Lifestyle | Self |Fitness

Walkipedia

A walker’s encyclopedia where every word is a guiding step that adds to the daily count

Walking–A debatable topic for fathoming, “Is it good to be a morning walker or is any time of the day is fine to walk?” Whoever wins–the result is the same that walking is the most important, be it any time of the day!

So that’s well understood, but have you ever experienced the difference yourself? If you haven’t, then please do so.

Do you know that if you go for a brisk walk early morning, it will super boost your metabolism and keep you energized all day long?

• These wee hours of the morning are the ‘ excuse free and no distraction zone’ of daily schedule time!
• Don’t forget that your endurance is highest in the morning and thus you can easily burn if not double, then at least 1.5 times the calories you would exhaust each evening or any other time of the day.

Also, a major added benefit for Indian cities, like New Delhi where I live, and various other polluted ones in the world, is that there is far less vehicular pollution in the early hours, thus making fresh air accessible to you which helps in eradicating a lot of lifestyle diseases.

Do you know that a morning walk is beneficial for health and well-being?

• It aids in many times preventing or chiefly helps in reducing the symptoms of all various lifestyle diseases like thyroid, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
• These diseases are a walking time bomb when they get together. At those times, they increase the triglycerides to high levels, and that in return causes the HDL cholesterol to drop and be lower than the required parameters.
• All these variations eventually lead to a series of metabolic syndromes that predispose one to heart disease.

Now, in case you are vulnerable to the same, what do you do?

• It’s always suggested that each person should be engaged in doing a minimum of three hours of any cardio or aerobic exercise per week.
• One can opt for anything, but the best is walking in the morning as this significantly reduces the chances of developing any metabolic syndrome by 50 per cent and even helps in reducing the existing ones if any.
• As the old saying goes — An apple a day keeps the doctor away, I can say that early morning walks each day keeps diabetes away.
• Did you know that walking in the morning helps in keeping the sugar levels under control? Type 2 diabetes is growing exponentially in the world and especially in India, it has reached an epidemic level.
• As per a study, it’s quoted that about 100 million Indians will be prone to suffering from Type 2 Diabetes by 2030.
• So don’t you think it’s sensible to give yourself these 30 minutes each morning, especially if you are already suffering from diabetes or if you are on the borderline to develop it?
• By doing so today you can manage your increased sugar levels because when you do so walking helps the cells in your body to make use of the prevalent glucose in the bloodstream more efficiently.

And yes–once you walk daily, each morning it will make a difference to your body weight too, which will also help in controlling Diabetes. As we form this habit, in the long run, it makes a gradual difference–a slow but sustainable 10%.

So are you ready to make this shift? But please don’t forget to make sure you wear proper walking shoes to stay away from injuries once you start your walks.

“Did You Know?”, hold on…I will take you back on memory lane.

As a child, I grew up learning with this famous encyclopedia series called “Did You Know”.

Each night before going to bed reading one “Did You Know” on any topic was a must and so as they say old habits die hard, this did you know became a part of me.

As I started writing, be it any poem, story, or even an essay in school, the phrase or question -as you wish to put it, was always there.

So how can it go missing now? No way— it’s part of me and all that I write and thus I shall continue it below with my special on walking.

Did you know that walking each morning can help melt body fat?

One of the easiest forms of exercise when compared to working out in the gym, playing a sport, or even swimming, walking is highly effective, especially in the mornings.

By walking in the morning you burn a lot of fat- yes, nearly 60% of the calories you burn will be from fat. In comparison, the other high-intensity workouts too may give you great overall fat loss results, but the shape your body gets with walking in the mornings, by increasing your heart rate, giving you a great cardio workout will be phenomenal.

Did you know that morning walks tone all the muscles in your lower body like the leg and glutes and even help in tightening your core-abdominal muscles if you walk maintaining good posture?

Did you know that morning walks can improve mental well-being and bless you with clarity?

Walking at the start of the day can only lead you to feel better, healthier, and happier — leaving you on a positive high for the day. Morning walks in a multitude of ways, help to improve your wellbeing — physical and mental.

Did you know that as you walk — and walk briskly, you release endorphins — the happy hormones which will give you a mood a boost? This boost gives your energy the power to keep you going for the rest of the day.

Also, walking briskly for a minimum of thirty minutes can have a positive effect on protecting your memory and improving your cognitive skills and yes, even in healing people with depression.

All this happens because of the rush of oxygen that enables the blood flow smoothly to your brain when you walk. This, in the long run, leaves you alert and even improves your brain function, especially in people aged 60 and up, preventing them from getting age-related memory degeneration.

Did you know that you can make your morning walk a joyous exercise experience in the company — a friend, family, or even your pet?

Did you know that by walking each morning you can strengthen your heart?

Everyone wants to have a young, healthy, and happy heart — don’t you? Well, happy and young is a state of mind, but what about a healthy heart… what is the way to keep it young? You can surely preclude heart problems by going for regular morning walks.

As per the AHA — American Heart Association, if you walk briskly for at least 30 minutes in a day, you can reduce your risk of getting a stroke or developing heart disease.

Moreso, it even helps in lowering your blood pressure and even reduces the bad cholesterol and triglyceride levels. We know this as the Golden Half Hour in the morning and seriously, if you attend to it well, you can make your life healthy and bright.

Did you know that you should plan on walking outdoors on a smooth and comfortable route, to make your walk an enjoyable experience?

Did you know that walking each morning can make you feel and look fresh and better each day?

Consistent morning walks help to improve your overall health boundaries and as a result, you may pop fewer medicines than you used to. Experts say that going for regular morning walks may give you an extra year of life since walking improves blood circulation and oxygen supply in the body and that eventually leads to better immunity.

Besides general health improvement, making morning walks a part of your daily schedule will give you some exceptional beauty benefits.

Did you know that walking in the morning slows down the ageing process; gives your skin a healthy radiance by improving blood circulation and that in return enhances your hair quality, giving it more lustre?

I’d like to conclude my debate on walking, by throwing some light on questions that always create a cloud of doubt, and leave people in a state of wonder. So here, I have picked the most widely asked ones to answer.

Q. For how long should I walk in the mornings?

A. First and foremost — Walk! That is what the doctors recommend, that you try to fit in at least 30 minutes of brisk walking in a day, four times a week to start with and going up to six days. If you find yourself unable to walk for that long, initially, give yourself smaller goals and try to walk for 10 to 15 minutes, building up the time gradually by10 minutes a day to the end of the starting week.

Q. Can morning walks help me lose weight?

A. Unquestionably, morning walks can help you burn fat and calories over some time. It’s like the slow and steady win the race so while it may not be as much as high-intensity exercise, it still makes quite a difference on the weighing scale in the long run.

Q. Will morning walks help me control my diabetes?

A. Indisputably, morning walks are very helpful when it comes to lowering sugar levels and you get to see the difference in your sugar readings in just a week too if you walk for at least 30 minutes each day. The best part about walking is that you can start the activity as soon as you are hell-bent to do so because you don’t need any gym membership equipment. All that one needs… is a pair of walking shoes.

Q. Will morning walks leave me famished all day long?

A. Morning walks help in boosting your metabolism and will help you burn more calories all day long. At first, when you have a big breakfast post walking, it keeps you full and yes full of energy and satiated too, all day long. It especially prevents you from binge eating because your sugar levels do not dip because of a proper first meal intake. All this eventually strikes a balance leading you to have clean and healthy meals during the day.

Finally, I’d like to sign off with my favourite quote;

“Since the steps, you walk today for your health, are an investment to make your future bright, don’t forget to put the ‘Wake Me Up’ morning alarm each night.” — Geetika Sethi.

So, what do you think about a morning walk now?

Is a morning walk something you will give a chance?

Can becoming a morning walker heal your life?

Is it a worthwhile exercise?

Are you going to get up tomorrow morning and go for a walk?

Last but not the least, we know that walking is the best physical exercise, but that’s not true because walking is not just confined to physical exercising.

Walking is a complete package — the one that heals us physically and mentally too. Yes, when we walk each morning we freshen the mind that heals us immensely on a mental level, leaving us refreshed and positive.

This attitude leaves us with an open mind, which eventually teaches us to walk away from various things that bother us.

If you enjoyed Walkipedia, you will enjoy walking through — “The 7 Wonders” too.

©️ Geetika Sethi, August 2020

Thank You, Karen Madej