To improve and maintain your overall health, walking is a great way to do it. 30 minutes of walk every day, increases the fitness of cardiovascular, reduces excess body fat, strengthens bones, boosts muscle power and endurance. It also helps you to reduce the risk of developing, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, some cancers, and osteoporosis. Walking is one of the exercises that does not require any training or special equipment to main your body’s health.
A vigorous and long period of exercise does not help to improve your health. It should be done at significant levels for better health.
Health Benefits of Walking
Walking is known as a weight-bearing exercise in which you carry the weight of your body. It increases cardiovascular (heart) and pulmonary (lungs) fitness. It reduces the risk of heart disease or stroke. There are various health benefits of walking that we will be mentioned in this article.
Prevention of Heart Diseases
American Heart Association states that walking is more or less effective than running. It helps you to prevent heart-related diseases or stroke. By walking, you lower your cholesterol levels and high blood pressure, and it also improves blood circulation. Walking helps you to have a stronger heart rate, better fat balance, improved oxygen circulation, stronger organs, etc.
Improved Eyesight
You would be thinking that the eyes are the last thing that is connected with the legs but walking gives health benefits to your eyes too. Walking helps you to relieve the pressure from the eyes and fight glaucoma. Blood pressure surrounding the eyes should be at a healthy level to avoid any eye disease.
Walking helps you to lower the overall risk of developing eye condition by a whopping 73%. A good vision helps you to perform regular physical activities without any difficulty.
Positive Brain Changes
Low impact aerobic exercise, walk, helps to prevent early dementia. It reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. It helps you to maintain and improve the overall mental health. Walking reduces mental stress and maintains a high level of endorphins. If you are going for a walk with your friend or your loved one, then it will multiply the happy-effect and improve your good mood.
Increased Lung Volume
Walking is an aerobic exercise, that increases the oxygen flow in the bloodstream. It helps you to train your lungs and eliminates wastes and toxins. Some of the diseases related to the lungs are also relieved because of deeper and better breathing. You can do so by walking for a certain time a day.
Improved Digestion
If you walk for 30 minutes a day, then it will not only help you to lower the risk of colon cancer but also help you to digest the food properly without constipation. Walking helps you to regulate bowel movements. Studies have shown that walk after a meal increases the movement of food through the body and stomach. As a result, you digest food quickly than before.
Beneficial Effects on Pancreas
Walking turns out to be a better exercise than running for preventing diabetes. According to studies, a group of walkers had an improved glucose tolerance than runners. Glucose tolerance refers to the absorption of sugar in the cells and it was 6 times more than runners.
Metabolism
When you are walking, your body needs the energy to keep going. If you walk at a fast pace, then your metabolism will go up to support your body with stored energy. As a result, you can enjoy a faster metabolic rate after 30 minutes of walk.
Fat
Fat is not a bad component but if there is excess fat on your body, then you will start gaining weight and that can be dangerous for your body. You are not comfortable with your belly fat and sometimes it reduces your confidence out in public. you can lose belly fat and excess fat on your body by walking daily.
You need to walk as fast as you can because it will increase the heart rate and deeper breathing, which will help you to burn the excess fat.
Strong Bones and Joints
Walking provides more joint mobility. It helps you to prevent the loss of bones and reduce the risk of fractures. It reduces the stiffness, pain, and inflammation in your joints. We lose the density of the bones as we age. It makes us more vulnerable to damaging the bones or developing a bone or joint disease.
Daily walking helps you to keep the bones strong. Also, Arthritis Foundation recommends 30 minutes of daily walk on regular basis.
Improved Endurance
Walking just not strengthens your bones and joints, but also helps you to build up muscles and strengthens endurance. Walking uphill removes the joint pain around the legs.
Toned Muscles
You can easily achieve muscle tone and weight loss by walking. If you walk 10,000 steps a day is counted as an actual workout in a gym. You can also achieve the goal if you walk with intervals or walk uphill. There are no sore muscles which means that there no recovery time by walking.
Lower Back Pain
Lower back pain decreases the focus on your daily tasks. As a result, you cannot perform your daily tasks well and you have a lowered positive thinking. You should not try high-impact exercises for lower back pain. Weight-lifting and running are off the list. Walking is the best idea for relieving your chronic back pain.
Back Pain Reliever
If you are experiencing back pain then walking would be a life-saver for you. Rather than doing high-impact exercises, you can easily walk 30 minutes a day to relieve your back pain. Walking does not cause discomfort or pain. It circulates the blood to the spinal structures. As a result, you get flexibility, improved posture, and a healthy spine.
Walking For 30 Minutes A Day
To get more health benefits, you go for a 30-minute walk. It is a low-impact exercise that you can do on a straight path or uphill. It reduces a lot of health risks that can happen in the future by not exercising.
Build Physical Activities in Your Life
If you cannot walk for 30 minutes in one go, then take intervals. Walk for 10 minutes and take a break and then complete the 30-minute walk. Instead of talking lift, take stairs. If you are using public transport, then get off it one stop earlier and walk to work or home.
If you are having a dog, then walk the dog and so will you be walking. Instead of going in a car to your local shops, walk!
Wearing A Gear
If you are a gadget lover, then you can use any smartwatch or pedometer to count your steps. They measure your movement throughout the day. 10,000 steps a day are recommended for health benefits.
Verdict
Walking is a healthy activity that does not require much training or special gear. You can put on your joggers or comforters and go for a walk. You can ask your friend or neighbor to go for a pleasant walk in the evening. You can change the route or park where you walk daily. Above all, walking is having various health benefits, so walk!