Due to the changing lifestyles, people suffer from several health issues including heart disease, joint pain, depression, stress, and obesity. Did you know that there is one simple solution to overcome these entire health problems? Yes, doctors suggest that 30 minutes of brisk walk every day helps in reducing chronic diseases.
Walking is one of the best ways to enhance your overall health. Try walking 30 – 45 minutes daily, it can help you in reducing excess body fat, increase cardiovascular fitness, boost muscle power, strengthen bones.
The health benefits of walking don’t stop with this, you can also stay away from other risks of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis, and a certain type of cancers.
Walking is considered as one of the best exercises for overweight people and elders. Unlike certain other physical workouts, walking doesn’t require any additional types of equipment or training.
You can forget about the risk associated with the other complex physical activities. It is considered to be one of the simplest form and low impact exercise. Also, there is particular timing to carry this physical activity, this can be performed as per your schedule. However, early morning walk is most suggested, because you could enjoy the benefits of vitamin D.
Here is some of the health benefits associated with walking every day:
Keeps your heart healthy
30 minutes of brisk walk every day for 5 days a week can keep you healthy and reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. A report states that 19% of your risk of heart disease can be reduced with this regular activity.
You can ideally increase the percentage with the duration of the walking or the distance. Additionally, as per the reports published by American Geriatrics Society, women and men over 65 years who walked for at least 4 hours a week were at lesser risk of cardiovascular disease.
Uplifts your mood
It is a well-known fact that a small piece of dark chocolates will uplift your mood, but this same effect could be experienced with a brisk walk. Moreover, it is also a zero-calorie strategy with excellent benefits. Walking could also help you to overcome depression.
Studies have proved the above statement is true. Hence physicians suggest walking for a few minutes every day to uplift your mood by reducing the stress levels and increasing the blood circulation. As a result, your blood cells receive more nutrients and oxygen to keep in energetic.
The increased level of circulation will stimulate the nervous system receptors and reduce the production of stress hormones. Hence, if you are feeling sad or depressed it is suggested to go for a walk to get some fresh air. Also, make sure to breathe in and breathe out while walking this helps you to get over the tension.
Additionally, research demonstrates that including walking in your daily routine could modify your nervous system and as a result, you will experience a good change in your hostility and anger.
Apart from the health benefits, regular walking could fetch you new friends and boosts your social connectivity. Spending a few minutes with your neighbor, friend, colleague or a new person will help you stay connected and enhance your mood. Ultimately, walking outdoors will bring you good exposure to natural sunlight, and help stave off seasonal affective disorder by making it a potential antidote for the cold season.
Maintain blood sugar level under control
Go for a short walk after your meals, this could help you reduce your blood glucose levels. Also, a study states that going for 10 – 15 minutes of a walk after every meal will improve the blood glucose levels and help you maintain the blood sugar under control. Though more research has to be made to confirm this fact, making this as part of your daily routine will help you stay fit all through the day.
Enhance Bowel Movement
Brisk walking in the morning will show you excellent effect in your digestive system and it can greatly enhance your bowel movements. Additionally, walking is an excellent immunity booster. Regular walking will also help your immune system to function properly and protect you from disease and infections of all types. 30 minutes of walk every day will boost the activities of B-Cells or immune cells. The physical activity will help you release the WBCs at a quicker rate, thereby letting your body to heal quickly.
Burn calories
Walking is an excellent physical activity to lose a few pounds. According to a study conducted by American scientists, few overweight patients were made to walk to their destination.
After 2 months, nearly half of the patients lost around 5 pounds. Hence if you wish to lose your weight, try to include walking in your daily routine or prefer to walk to the nearby destinations instead of driving a car. Walking is an excellent form of exercise where you can easily burn your calories and help you to maintain a healthy weight.
However, burning the calories might be based on several other factors such as distance, walking speed, terrain, because you tend to burn more calories while walking in the uphill than the calories burnt on the flat surface. If you wish to keep track of your calorie intake and actual calorie burn, you can check some online tools where you can find some general estimate.
Enhance blood circulation
Walking every day will increase the oxygen supply to the brain cells and they receive a good amount of oxygen and glucose. Ultimately, this will help them function better and think better. Most importantly, regular walking will bring down the LDL cholesterol levels which block arteries and reduce the risk of stroke. Hence, walking can enhance blood circulation and help cellular and brain functions.
Tone the legs
Regular walking can strengthen the leg muscles. If you wish to build up more strength in our legs, you could try walking in a hilly region or do treadmill with an incline or climb the stairs instead of elevators.
Additionally, include other cross-training activities like jogging or cycling along with the walking. You can also try doing other resistance exercises like lunges, squats, and leg curls to further strengthen your leg muscles and tone your legs.
Bone strength
Your bones will, in general, become more fragile as you age. However, the uplifting news is you can fortify your bones by regular 30 minutes walk. This low-impact physical activity averts loss of bone thickness, consequently diminishing the risk of osteoporosis, injury or break. Since bones decide our system, stronger and healthier bones help to improve stamina, posture, and balance. Walking can likewise avert joint inflammation and reduce pain.
Enhance the immune system
Your body’s immune framework should work appropriately and consistently to avert disease, infections and other risks. Walking is an extraordinary way to support your body resistance. Walking for 30 minutes daily or more can help reinforce the functions of the immune cells such as the B-cells, T-cells, and the natural killer cells.
Reduce the risk of flu
One study followed 1,000 people during influenza season. The individuals who walked at a moderate pace for 30 to 45 minutes daily had 43 percent less sick days and less upper respiratory tract diseases in general. The disease symptoms were likewise decreased on the off chance that they got sick. That was contrasted with adults in the examination who were inactive. Hence, try to include 30 minutes of walk in your routine to experience these advantages. In case, if you live in colder places, then go for some indoor places and walk on a treadmill.
Secured your joints
In opposition to what you may figure, pounding pavement can aid in improving your scope of movement and mobility since walking expands bloodstream to tense regions and fortifies the muscles encompassing your joints. Research states that walking for at least 10 minutes per day—or about an hour consistently—can fight off disability and arthritis pain in elder people.
You’ll rest better during the night
If you work out normally, you realize that you’ll rest better during the night. That is because rest normally helps the impacts of melatonin, the rest hormone. A recent report from Sleep found that postmenopausal ladies who do light to active physical movement get to sleep better during the night than the inactive individuals. Walking additionally diminishes pain and stress, which can cause sleep aggravations.
Helps Produce Vitamin D
Early morning walk is an incredible physical activity for your body to secrete Vitamin D which is a fundamental feature for bone quality and it prevents multiple sclerosis, cancer, and type 1 diabetes.
Thus, it is significant that you get minimum 10-15 minutes of morning sun exposure, to achieve this walking is the best means.
Tips for staying safe while walking
To make sure you are protected while walking, follow these tips:
- Walk-in areas for pedestrians.
- Look for well-lit areas
- Wear shoes with better heel and arch support
- Wear comfortable and loose clothing
- Drink a lot of water before and after your walk
- Stay hydrated
- Apply sunscreen to prevent sunburn
Takeaway
Walking can fulfill routine exercise suggested for overweight or elderly people. However, people of all ages who want to keep their fitness level to the peak. Also, ensure to choose a walking goal and route that’s suitable for your age and fitness level.