sociable which will increase motivation levels and distract you from the effort.
Make it part of your routine. How can you fit in more walking to your daily schedule?
Some other tips to help get you moving:
Taking the stairs instead of the lift or escalator.
Skipping bus stops to extend your walk.
Can you walk to work?
Think about short walks at lunch time if at work.
Are you able to walk to the shops instead of using the bus or car?
Can you walk all or part of the way for the school drop off?
How Much Activity To Aim For?
The UK Chief Medical Officer guidelines suggest at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity per week. What does this actually mean? Moderate would indicate a level with an increase in breathing rate but you would still be able to talk. The activity itself can be anything - walking, cycling, swimming, running or any other sports at the appropriate level.
If we break up the total minutes per week then it is achievable with around 20-30 minutes per day which can itself be broken down into several activities during the day.
With the technology in phones and watches today it has never been easier to track our steps and distances which can help achieve short and long term goals. Aim for 10,000 steps per day or choose a distance to reach per day.
So, start low and slow and progress as it becomes more comfortable. Remember, 150 minutes is the goal per week. Every minute counts!