Walking – Great Exercise, Low Stress

June 21, 2012 by admin
Filed under Anaerobic Exercises

Article by Ernie Reynolds

Walking – Great Exercise, Low Stress – Health – Fitness

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It’s no secret that some form of exercise is necessary for a happy, healthy body. Exercise, combined with sensible eating and drinking habits, can help prolong your life and just make you feel better. Maintaining your ideal weight is much easier as well.

However, if you are like many people, exercise is not the most exciting way to spend your time. Slaving at the gym to get that heart pumping and work up a good sweat is not high on a lot of folks’ list of enjoyable pastimes. Besides, it costs money and takes time to go there, workout, and get back home.

May I present an alternative – walking. Walking is a great way to get some needed exercise in without sweating all over and waiting in line for the next weight machine. It is low impact and low cost – actually it’s free!

Walking can be done just about anywhere. It’s hard to beat a nice walk around the lake or a hike through the forest trails on a beautiful day. Even a few times around the block is beneficial to your health and can be done with minimal fuss and trouble.

According to recent studies, walking is just as helpful as running and jogging for your heart and circulatory system. As a matter of fact, it may be better for many folks as it causes much less stress on the body than the constant pounding of jogging. You hear of shin splints, joint pain, and other injuries from running, but you rarely hear of someone getting hurt from walking too much.

Walking is just so easy too. There’s no need to change into special clothing, and no need to change back again after from becoming soaked with sweat. It’s really not necessary to work that hard while taking a leisurely hike or stroll around the block. 30 minutes walks several times a week can really make a difference in your overall health and well-being.

Strenuous exercise like jogging and aerobics can really get the heart racing and the blood pumping, which is beneficial to a point. However when the muscles work this hard they require lots of oxygen to keep going. A side effect of this type of workout is the production of lactic acid in your muscles. This acid is what causes your muscles to feel stiff and painful after a tough workout.

Walking, on the other hand, is an anaerobic exercise. It causes the heart to pump harder and causes more blood to flow, but it does not work the muscles as hard, so it doesn’t cause the body to produce as much lactic acid. You get the benefit of a boost to the circulatory system with a much less stressful effect on the body. Anaerobic exercise also helps to release stored body fat and send it on its way out of your body.

Because it is low stress on the body, anyone can enjoy the benefits of walking several times a week. People with many other ailments can still take up walking as an easy-on-the-body program of exercise. Walking with friends on a regular basis can be an enjoyable and fun way to stay in touch and keep up with the latest news and info.

An ideal way to approach a walking program is to treat it like any type of exercise. Start out slowly and let the body warm up for 10 or 15 minutes. Then pick up the pace and walk faster to get the heart pumping and the blood flow increasing for 20 to 30 minutes. A cool down period of slower walking for 5 or 10 minutes will round out the program.

Walking can be a very agreeable alternative to the crowded, expensive gym. We all need some exercise to be at our best health. Why not head outside for some fresh air and a nice stroll around the neighborhood? The price is right and the health benefits can be great.

See you on the trails!

About the Author

Ernie Reynolds is the webmaster of Mental Well-Being.com, a website dedicated to your health and happiness. Be sure to visit the Mental Well-Being Blog, as well for more inspiring and helpful articles and information.

Use and distribution of this article is subject to our Publisher Guidelines
whereby the original author’s information and copyright must be included.

Ernie Reynolds

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