Health | Fitness | Lifestyle

I Walked Daily for 1 Hour for 435 Days

How did it change my body and mind

On the 1st December of 2020 year, 435 days ago, I was scared. I understood one shocking thing. I haven’t been outside for the whole month.

Covid has changed the world. My life changed, too. There were not many activities that year. Lockdowns separated people from the real world. Delivery services completed the isolation.

I knew that walking outside was kinda important. But I wasn’t 100% sure. At first sight, it seemed just a waste of time. What can I possibly get from walking in the park the same route every day?

A lot! But I didn’t know it then.

However, I decided to give it a try. The original deal was the following. Daily walk for at least 60 minutes. That wouldn’t kill me. I hoped so…

Soon, I extended my challenge for the longer term. I was excited because of the significant changes in my life.

The following things got better after 435 days of walking:

Improvements of Mind

Complete isolation, even in a comfortable flat, is stressful. No wonder isolation is used to punish prisoners in jails

The fun fact is I didn’t notice my loneliness previously. The more impressive was shift of mind when I spent a long time outside walking in the park.

The contrast between a park and a closed flat was amazing. My body was working for 100%. I breathed deeply — my lungs took oxygen in to turn it into energy. It was the state of body my mind forgot about.

My body had to get used to the new amount of oxygen in the blood. This fresh blood was pumping through the whole body. My muscles were working. They were full of energy. I liked that.

At the end of my first walk, I felt relaxed and cheerful at the same time. My mind was calm, and I was happy. These feelings have stayed with me to this day. Perhaps, the most important motivation I had.

My pleasant first experience helped me to continue the challenge.

Improvements of Breathing

For the next couple of months, I enjoyed my walks. Even the weather was chilly — it was winter. I didn’t hope for any changes in my life.

As a rule, my pace was high, and I came home well warmed up.

Previously, I did not know what it meant to breathe deeply.

I discovered it during this walking challenge. The feeling that your lungs work with 150% capacity. Blood in your chest is pumping. You notice how your body takes in oxygen to turn it into the energy you need to walk.

I felt more power doing the breath. That feeling is worth trying.

It’s not just the words. I was losing my breath quickly during my first attempts to walk for a long time. I had to slow down and flatten my breath. After the year, this problem is gone. Now I usually walk at a fast pace without any problems with breathing, and I like it.

Another advantage of my new breath was winning staircases. It was always annoying to get to the 5th floor on foot. Usually, my breathing required some time to recover. To be honest I was panting on the 3rd floor already.

No more recovery time now. Even reaching the 10th floor on my foot is not a challenge anymore. My body doesn’t count it as an activity compared to 1 hour-long walks in the park.

Improvements of Discipline

Try to perform any action for 365 days, and you gonna improve your discipline. Walking daily did the trick for me.

There were hundreds of reasons not to walk. Luckily, my willpower was strong enough not to fail and complete the challenge.

Every day walking outside is not that easy. Especially in bad weather: raining or snowing. Nobody likes to walk during a storm. Cold raindrops or snowflakes cut the face. It wasn’t pleasant, but I had to do it.

If you must do something, then you can do it. It became my new motto.

Debes Ergo Potes in Latin

This motto helps me to go through life smiling.

Final Thoughts

Walking every day is not a big change in life, but it results in significant changes. I liked this challenge. Walking became a mandatory part of my daily routine. I can’t imagine my life without walking outside anymore.

It’s a life-changing experience. I strongly recommend it to everyone.

Also, you can read about my other challenges on this list. For example, 365 days walking challenge, or 365 days exercise challenge.

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