Walking
 

TheActiveTimes.com

Just put one foot in front of the other, bend your arms and start moving.

Regular walking has incredible benefits on your health and wellbeing -- and the good news ... we obtain these benefits every day. According to the Mayo Clinic, regular brisk walking can help you maintain a healthy weight, prevent or manage various conditions, including heart disease and high blood pressure, strengthen your bones and muscles, improve your mood, and improve your balance and coordination.

There are a number of ways to add more walking into your day. Try taking the stairs instead of the elevator, pace around while talking on the telephone, leave the office and go for a brisk walk during your lunch break, or get off of your bus/train stop a station earlier and walk the rest of the way.

Improve your circulation, enhance your mood, lower your risk for Alzheimer’s disease and live a longer, healthier life just by walking.

How Walking Really Helps Your Body

 

You Burn Fat

Excess body fat is very dangerous to your health. Walking can actually help you burn more fat, it boosts your metabolism and heart rate. According to research, "if you walk to lose belly fat, you need to walk at a steady speed fast enough so your heart beats faster and causing you to breathe harder and deeper. The only way to lose body fat, especially belly fat, is by burning more calories than you consume."

 

Boosts Your Metabolism

Walking increases your demand for energy which results in an increase in your metabolism. Live Strong explains: "Brisk walking uphill or walking moderately for an extended duration of one hour are ways you can rev up your metabolism when walking."

 

Stronger Legs

Walking builds strength and endurance. This leads to stronger legs, especially stronger calves and hamstrings. For the ultimate leg workout, try walking hills, climbing stairs and walking on more challenging terrain.

 

Helps Digestion

Taking a walk after dinner helps with digestion. It stimulates your digestive track making it easy for your food to be digested. According to LifeHacker, "two different studies have shown that a post-meal walk can aid in digestion. One study in 2008 showed that walking sped the rate at which food moved through the stomach. Other studies have shown that walking also decreases blood sugar after meals, which decreases cardiovascular risk and potential signal diabetes."

 

Vitamin D

Go for a walk outside (The Most Surprising Sources of Vitamin D) and absorb all of the Vitamin D you can. According to research, "our body creates most of our vitamin D from direct sunlight on our skin." It is essential for healthy bones and teeth.

 

Mental Clarity

Walking has incredible stress and anxiety relief benefits. It has been proven that taking a walk could actually direct your brain into a calmer state of mind. Research has shown that "walking briskly or jogging really does calm you down by sparking nerve cells in the brain that relax the senses."

 

Better Mood

Walking boosts endorphins, which puts you in a better mood. According to a recent study, "employees who took a 30-minute walk at lunchtime felt more enthusiastic and more relaxed in the afternoon than those who didn't trek outdoors." Walking also promotes a positive mood and wellbeing.

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For the complete list of 10 Things That Happen To Your Body When You Walk, go to TheActiveTimes.com.

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