Walking

How to Improve Your Life Radically by Walking?

It’s so simple that most people miss it!

Did you know you can improve your health, lose weight, and decrease stress levels just by walking? Forget about treadmills, weights, and fatiguing exercises. The easiest thing to do is walk. Every day.

Move!

We are made for walking and running, not for sitting all day at the desk or on a couch. If you add fast food to the mix, you can probably expect health problems and obesity. So, a sedentary lifestyle is not a way to go.

Most of us know that walking is a beneficial, daily activity but we usually don’t think of it as a “health hack”. We tend to overlook it and think we have to go on a rigorous diet and run miles every day to improve our health and physique. Fortunately, that is not the case!

Benefits

Why is walking so good for us?

• It lowers the possibility of premature death and promotes general health
• It doesn’t raise cortisol in your body, because it is not a stressful activity. Unlike weight lifting or HIIT, it is a very low-impact activity
• It doesn’t put too much stress on your tendons, ligaments, and joints
• Unlike long-distance running or jogging, it does not inhibit muscle-building
• It will keep you fit(ter)
• Anyone can do it, regardless of age and physical fitness level. You can even see many bodybuilders and fitness fanatics using it as cardio-type training: low-intensity walking on a treadmill with an incline, for example.

Walking is probably the most underrated activity when it comes to health and mental well-being. We should all walk at least 5,000 steps a day. That is actually a minimum amount. In time, you should aim for 8–10 000 steps.

How to do it

Everyone knows how to walk (not counting the babies), but how and when to incorporate it into your busy, daily schedule?

The easiest way would be 3 times per day, after a meal, for about 10 minutes (shout out to Stan Efferding!). Keep in mind that these should be brisk, energetic walks; not jogging, but also not sightseeing.

If you have time, you can do longer walks. I walk for 60–90 minutes, about 5–8 km on average. These walks are a great way to relieve stress and come up with some great ideas. They can be like walking meditation: practice mindfulness, observe, live in the now, forget about the problems, yesterday and tomorrow.

You can use these walks to educate yourself, listen to podcasts, YouTube videos, or finish some errands in the hood. You are only limited by your imagination.

There are so many ways to use walks in your favor and it’s idiot-proof! The chances of getting hurt by walking are pretty slim. Just don’t walk with your eyes closed!

If you want more life hacks on improving your day, check out my Ebook: https://ojdanicnikola80.gumroad.com/l/duhuk

Sources:

https://ijbnpa.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1479-5868-8-79 https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/adults/ https://www.umass.edu/news/article/meta-analysis-15-studies-reports-new-findings-how-many-d aily-walking-steps-needed

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