More and more people are beginning to realise just what a great way walking is to exercise. It's a pleasant, low injury risk, low impact method of exercising which you can even introduce a social aspect to if you like. It’s the ideal exercise for anyone who is new to exercise or who hasn’t taken regular exercise for a while.
It doesn't need any training or special equipment and you can fit it into your day whenever it's most convenient for you. It’s also very cost effective. There are no monthly gym fees to pay, so it won’t cost you a fortune to get in shape.
As with any form of exercise or physical activity, you will burn extra calories when you are actually walking. Just as important, your metabolic rate will increase. This means that you will use calories more quickly during the day, regardless of what you're doing. If you're sitting reading a book, surfing the internet, watching TV - or even while you're fast asleep - you will burn calories faster than if you weren't exercising.
Apart from weight loss, walking on a regular basis will provide you with many health benefits. Oxygen intake in the blood is increased and this not only improves blood circulation but strengthens the heart. It can be an effective way to lower blood pressure, it can strengthen your lungs and it is even effective against anxiety and depression. The risk of contracting certain variants of cancer is also much reduced for regular walkers. Walking will give you more energy and help you to sleep better at night. As a matter of fact, the full list of potential health benefits is too lengthy to include here. Walking is like a miracle drug.
One good way to make sure your walking sessions are fun is to make it a social event. Instead of sitting in front of your computer, why not go for a walk with some colleagues during your lunch hour - or you walk around the local park, or even just your neighbourhood, with family and friends in the evening after work. If you like, you can just take your dog.
The miles and the time will fly by much more quickly when you're listening to your favorite tunes. If you don’t already have one, an mp3 player is a sound investment. Do take care not to turn the volume up too high and watch out for traffic, especially if you're walking in a busy area.
There have been a lot of new developments in fitness footwear recently. You can now choose from a wide selection of “toning” footwear like Fit flops sandals, Skechers Shape Ups shoes, Masai Barefoot Technology shoes and Reebok Easy Tones exercise shoes. These all claim to increase the amount of work done by the muscles in your legs and butt and increase the efficiency of your walking workout. They achieve this by using special soles, which either mimic the effect of walking on soft sand or which generate an element of microscopic imbalance which makes your leg and butt muscles work a bit harder.
If you have a job keeping your motivation up, then you might think about getting hold of a pedometer. An Omron pedometer is accurate to within 5% and will display your progress in terms of steps taken, distance covered or calories burned. There seems to be general agreement amongst health professionals that walking 10,000 steps each day will deliver a whole host of health benefits - including weight loss. Carrying your pedometer throughout the day will encourage you to actively look for new ways to get your daily step count up.
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