May

Fitness, heath and weight loss one step at a time

Category Health and FitnessTags: all the benefits of walking and more

What are the Top 10 reasons to Walk?
1. Walking prevents type 2 diabetes. The Diabetes Prevention Program showed that walking 150 minutes per week and losing just 7% of your body weight (12-15 pounds) can reduce your risk of diabetes by 58%.

2. Walking strengthens your heart if you’re male. In one study, mortality rates among retired men who walked less than one mile per day were nearly twice that among those who walked more than two miles per day.

3. Walking strengthens your heart if you’re female. Women in the Nurse’s Health Study (72,488 female nurses) who walked three hours or more per week reduced their risk of a heart attack or other coronary event by 35% compared with women who did not walk.

4. Walking is good for your brain. In a study on walking and cognitive function, researchers found that women who walked the equivalent of an easy pace at least 1.5 hours per week had significantly better cognitive function and less cognitive decline than women who walked less than 40 minutes per week. Think about that!

5. Walking is good for your bones. Research shows that postmenopausal women who walk approximately one mile each day have higher whole-body bone density than women who walk shorter distances, and walking is also effective in slowing the rate of bone loss from the legs.

6. Walking helps alleviate symptoms of depression. Walking for 30 minutes, three to five times per week for 12 weeks reduced symptoms of depression as measured with a standard depression questionnaire by 47%.

7. Walking reduces the risk of breast and colon cancer. Women who performed the equivalent of one hour and 15 minutes to two and a half hours per week of brisk walking had an 18% decreased risk of breast cancer compared with inactive women. Many studies have shown that exercise can prevent colon cancer, and even if an individual person develops colon cancer, the benefits of exercise appear to continue both by increasing quality of life and reducing mortality.

8. Walking improves fitness. Walking just three times a week for 30 minutes can significantly increase cardiorespiratory fitness.

9. Walking in short bouts improves fitness, too! A study of sedentary women showed that short bouts of brisk walking (three 10-minute walks per day) resulted in similar improvements in fitness and were at least as effective in decreasing body fatness as long bouts (one 30-minute walk per day).

10. Walking improves physical function. Research shows that walking improves fitness and physical function and prevents physical disability in older persons.
The list goes on, but if I continued, there’d be no time for you to start walking! Suffice to say that walking is certainly good for you!
For more information: http://www.medicinenet.com/walking/article.htm

Getting Started: 10 Tips for Fitness Walking
Medical Author: Melissa Conrad Stoppler, MD
Medical Editor: Dennis Lee, MD
Walking is one of the easiest and least expensive ways to stay physically fit. It’s also a versatile form of exercise that can be done indoors (many malls and public buildings offer walking routes) or outdoors, and you can tailor the intensity of your exercise based upon your individual abilities and goals. Whether you’d like to begin walking for exercise or if you’re already established in the habit, these tips can help you get the most from your workout.
1. Before starting a walking program, check with your doctor if you have a chronic medical condition or if you have had a recent injury. But don’t assume that you aren’t able to start exercise walking if you do have medical issues. Exercise walking can help control disease progression and relieve symptoms in people with cardiovascular disease and diabetes, and many people with arthritis or other musculoskeletal problems will experience symptom relief from a medically-supervised exercise walking routine.
2. Invest in good shoes. Since these are the only expense and equipment you’ll need, pay attention to the fit and quality of your shoes. Shoes should fit when you try them on without any areas of pinching or pressure that could cause blisters or calluses. Wear the type of socks you’ll wear when walking when you purchase your shoes, and remember that you’ll likely need a larger-sized shoe than you normally wear if you plan to wear thick socks. Shoes should have good arch support and a slightly elevated heel with stiff material to support the heel when walking and prevent wobbling.
3. Always warm up by walking at a slow or normal walking pace for five minutes before picking up the tempo of your workout.
4. Pay attention to your heart rate and breathing. Walk at a pace that challenges you and elevates your heart rate, but don’t overdo. You should be able to talk and carry on a conversation while you are exercising; if you can’t, you may be working too hard.
5. Use good walking posture. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons recommends maintaining the following posture when exercise walking: Swing your arms. Keep your head up, back straight and abdomen flat. Point your toes straight ahead. Take long strides, but don’t strain.
6. ***Consider getting a pedometer to track the distance you’ve walked or the number of steps you’ve taken. Watching your improvement over time is a terrific source of motivation.
7. Be sure to carry water if you’re walking long distances or are exercising in hot weather. In very hot weather you may need fitness drinks or other sources of electrolytes as well.
8. In the heat of summer, don’t forget to wear a hat with a brim and to apply sunscreen to exposed areas.
9. Vary your route if you’re getting bored. To increase your fitness, add a route with some hills or changes in terrain. Or alternate routes on different days of the week.
10. Keep your workout interesting. Many people walk with a buddy or in groups for support and motivation. While lots of walkers swear by their iPods to keep them going, I prefer to pay extra attention to the sights and sounds around me. Find the solution that keeps you moving
Where Can I Walk?
1. The beauty of walking is that it can be done anywhere.
2. When you travel (a great way to explore a new city)
3. Around your block
4. Your local track
5. Architectural walking tours
6. Mall walking is great for cold or rainy conditions, and it’s great for social support and meeting new people. Call your local mall to find out when their walking club meets (most of the time it’s before the mall opens).
7. Trails in your local park
8. Enter road races sponsored by your local running or walking club. Many running clubs sponsor walking events too, and plenty of people walk road races even when people are running. Check out your local clubs

More info on Walking:
http://www.medicinenet.com/walking/page8.htm

How Many Calories Will I Burn Walking?
A 150-pound man burns 100 calories per mile; a 200-pund man burns 133 calories per mile; and a 250-pound man burns 166 calories per mile.
You burn virtually the same number of calories whether you run or walk a mile; you just get there faster if you run.
See below for a chart of calories burned during walking at different speeds and body weight
Calories burned in one hour at different body weights
Calories burned per hour at different body weights
Walking 110 lbs. 125 lbs. 150 lbs. 175 lbs. 200 lbs.
Strolling less than 2 mph, level 100 114 136 159 182
Moderate pace about 3 mph 175 199 239 278 318
Brisk pace about 3.5 mph 200 227 273 318 364
Very brisk pace about 4.5 mph 225 256 307 358 409
Moderate pace about 3 mph, uphill 300 341 409 477 545
References:
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/pubs/pubd/hestats/physicalactivity/physicalactivity.htm. May 14, 2007
Walking links to Weightloss
http://www.healthyexerciseworld.com/calories-burned-walking.html

Pedometer’s 101
What’s a pedometer used for?
A pedometer is a beeper-sized device you wear on your waist that counts the number of steps you take.
How do pedometers work?
There are two types of pedometers, spring-levered and piezoelectric. Spring-levered pedometers use a spring-suspended horizontal lever arm that moves up and down in response to the movement (vertical accelerations) of your hips as you walk or run. The movement opens and closes an electrical circuit, and as the lever arm makes contact, a step is registered. Spring-levered pedometers must be placed in a vertical plane, perpendicular to the ground, in order for them to work. They don’t work if they tip forward to a horizontal plane.
***Pedometers work when you dance, climb stairs, or walk outdoors or on a treadmill, but they don’t work if you’re biking, skiing, rowing, or swimming.
How do I increase my daily steps?
My guess is that if you scanned your week, you would find times and opportunities when you could walk a little more.
Pedometer Contest: Divide your office colleagues into teams and post a big chart in a conspicuous place with the cumulative number of steps that all of you take each week, and then at the end of the month, give awards to the members of the team with the highest step count and give a special award to the individual who takes the most steps. At home, post a chart on the fridge and see who takes the most steps. The winner doesn’t have to do dishes for a week! Make the contests fun. The good news is that anyone with a pedometer can participate
Hints: Looking for ideas to increase your steps? Here is what a local company did: A researcher asked 34 employees of a small northeastern college what strategies they used to increase their steps. Below are the results (numbers in parentheses are the percentage of participants who used the strategies). The employees said:
1. To a meeting or work-related errand (65%)
2. After work (50%)
3. Before work (35%)
4. At lunch (47%)
5. On the weekend (32%)
6. While traveling (32%)
7. With the dog (32%)
8. To a destination (work/store) (29%)
9. Parked farther away (50%)
10. Used the stairs rather than an elevator (24%)
11. Performed other cardiovascular activity (539%)