I’ve been reading a lot about the benefits of the old “putting one foot in front of the other.” Now I know there’s no fountain of youth, but research is showing that taking a 30-minute walk five days a week can help you live longer. Experts have talked about the benefits of regular cardiovascular exercise for a long time. And that includes everything from lowering your risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes, to improving bone health and overall physical health. Of course, when it comes to walking, the potential to lose weight and keep it off is the big motivator for me .
So I’ve also been reading about ways to improve the benefits of hitting the payment besides increasing the number of steps – which I AM doing, by the way. These are suggestions I’m going to try to implement in my walking routine. Hopefully it will boost the calorie-burning potential of walking! To start, I’m not all in, but thought I’d pick two or three days a week to change things up a little. I’ll add them gradually … anything to help!
First: Varying Speed
I read a study that varying your speed can significantly increase energy spent and calories burned. I’ll have to start by actually paying attention to my pace. I’m guessing this is like any exercise … start at a slower pace to warm up and then pick it up to a moderate speed. Then it’s a matter of throwing in some shorted segments of faster walking mixed with the moderate pace. Since I store-walk, an easy way to do this is walk faster down one aisle, then walk normal and just mix it in. I also need be remember good posture. They way to aim for 3-5 legs of faster walking during a 30-minute walk.
Second: Carry Hand Weights
The American Council on Exercise says that carrying 1- to 3-pound hand weights can increase your heart rate by around 5–10 beats per minute. My challenge here is that I actually walk with the assistance of a cart. With no worry or tripping or having weird balance, I get many more steps logged with a cart than without. My pain is also much less. I’ll have to decide if this can be added in to my plan some of the time.
Third: Using Your Arms
I’ve read several studies proving the benefits of nordic walking over conventional walking. In fact, one study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning found a 67% increase in energy expenditure (comparing nordic walking to regular walking). Nordic walking doesn’t involve any special skills, just a pair of walking poles. By walking with these poles, you better engage the upper body, turning an ordinary walk into a total-body workout. This sounds really interesting and something I might want to try a little further down the road.
So … one out of three I can apply immediately. And that’s not all bad. I have been surprisingly better at getting my steps in each day. After my incredible 5000 step day (and the companion pain), I have to keep the pace steady rather than fluctuating by a couple thousand steps. Anyway, I’m hitting my 3500 goal in late afternoon or early evening each day. And that’s a good thing.
Unfortunately, this new pain thing I’m experiencing is making everything difficult. Im even hurting in the pool (worse yesterday than today). It really interferes with EVERYTHING!! Phooey.