FITNESS-BENEFITS OF WALKING

Walking is the most natural way to go from one place to another. It's no surprise  that it also comes packed with benefits. Let's take a look at some of them.

One of the major reason why people take to walking these days is weight management. Walking coupled with healthy eating habits is the best long-term solution to weight control. Keeping those kilos away prevents the onset of a lot of harmful diseases.

Blood pressure is controlled by walking. Physical activities in general strengthens the heart muscles to enable it to pump in more blood with less effort while pressure in the arteries is kept low. So walk to keep you blood pressure at bay!

According to a study chances of a stroke is reduced by walking briskly for an hour a day for five days in a week.

Reducing the risk of a heart attack is another health benefit of walking. Walking for an hour a day helps do just this.

Physical activity helps lower bad cholesterol levels in the blood which causes plaque buildup along the artery walls and results in a heart attack.


According to a study published by Harvard, The need for gallstone surgery is reduced by 20-30%, in people who go for walking

It is a good mood booster and helps reduce anxiety and depression.

Risk of breast cancer is reduced by going for regular walks according to a study.

Wear the right shoes
Another study claims that walking reduces chances of type 2 diabetes when coupledwith a lower fatty food intake.

Walking regularly also strengthens hips thereby helping to protect against hip fracture.

Walking barefoot on grass is also said to do a world of good. It strengthens the toes and feet and for people with flat feet, this is said to be an effective remedy.

For those of you who believe that running is a better option than walking for losing the calories - News Flash! Running is a faster way to burn calories, but if you're willing to spend the extra time walking the same amount of miles as you run, you should lose the same amount of weight. Walking is also a better option for those with weak joints as running is hard on the knees and ankles.

Apart from these benefits, walking also helps to relieve pains for arthritic patients and is good to keep away back pains.

It also helps improve the quality of sleep.

It helps against osteoporosis and colon cancer.

Walking is also said to cure constipation and impotence. All these health benefits lead to longevity.Your days and nights are bound to get better. Have a good day!

Raghu Natrajan