Benefits from Walking 20 Minutes a Day

"The Closest Thing We Have to a Wonder Drug."

Those words are from Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He's talking about walking. Walking has many benefits, and some include the following.

The Amount of Daily Walking Can Predict Your Energy Levels and Mood

The more steps you take every day, the better your mood. Just like any other exercise, walking releases natural pain­killing endorphins to the body. This was shown in a study by a California State University, Long Beach.

Here's the direct link to the view the .rtf document:
http://www.csulb.edu/~psych/deptinfo/faculty/thayer/APA2005WashingtonDC.rtf

Walking for a Better Night's Sleep

Women from the ages of 50 to 75 who walk one hour per day are more likely to relieve insomnia than women who don’t, concluded by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. (I’m a 40 year old male, and I’ve always had improved sleep by going on my one hour nightly walk.)

Here's the link to the study:
https://www.fredhutch.org/en/news/center-news/2003/12/morning-exercise.html

Walking Cuts Chocolate Consumption in Half

The latest research confirms walking reduces craving for a variety of sugary snacks. According to studies from the University of Exeter a 15 minute walk can prevent cravings for chocolate; even reduce the amount of chocolate eaten in stressful situations. Makes sense, the better the body functions, the less it craves unnatural and processed sugars.

Check out the study:
http://www.exeter.ac.uk/news/research/title_171423_en.html

Weight Loss Benefits

A 30 minute walk will burn about 200 calories, over time this adds up, leading to pounds dropped. Be patient if you’re trying to lose weight, it can take months depending on what your goal is, there's 3,500 calories in one pound of fat.

Walking Assists with Joint Health

Joint cartilage gets its nutrition from synovial or joint fluid that circulates as we move, or walk. The cartilage “squishes” bringing oxygen and nutrients into the area, if movement is lacking the joints become deprived and deterioration speeds up.

Walking Reduces the Risk of Premature Death

Between 1992 and 2000, Cambridge University researchers measured the height, weight and waist circumference of over 334,000 European men and women. Self-assessment was used to measure levels of physical activity, and participants were tracked for 12 years, during which 21,438 died.

The greatest reduction in risk of premature death occurred between the inactive and moderately inactive groups, judged by combining work and recreational activity. It is estimated that the exercise equivalent to a 20 minute brisk walk (burning between 90 and 110 kcal) each day reduces someone’s risk of premature death, by 16% to 30%.

It’s also estimated that 337,000 of 9.2 million deaths amongst European men and women were caused by obesity (a BMI greater than 30), and 676,000 were the result of physical inactivity.

You can view the study here:
http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/lack-of-exercise-responsible-for-twice-as-many-deaths-as-obesity

Walking Speeds Your Breathing

Walking increases breathing, causing oxygen to travel faster through the bloodstream. This helps eliminate waste from the body, improves energy levels, and the ability to heal.

Walking Gives an Immunity Boost

One study of over 1,000 participants revealed that those walking 20 minutes a day, 5 times a week had 43% fewer sick days than those who exercised only once per week or less. If the walkers did get sick their symptoms were milder, and it was for a shorter duration.

View the reference:
https://jonbarron.org/article/walk-away-colds

Walking is Great for Circulation

According to researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston women who walk 30 minutes a day decrease their risk of stroke by 20%, if they increase their pace it becomes 40%. Not only that, studies from the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Tennessee found that post-menopausal women who walked one to two miles a day lowered their blood pressure by nearly 11 points in 24 weeks.

Reference: http://preventdisease.com/news/articles/walking_2_miles_lowers_bp.shtml

Walking Leads to a Longer Life

People who walk in their fifties and sixties are 35% less likely to die over the next eight years than their non-walking counterparts. That number goes up to 45% less likely for those who have underlying health conditions.

You can check the reference out here.

Have you been for your daily walk?