A long walk in the park might not be exactly what you imagine when you think of an intense, sweaty workout. But don’t underestimate the walk! Walking workouts are full of benefits. Long brisk walks can help you maintain a healthy body weight, lose weight, and improve muscle strength without the impact and strain of running or other sports.
In this article, we’ll see how you can turn your walk into a workout and learn how to walk for your well-being.
This article on walking workouts walks you through the following fundamentals :
- Choose a route for walking workouts
- Add resistance to walking workouts
- Vary the intensity of walking exercises
WALK FOR WELL-BEING
While it’s true that walking isn’t as physically taxing as running, that doesn’t necessarily mean the workout is less effective. Harder doesn’t always mean better. Compared to running, walking loses points in terms of intensity, but quickly gains points by being the most joint-friendly option. Walkers are much less likely to injure themselves.
Brisk walking improves your cardiovascular capacity, strengthens your bones and muscles, and improves your balance and coordination, which are increasingly important as you get older. Walking also has mental benefits. Studies show that walking improves mood and reduces stress and tension.
Like running, walking doesn’t require a lot of equipment. All you need is good shoes and suitable clothing, especially if you exercise outdoors.
Walking is also one of the easiest forms of training to implement. It’s an activity that most of us already do on a daily basis.
HOW LONG SHOULD A WALKING SESSION LAST?
Steps per day is a commonly accepted measure of physical activity. Generally, 10,000 daily steps are considered the correct goal for maintaining an active lifestyle. Recent studies show, however, that just 7,000 daily steps can have significant health benefits, regardless of step intensity.
Keeping track of steps throughout the day is just as important as walking continuously for a long period of time to turn walking into a meaningful workout. If you have time for a brisk walk, aim for a brisk walk for 45 to 60 minutes.
GETTING THE MOST OUT OF WALKING WORKOUTS
The benefits, both physical and mental, of walking have long been proven. Studies, like this one of American adults published in 2020 , claim that people who walk regularly are healthier and live longer.
You don’t have to walk very fast or very far to enjoy the benefits of walking. By following a few recommendations, walkers can get the most out of their walking exercises:
- To get results, it is not always necessary to do high intensity training. Slow, low-intensity walks can help people maintain cardiovascular health.
- High-intensity walking exercises, such as Nordic walking (using walking sticks), can be a good way to amplify the positive results of walking on the body, by engaging more muscles.
- Changing the terrain of your walks can also help vary the intensity of the workout. For example, going up or down a hill can have a big impact on training intensity.
- Consider walking with a group of people to make it a more social experience. Even if it doesn’t improve your physiological health, it can have a positive impact on your mental health and stress levels.
- Tracking heart rate on your next walk can help you optimize your exercise and get to know your heart rate zones better in different settings.
4 TIPS FOR WALKING SESSIONS
1. TRY WALKING WITH NEW LANDSCAPES
Sometimes putting on your walking shoes and getting out of your house can be the hardest part of your workout. Once out in the open, have you noticed that distance and time seem to pass much faster when walking along your favorite coastal path or bush path?
Taking a walking route with a view can be a great form of de-stressing and inspiring other walkers to encourage you to go a little further or walk a little faster.
2. CHOOSE ACHOOSE A HILLY ROUTE OR VARIED TERRAIN.
Rather than going around the block, try to vary the pleasures and opt for a path with inclines and descents.
An even better option is to choose a course with stairs or a nearby hill. Although this is not a walking course, you can tackle the stairs or the hill several times depending on your energy level, motivation, and how much time you have.
Adding a good incline to your step will help activate the larger muscle groups of the glutes, hamstrings, and quads, compared to the work required to walk on flat ground.
Inclines are also fantastic for cardiovascular fitness. Higher intensity levels increase your heart rate and Inclines are also fantastic for cardiovascular fitness. Higher intensity levels raise your heart rate and push your body to use your anaerobic energy system, almost serving as a form of HIIT by alternating uphills (work effort) and downhills (active recovery).
3. ADD RESISTANCE TO YOUR WALKING EXERCISES
If your usual walking route is dotted with benches, such as in a park or along a walking path, incorporate the following into every lap you take:
- Tricep dips x 12
- Incline push-ups x 12
- Step ups x 12 for each leg
- Crunches x 12
Investing in a pair of ankle, wrist or hand weights is also a great way to add a little extra resistance to your walking to help your upper body work a little harder.
Holding something in your hands reminds you to exercise your arms, which in turn can improve your gait efficiency and encourage you to pick up your pace (which is why sprinters have such great punching power when running).
If you don’t want to hit the streets with your light dumbbells, you can always take a bottle of drink with you and swap arms as you walk. This will encourage you to use your arms, focus on your posture, and activate your core.
4. VARY THE INTENSITY OF YOUR WALKING SESSIONS
Just like you would when performing HIIT on the treadmill, try varying the speed of your walking sessions. Thus, you will use both your aerobic and anaerobic energy system.
If you don’t feel like looking at your fitness watch to time this activity, you can also aim for landmarks to add brisk walking.
- Select a landmark and increase your walking speed until you reach it, then resume a more steady pace until you reach the next landmark.
Music is a great way to stay motivated and keep your pace going, speed it up or slow it down. Songs around 128 BPM are a brisk walk for most people.
NOW TURN YOUR WALK INTO A WORKOUT!
Walking workouts are a fantastic form of low-intensity, joint-gentle aerobic exercise. Walking is also a great active recovery workout or a good option for days when you don’t have the energy to go for a run.
Next time you take a walk, incorporate some of the tips above to turn your walk into an enjoyable workout.
