Health And Fitness Tips

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It’s as simple as putting your best foot forward. Fitness walking, one of the hottest and most popular exercises, doesn’t only help you shed pounds and inches, but it can also help you maintain your desired fitness level. Walking can be done indoors on the treadmill or outdoor. But if you make a firm and lasting commitment, walking as an exercise can help you improve your fitness level and have you feeling fabulous in no time.

Fitness specialists say that walking is a simple aerobic conditioning exercise with several physical benefits. With so many people overweight and leading a sedentary lifestyles, especially children.

Walking – which requires little more than a decent pair of walking or running shoes – increases your heart’s efficiency, lowers your blood pressure, improves your lung capacity and helps to relieve stress, research has shown that this is true.

Walking is also a low-impact activity that does not stress your joints, knees and shins. In general, walking is a good cardiovascular workout and at the same time, you are toning and building muscles – some fitness trainers have known this for a long time.

What many people don’t realize is that walking strengthens and tones your leg muscles and builds arm muscles – particularly if you carry small dumbbells in each hand as use proper form.

It is important not to overlook preparations for walking just as with any other sport or fitness activity, it’s important to warm up and stretch and cool down after your workout. Leaving out those essential steps could mean the difference between nursing injury and continuing with your program. Many walkers tend to overdo it – especially when they first began to exercise. Make sure that your stride is short and quick, and that your shoes offer comfort as well as support. Once you’ve set your course and have become comfortable with your new regimen, it may be time to vary your routine. Consider consulting with a personal trainer.

It is best to walk on an incline or on a hiking trail, which is a bit more difficult than flat city streets. In addition, if you use a treadmill, the latest models have adjustable inclines and walking speeds. One drawback to fitness walking is the fact that it is not as active as other exercises or sports, and some may think it is too boring. One way to get around that potential stumbling block is to walk with friends, family or your significant other. Some walkers form exercise groups that meet each morning to walk together, and many shopping malls open early for mall walkers in Lagos and Abuja.

You can make it a family affair. If you have a dog, take the dog for a walk so both of you can get moving. If you are the mother or father of a young child, you can burn calories by walking with a stroller. Walking is the simplest and perhaps the most effective exercise that anyone can do. Despite what thought to be its boring aspects, with little effort and ingenuity, it can be entertaining as well as life-enhancing.

Tips for walking it off

• Setting a brisk pace is best, research shows you should be able to carry on a conversation, but monitor your breathing and heart rate to make sure they have increased.
• Walk for at least 20 minutes, 3 to 6 day a week, but start slowly and build up a faster pace with longer walks. If you are not ready to time yourself, set distance as your goal.
• Walking, when balanced with wise food choices, can really lead to a difference in your weight and shape, although the change are gradual.
• There are practical ways to get your walking exercise, even when can’t have a “formal” workout session. For instance, you can decide to trek for shopping instead of using a taxi; go for a parking space that’s farther away, rather than the one that’s closest(make sure it’s in a safe environment), set a brisk space while window shopping.
• To maximize your workout, you’ve got to have the right technique and walking form with your posture. Keep your head up and centered between your shoulders and keep your shoulders back and down. Lift your chest and tighten your abdominal muscles. You may also like: fruits and food that slows the process of aging