Walk Your Way to Better Health

In this article:

• Walking may win in the category of best all-around activity for its accessibility, versatility, and health benefits. Walking regularly can help with weight management, blood sugar control, and cardiovascular health.  
• Walking is often a good choice for beginning exercisers and those getting back into exercise after a break, since many people often walk at least a bit on a daily basis.
• Walk briskly, walk uphill or up an incline on a treadmill, or add jogging intervals to make it more intense if needed.
• You can walk indoors or outdoors, near or far from home. It doesn’t require fancy equipment, and it’s a good choice around the holidays when you may be especially busy.
• To make it more fun and sustainable, listen to music, notice the scenery, walk to do your errands, or walk with friends. 
• Lark can help motivate you to get active and provide  tools to achieve your health and weight loss goals.

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Here’s good news if you want to manage weight and improve health without running a marathon or joining a gym: walking works! Walking is one of the most common and sustainable ways to be physically active. Here’s more about the benefits of walking, why it can be appropriate whether you’re a novice or advanced exerciser, and how to make a walking program fit into your lifestyle so it can work for you long-term.

Physical and Mental Health Benefits of Walking

As with any moderate to intense physical activity, walking has benefits for physical and mental health. Here are a few of them.

• Reduced stress and improved feelings of well-being
• Lower blood sugar
• Higher “good” HDL cholesterol and lower blood pressure and risk for heart disease

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Walking also helps with weight management. Though diet is most impactful when losing weight, being physically active for at least an hour a day can help prevent weight gain. You might burn 200-400 calories in an hour of walking, with higher values more likely if you weigh more and walk faster.

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In addition, walking can help reduce the risk of death from cardiovascular disease or other causes. A review article in Geroscience suggests that, compared with people who walk the least, those who walk more are less likely to experience all-cause mortality over a given period.

Walking Is a Natural Springboard for Being More Active

Walking is something most people have done since their toddler years. It’s a familiar movement that we use to get around the house, from the office to the car, and through stores. Plus, many of us already walk for exercise. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than half of adults walk for leisure or exercise. The American Institute for Cancer Research reports that people who walk regularly are far more likely to meet physical activity recommendations than those who don’t. 

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Here are additional reasons why walking is a good choice for many people who want to become more active or establish a regular exercise routine. 

• Equipment is minimal. Just get a good pair of walking shoes and some comfortable clothes that are appropriate for the weather.
• It’s a low-impact exercise. This makes injury risk lower and makes it easier on joints. People with knee or hip pain and those with diabetic neuropathy may find walking more doable than higher-impact exercises or activities that require twisting, like dancing or playing tennis. Talk to your healthcare provider if you have pain or any health conditions that may affect your ability to exercise.
• You can go at your own pace. You can go as quickly or slowly as your body demands, which lowers injury risk and lets you build a habit as you build fitness.

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Walking can also be a natural choice for exercise during busy periods such as the holiday season. Step outside for a quick walk and a breath of fresh air when you’re feeling stifled or stressed, or do extra laps in a mall before focusing on gift shopping.

Fitting Walking Into Your Life

The fact that walking is familiar and already integrated into the day makes it an ideal starting point for beginning exercisers or people returning after a long break from being active. Just add on to whatever you’re already doing. For example, if you walk down the driveway to get the mail, try walking to the end of the block before turning around to come back inside your home. After a week or so, try going around the block before coming back inside. 

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Walking is also one of the easiest activities to fit into a busy life because it’s flexible. You can do it almost anywhere to fit your mood, the amount of time you have, and the weather conditions. 

• On sidewalks in your neighborhood
• In a park
• On hiking trails
• On a treadmill at home or in a gym
• In a shopping mall (most open early for walkers)

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You can even look online for walking videos. They’re often entertaining, and you can choose how far/long and how fast you want to walk. 

Walks for Exercisers Who Are Already Fit

Did you know that even fit people can benefit from walking? Try any of these options to increase the intensity of your walks.

• Walk faster
• Add intervals of jogging
• Walk uphill
• Set the treadmill incline to a higher level
• Walk on uneven surfaces if you feel safe doing so, and don’t have any knee or hip problems that prevent you from being safe

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You don’t have to go hard on every walk. Slower walks at more relaxed paces can still relieve stress and get your blood circulating. 

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You can also use walking during a muscle-strengthening workout to turn it into a cardiovascular workout. Between sets of muscle-strengthening exercises, such as bicep curls, squats, or overhead presses, walk briskly for 1-3 minutes. Your muscles can recover while you burn calories and keep your heart rate up. 

Tips for Starting and Keeping Up a Walking Habit

As soon as you’re ready to start and you’ve gotten your healthcare provider’s okay, you can get started. Remember these tips. 

• Start slow and short. Keep your first few walks to distances and speeds that are already normal for you. Even if it’s as little as 1-2 minutes a few times a day, you’re establishing a solid foundation for your fitness program. 
• Increase gradually. Only do what you feel comfortable doing. Increase by 1-2 minutes per walk, and only increase after a week at your current pace and duration.
• Make it fun. Whether you listen to music or podcasts, enjoy nature or your dog, or walk with friends in person or on the phone, make your walk something to look forward to.
• Double or triple the purpose. Along with being physically active, think of your walk as your time to reduce stress, spend time with friends or by yourself, and get to places. Your walk is important for many reasons, so make sure it happens!
• Schedule it in. Otherwise, you may find yourself running out of time and not getting to your walk.
• Force yourself to walk. You might park your car a little further away from work so you have to walk before and after work, for example

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Another trick is to log your walks in Lark tosee your progress. It’s motivating to see how many walks you can get in once you commit to yourself! 

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The National Institutes of Health reminds you to include muscle-strengthening exercises and flexibility exercises in your fitness routine.

How Lark Can Help

Getting active can improve physical and mental health, and walking is a great choice for many people. Your Lark coach is available 24/7 for encouragement, nutrition and physical activity coaching, and habit tracking. Lark can help you make healthy choices and establish habits that fit into your lifestyle so you can lose weight and keep it off with or without GLP-1 medications. 

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Click here to see if you may be eligible to join Lark today!

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