Why don’t you take a walk?
Publisher/Author
: Pacific Cross
Walking is one of the body’s most natural forms of exercise. It’s free and requires no prescription. Walking is simple – just one foot in front of the other. Step up and start today.
A diabetes prevention study showed that those who walked five times a week for 30 minutes, lost 3 to 7% of their body weight and reduced their risk of diabetes by 58%. Those over age 60 reduced their risk by 71%, a result unmatched by any other drug.
Walking is cheap mental and emotional therapy. Studies show time and again that regular exercise can relieve stress and depression.
Women who averaged more than 10,000 steps a day had only 26% body fat, well within the BMI recommended body range, while those who averaged fewer than 6,000 steps a day had 44% body fat.
Studies of men and women show that regular walking is related to lower risks of dementia and better thinking abilities as they age.
Walking for 30 minutes a day for 4 weeks can improve various health measures by 44%. If you walk at least 10,000 steps a day over the same period, your health measures improve by 76%.
Physically active employees take 27% less sick days than non-active employees.
Taking short, brisk-10 minute walks four times a day can reduce blood pressure for 11 hours. Taking a 40 minute continuous walk can keep it down for seven hours.
Research shows that walking can prevent catching a cold.
Studies have shown that individual work performance can be improved by 15% when people engage in regular physical activity.
Research says that if you walk regularly, you are saving $330 (around Php15,000) in health care costs every year. These costs include doctor visits, hospitalization and prescription drugs.
A study that assigned older adults to a walking group found that they were less distractible and could concentrate better.
Walking is also a way to keep your heart healthy by lowering low-density lipoprotein (LDL – L for lethal cholesterol) cholesterol and raising high-density cholesterol (HDL – H for healthy cholesterol).
As you get older, walking for physical fitness can prevent falls, help you stay mobile and maintain independence.
