Good Things That Happen When You Walk Every Day
Walking is something many do every day to get from one place to another. Actually, many may also not realize how healthy this practice is. The truth is that it’s one of the easiest and best exercises out there. It activates multiple physical and chemical processes in your body that help improve your health. When you walk, you strengthen your joints and bones. Plus, as if that weren’t enough, your metabolism is stimulated and you burn more calories. That’s why we recommend doing it every day for at least 30 minutes, especially when you’re not doing any other physical activity. Since many people are still inactive, bellow are few good things that happen to you when you walk every day.
Find out what they are!
#1 Boost your memory
Exercise is good for the brain but walking in specific is good for boosting your memory. A study showed how walking for 40 minutes at a stretch three times a week could increase the volume of the hippocampus by 2%, which is fairly significant. According to another research, regular brisk walks can slow down the shrinking of the brain and the faltering mental skills that old age often bring. The study was done with men and women between the ages of 60 and 80 and it concluded that taking a short walk three times a week increased the size of that part of the brain linked to planning and memory.
#2 Aids Weight Loss
Walking is a great exercise and helps you lose weight. American scientists designed an experiment where obese patients walked together (a concept known as the ‘walking bus’) to their destinations in and around the city. After 8 weeks, their weight was checked, and more than 50% of the participants lost an average of 5 pounds. Therefore, it might be a good idea to start walking to and from your nearby destinations, instead of driving your car.
#3 Your mood will improve
You know how sometimes it takes a glass of wine or a square (or three) of dark chocolate to blunt the edge of a rough day? Well, going for a walk is a zero-calorie strategy with the same benefit. Research shows that regular walking actually modifies your nervous system so much that you'll experience a decrease in anger and hostility. What's more, when you make your walks social—you stride with, say, your partner, a neighbor, or a good friend—that interaction helps you feel connected, which boosts mood.
Finally, walking outdoors exposes you to natural sunlight, which can help stave off Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)—making it a potential antidote for the winter blues. Burn calories and build muscle—all while boosting your mood.
#4 Improves Circulation
As you already may or may not know, lack of good circulation in your body can lead to life threatening diseases such as Atherosclerosis and Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD). But what if I told you that walking can help reduce your chances of getting such diseases? As we walk, blood carries oxygen to our muscles, and your muscles learn to use oxygen more efficiently, which leads to better and stronger blood flow all throughout your body.
#5 Reduced Risk Of Disease
An active lifestyle will help reduce the risk of high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, colon and breast cancers. It also reduces your risk of falling ill. This is one of the top benefits of walking daily.
#6 It supports good bone health
Your bones get a lot out of your daily walk. This activity strengthens your bones, preventing density loss, the main cause of osteoporosis. Plus, it lowers inflammation in your tissues, keeping chronic disorders like osteoarthritis away. If you walk outside during the day, your vitamin D levels will go up thanks to the sun exposure, and therefore you body will synthesize calcium better.
#7 Boosts Your Metabolism
Walking increases your demand for energy which results in an increase in your metabolism. Brisk walking uphill or walking moderately for an extended duration of one hour are ways you can rev up your metabolism when walking.
#8 Increases Lung Capacity
Walking can also increase your lung capacity. When you walk, you breathe in more oxygen as compared to when you are stationary. This exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide at a larger volume can help increase your lung capacity, thereby increasing your stamina and exercise performance. The best part is, you don’t even have to run. A medium-paced 60-minute walk (with breaks, of course!) can do the trick.
#9 Strengthens your muscles
It tones your leg and abdominal muscles – and even arm muscles if you pump them as you walk. This increases your range of motion, shifting the pressure and weight from your joints and muscles – which are meant to handle weight – helping to lessen arthritis pain.
#10 Improves Your Creativity
As per a study published, going for a walk improves creativity. Hence, if you feel stuck at work or if you are not able to find a solution for something, take a break and go for a walk and return.
#11 Good Sleep
A brisk walk early in the morning can bring to you a good sleep easily. In reality, physical activity during the day can help people sleep better and deeper at night, the same logic is true here. When walking, you tire your own body out and thus, sleep might come easily when hitting the hay at night. Besides, this can regulate your sleep cycle because you wake up at the same time daily. According to studies, doing exercise in the morning can help people have 75% more time in deep sleep than exercise done in the later in the day.
#12 Boost Immune System
Evidences points out some benefits of walking on immunity. Concretely, a 30-minute walk can help increase killer T-cells and other protectors of the immune function. Moreover, among elderly, daily steps correlate with the safeguarded mucosal immunity. Finally, for post-menopausal women who follow a walking plan, the deleterious immune influences related to menopause are ameliorated.
