Walking

Today is Walk-to-School Day. While that is not possible for everyone, we can all reap the benefits of walking on a regular basis.

Walking has many benefits, including (taken from Walk Yourself to Good Health on the Missouri Families website):

• Boost metabolism and help with appetite control.
• Improve self-confidence and mental alertness.
• Provide stress relief.
• Reduce cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
• Give an energy boost throughout the day.
• Help with getting a good night’s sleep (but avoid exercising right before bed if you want to fall asleep quickly).

The 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines recommends a total of 150 minutes (2 1/2 hours) of aerobic physical activity weekly. Walking is one way to meet this goal. This can be broken up in different ways: 30 minutes five days; one 45 minute session and two 30 minute session; 60 minutes two days and 30 minutes one day; two 15 minute sessions five days, etc. This is a goal to work toward, any amount of physical activity is better than none at all. Start with what you feel comfortable with and work toward 150 minutes weekly.

If you aren't currently walking, there's no better time to start. No fancy equipment is needed, just comfortable clothes and shoes and a safe place to walk. Explore the many options available in your neighborhood or community, indoors or outdoors.

To get the most benefit from your walk, keep your intensity in mind. You should be able to carry on a conversation (not as easily as you would sitting down) but are not able to sing. If it is really easy to talk, you may want to pick up the pace a little bit. There is really no standard pace recommendation, so use the "talk test" to determine your intensity. You should be breather faster and feel your heart beating faster.

Pedometers can be a useful tool to track your steps as well. One common recommendation is 10,000 steps a day, but this could actually be overwhelming for some who are not as active. It's better to wear your pedometer and do your normal activity for one week and then try to increase you steps by about 2,500 each day. For instance, if you walk about 5,000 steps daily on average, try to increase to 7,500 steps a day, then keep increasing as you feel ready. The 10,000 steps a day could be a good overall goal, but tough for new walkers. About 2,000-3,000 steps is equal to a mile, depending on how big of a step you take.

Need to get started? There's a sample walking program in the Let's Get Walking brochure - MU Extension. You can start with as little as a 15 minute walk three times a week and work up to 150+ minutes of walking weekly.

For more information:
Let's Get Walking brochure from MU Extension
Walk Yourself to Good Health on Missouri Families
You can find many articles on walking and other types of physical activity on the Missouri Families website.