Fitness Facts: Walking for Your Health

October 30, 2014

Did you know that if you eat just one plain M & M candy you have to walk the length of a football field to burn it off?  Think about that tomorrow when you’re handing out candy and then get walking!

When it comes to fitness routines there are a lot of options out there.  You could join a gym, buy equipment for you home, use DVDs, do yoga, the list goes on!  But one of the easiest and most effective ways to exercise is walking.

Walking is built into our lives and some of us walk a lot more during the course of a day due to our jobs and lifestyle.  If you aren’t already taking a lot of steps then adding some regular walking to your daily routine will really pay off.  Check out these interesting facts about walking and the wonderful benefits.

• Some of the many benefits of walking include: increased energy, decreased blood pressure, elevated mood, helps control appetite, burns body fat, and raises your metabolism.
• Americans walk the least of any industrialized nation.
• Walking an extra 20 minutes each day will burn off an average of 7 pounds of body fat per year.
• Longer walks at a moderate pace are better for losing weight (40 minutes at 60% to 65% maximum heart rate).
• Shorter walks at a faster pace are better for conditioning your heart and lungs (20 minutes at 75% to 85% maximum heart rate).
• Walking increases the blood flow to the brain. A 1999 study of people over 60 found that walking 45 minutes a day at a 16-minute mile pace increased their thinking skills.
• When you take a step you are using up to 200 muscles.
• Walking one mile a day burns 100 calories. You could lose ten pounds in a year without changing your eating habits.

 

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