Is walking beneficial?

walking

Physical activity doesn’t need to be complicated. Something as simple as a daily brisk walk can help you live a healthier life which should not be hard as a student at Penn State.

There are many different benefits to taking a regular walk. One benefit is it helps you maintain a healthy weight. If you add 30 minutes of brisk walking to your daily routine, you could burn about 150 more calories a day. However the more you walk and the quicker you pace yourself, the more calories you will burn. It can also prevent or manage various conditions including heart disease, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes.

Walking also can strengthen your bones, lift your mood, and improve your balance and coordination. Walking can lift your mood because it brings you a sense of peace. When walking you usually admire the scenery around you and just relax, this allows the brain to relax and enter a state of contemplation, which helps restore cognitive capacities.

Taking a normal walk is beneficial but if you turn your walk into a fitness stride the benefits are even greater. You can do this by thinking about your walking technique. The best way to walk is with your head up looking forward, stomach muscles tightened, back straight, and your arms swinging freely with a slight bend in your elbows. Also your neck, shoulders, and back should be relaxed and not stiffly upright.

Remember when going on a walk make sure you are wearing shoes with proper arch support, a firm heel, and thick flexible soles to cushion your feet. Proper footwear can help you from preventing injury. Also it is beneficial to stretch and do a warm up walk then after, do a cool down walk to relax your body.

As Penn State students we do a ton of walking each day all over campus so if you think about it you actually are exercising every day. I know that I do well over an hour of walking each day to and from classes and I have seen some definite benefits from it. When I got a concussion at the beginning of the year I was not cleared to workout for a couple months so the walking I did to class everyday was my form of exercise. To me its not as fulfilling as going to the gym, running on the treadmill, or using the elliptical, but it kept me some what active during that period of time. Also walking around campus takes my mind off of things. If I am stressed over a huge test or feeling over whelmed about all of my work, taking a walking, even if it is just to class, helps me relieve some stress and gets me to just relax.

So if some day you don’t have time to go to the gym, are feeling kind of overwhelmed, or just want to get more of a workout in, don’t take the bus to class. Enjoy a nice walk through campus and take in all the benefits it has to offer.

1 Comment on Is walking beneficial?

  1. akb5429
    March 7, 2015 at 3:03 pm (9 years ago)

    Marisa, I personally love walking, even when it’s cold! I know people who take the bus almost everywhere and I think that they are truly missing out. On top of it being a great way to exercise that people often overlook, I find that the fresh air can have a positive effect as well. I like that you included a personal experience and how walking helped your condition. I love reading your posts, keep up the great work!

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