Walking as exercise.

[Dulma]

I love the idea of walking as exercise. There's something really simple and beautiful to the notion that this very basic human activity is the one that serves us so well.

But I feel like when I walk around campus, around town, I'm not feeling anything. I don't know if I'm "doing it right." Is it doing its work and I don't know it? Or is there a "proper" way to walk for physical health?

Grazie

[Clint Cora]

Should be at a brisk pace to get the heart rate up (watch the Olympians do it). If you don't feel your heart rate increase, then it's too casual of a walk.

[agsags]

Walking around campus or town is not exercise per se - it's too low of intensity. This is not to say that it's not a great way to move your body and clear the mind. In fact, I think low-intensity activities are under-appreciated (in American culture).

If you want to approach walking as "exercise", try hill walks.

[aelle]

I agree with walking faster or walking uphill. Walking with a heavier weight on you is also a way to increase the intensity of your exercise (either purposefully carrying dumbells while walking, or walking back from the grocery store work).
I'm unsure about elevated heart rate as a good indication for exercise intensity since yor heart will obviously get acclimated to your routine.

[Annie Zero]

Listen to some pumpy music and make sure you're walking to the rhythm. If you think you should slow down, then you're going fast enough. And I'm pretty sure there are some "proper" walking "techniques", if you're going to get serious about it; I think I'll google that later.

[Benton]

Find a nice state or national park and explore the trails.

[ginkgo]

I agree with the above. If you were to walk in slow motion as a mime would, do you think that it is good exercise? If not then speed matters. You can even lift your arms and walk as fast as possible, for a better work-out. This is known as Power walking.

The main thing is to keep walking, not stop and talk, and start again. But beyond the above, you are familiar with meditation and de-stressing. Walking has a similar effect as meditation when it comes to getting rid of stress. Also the movement of right leg forward while right arm goes back is very good for circulation.

Running is high impact since you are jumping off of the ground but walking is low impact. Power walking is an Olympic event.

Power walking - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Power walking has been increasingly recommended[1] as an alternative to jogging for a low-to-moderate exercise regime, for instance 60–80% of maximum heart rate, HRmax. At the upper range walking and jogging are almost equally efficient, and the walking gait gives significantly less impact to the joints.

Power walking/speed walking is often confused with race walking, which has rules to define what classifes as walking fast and is also a popular Olympic level event.

[PatrickVeg]

Originally Posted by ginkgo

I agree with the above. If you were to walk in slow motion as a mime would, do you think that it is good exercise? If not then speed matters. You can even lift your arms and walk as fast as possible, for a better work-out. This is known as Power walking.

The main thing is to keep walking, not stop and talk, and start again. But beyond the above, you are familiar with meditation and de-stressing. Walking has a similar effect as meditation when it comes to getting rid of stress. Also the movement of right leg forward while right arm goes back is very good for circulation.

Running is high impact since you are jumping off of the ground but walking is low impact. Power walking is an Olympic event.

Power walking - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Power walking has been increasingly recommended[1] as an alternative to jogging for a low-to-moderate exercise regime, for instance 60–80% of maximum heart rate, HRmax. At the upper range walking and jogging are almost equally efficient, and the walking gait gives significantly less impact to the joints.

Power walking/speed walking is often confused with race walking, which has rules to define what classifes as walking fast and is also a popular Olympic level event.

Thanks for the reference (and great info in this post). I walk on the days I don't cycle. But that's been just about 1 day a week lately.

This really is a great forum - with smart people from all over the world.

Much appreciation.

[TumbleWeed]

Maybe some of this will help.

From Katy Bowman's(biomechanist) blog --

arm swing - Swing Forward? | Katy Says

From one of her other articles on osteoporosis -

Best bone-building weight bearing exercise = walking.

5 things you (probably) didn't know about osteoporosis. | Katy Says

Dig through her blog for other interesting info. There's one article in the blog about hemodynamics and blood pressure and she talks about optimal heart rate to obtain max benefits.

She has video's on youtube also.

Cheers.

[Solipsist]

A few years ago, I lost 35 lbs., and got down to my ideal weight following the Blood Type Diet, which included (in my case as a Type O) walking 30-40 minutes a day, 3-4 times a week. For a time, I really got into it, as I felt so great after a good, brisk walk. I slept like a baby. I was energetic and really happy.

A couple of things ceased such activity. One, was the death of my beloved dog, who had served as impetus to put on the shoes and get out there; the other was that I developed odd pains in my knees and deep down in my hip joints, apparently from doing so much walking. My doctor at the time said, basically, "might want to go easier on the ambulation."

Even though I fell off the diet (I reached my ideal weight, and immediately bought a loaf of sourdough bread ), don't walk as much, and gained all the weight back (and then some), I still swear by walking as one of the best exercises. I'm currently back on the diet, again--I've already lost about fifteen pounds --but I yet need a decent pair of shoes before I start pounding the pavement again.

What others have mentioned here ring true to me, but, basically, everything about walking boils down to 3 things--

1) Don't just amble, but put some effort into it. When I Power Walk, I do it with two 5-lb. weights (which also helps build some upper body muscles ), so I can break a sweat. Hills and stairs are also good for cardio. I used to even jog, when I felt particularly energetic (but not too crazily, what with the 5 lb. weights, and all).

2) You need a decent pair of running shoes. I know that walking is not high-impact, like running, but your back (not to mention your feet) will still thank you for it.

3) Enjoy it. Don't be afraid to stop and smell the roses. Be grateful for the day (or the sunrise, or the sunset, or life in general). Say 'hi' to people. Pet the dogs.

Actually, I'm going to have to wear my old, worn-out shoes to do it, but tomorrow, I think I'm gonna go for a walk.

[Brad Voyce]

I lost 15 pounds last year just walking up and down a small hill in the woods near my home! The trick is that walking up and down an incline burns way more calories than walking or running on a flat plane.

Losing weight is just a calorie burning game. You want to burn about 500 more than you eat a day to have a healthy, steady weight loss.

[TonyRovere]

Originally Posted by Dulma

I love the idea of walking as exercise. There's something really simple and beautiful to the notion that this very basic human activity is the one that serves us so well.

But I feel like when I walk around campus, around town, I'm not feeling anything. I don't know if I'm "doing it right." Is it doing its work and I don't know it? Or is there a "proper" way to walk for physical health?

Grazie

1) Walk quicker...you should strive for 4 mph

2) If you have a smart phone, install CardioTrainer or another GPS-based app. It will keep track of everything. Your total steps, calories burned, speed, distance.

3) If you don't have a smart phone, get a pedometer and shoot for 10,000 steps a day.

4) When doing a powerwalk, make sure to move your arms. I keep mine straight but really follow through and the twisting this creates is felt in my abdominals. I can feel the fat coming off me.

I hope these tips help.

[lucidbrotha]

Originally Posted by TonyRovere

I hope these tips help.

Thanks for these tips. Do you think walking is more effective than running? The main goal of walking/running to get the heart rate as high as possible for as long as possible, right? Does that result in the so-called "afterburning", i.e. where your body keeps burning calories even hours after the exercise?

[Altan]

Hi Grazie,
Walking is one of the best cardio exercise to lose weight and to burn fats. Some advantages of walking daily are:
It reduces and maintain weight,
It builds strength and muscle tone,
It increases muscle tone,
It improves heart health,
It strengthens the immune system,
It builds stamina,
It improves cardiovascular fitness,
It reduces stress and depression.

[EvolveWithFlavor]

Originally Posted by Dulma

I love the idea of walking as exercise. There's something really simple and beautiful to the notion that this very basic human activity is the one that serves us so well.

But I feel like when I walk around campus, around town, I'm not feeling anything. I don't know if I'm "doing it right." Is it doing its work and I don't know it? Or is there a "proper" way to walk for physical health?

Grazie

I was running last night and I felt like I was a woman for starting to walk instead of run. I soon stopped after a couple of blocks.

It's a good minor-league substitute, but there's really no escape from having to do the REAL thing to get the REAL results.

[sandradavis]

Walking is a very good cardio exercise, helping you to hike up your metabolism to higher levels, making you better able to burn off excess calories from your entire body, to lose the fat and the weight.

It also strengthens your heart and pumps blood more efficiently so that you can lower risk of heart diseases and strokes.

[Clint Cora]

Originally Posted by sandradavis

Walking is a very good cardio exercise, helping you to hike up your metabolism to higher levels, making you better able to burn off excess calories from your entire body, to lose the fat and the weight.

It also strengthens your heart and pumps blood more efficiently so that you can lower risk of heart diseases and strokes.

Even better when done with dogs and in natural settings. This benefits the soul as well as physical fitness.

[christianyethboth]

Originally Posted by Dulma

I love the idea of walking as exercise. There's something really simple and beautiful to the notion that this very basic human activity is the one that serves us so well.

But I feel like when I walk around campus, around town, I'm not feeling anything. I don't know if I'm "doing it right." Is it doing its work and I don't know it? Or is there a "proper" way to walk for physical health?

Grazie

I go walking every single day for about 2 hours and it's a really great way to exercise, strengthen your legs, to lose weight and to feel good. A one mile walk is the equivalent to a 10 minute non-stop sprint. Also it's a great way to view and explore the outside scenery around you. Speed walking is another great form of walking if you want to get yourself really fit.