The Importance of Walking For Fitness

Did you know that walking is a great physical activity that brings excellent results? Walking for fitness can help you lose weight, develop cardiovascular endurance, and boost your energy level.

It may not be too obvious but walking is already a form of exercise. When you climb the stairs instead of taking the elevator, you are already working out your leg muscles. When you are strolling in the mall for hours, you are already burning calories. These simple movements are actually adding to your physical fitness.

However, if you want to be serious about working out and achieving your fitness goals, walking as an exercise is more than just taking the stairs or going to the mall. Walking for fitness requires proper form, mindset, and attire. Since you will do this activity as a part of your workout, you need to keep in mind that you are walking to achieve a goal; hence, be sure to do it with commitment, discipline, and focus.

Benefits of Walking for Fitness

Like other exercises, walking provides a number of health benefits. Below are just some of the advantages of fitness walking.

• Walking increases your good cholesterol (high-density lipoprotein) and reduces the bad cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein) in your body.

• Walking lowers your blood pressure. If you have a high blood pressure, walking can help you keep it at balance.

• It also helps you prevent or manage type 2 diabetes. If you are a fan of sweets and sugar, you know what to do!

• It keeps you fit, strong, and always in a positive mood. It also helps you regulate your sleep.

So when they say “no pain, no gain,” do not believe them. Walking is one of the exemptions. All it takes to achieve all these benefits is a regular walking fitness routine. Moreover, research shows that consistently brisk walking can reduce the risk of heart attack compared to more vigorous exercises such as running or jogging.

Preparations before Walking

Before starting your walk, it is best to be properly prepared to avoid any injury. Although walking does not pose high risk of accidents compared to other exercises, it is still better to be safe than sorry. Here are the essential things to know and prepare before walking your way to physical fitness.

• Get the right gear. While you wear casual clothing in the mall and sandals during leisure walks in the park, walking for fitness requires you to dress properly. Wear shoes that are comfortable and provides proper arch support that will absorb shock effectively.

• Before going the miles, don’t forget to do some stretchings and warm up. Make sure that your body and joints are ready for an extensive workout. Stretch your muscles including the calf, quadriceps, hamstring, and side muscles.

• Start slowly. Walk in place if you need to. Then, gradually increase your speed until you reach a pace you are comfortable in.

• Do not forget to measure. Unlike working out using equipment and fitness machines, your statistics from walking for fitness are not readily available. However, you may track the important information of your exercises by keeping in mind your start and end point, start and end time, distance, speed, and pulse rate. These measurements shall help you gauge your fitness level and whether or not you workout is effective.

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