Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Excellent exercise for the summer! Brisk walk!













Is Walking as Good a Workout as Running? 

Brisk walk is the best way to go based on some studies.

Health > Exercise | By CGI Holistic Wellness Center

It is getting really hot here in Jersey. After having my lunch, I usually drive to a nearby coffee shop to grab a cup of coffee. Last Friday, however, I just could not get in my car because it was like a sauna. I turned on the car just to check the temperature. It was 93 degrees. So I got out of the car and decided to walk to the coffee place. The distance to the coffee place is about 10 minutes on foot. As I returned to work from my coffee trip, somehow I felt strangely refreshed. I got little curious if the walk really made me feel better so I took some time to find out some health benefits of walking exercise and was quite astonished. If I list a few, these are the benefits you can reap by walking about 30 minutes a day.

  • Strengthens your heart by lowering bad cholesterol level and increasing good cholesterol level
  • Lowers the risk of diabetes, asthma and some cancer
  • Burns calories (Keep you in shape)
  • Strengthens your legs
  • Increases vitamin D levels in your body (Due to exposure to the Sun light while walking)
  • Makes you feel pleasant

I also found many articles about how walking is better than running. While running may be more effective in burning calories, you may put high pressure on your keens and joints and have a greater chance to hurt your feet. One article says brisk walk is the best way to go based on some studies. 

Pick up your pace if you feel strong and want to maximize the health benefits. If you walk too slowly, it diminishes them. Make sure you warm up your body, do stretches and wear comfortable running shoes to reduce the risk of injury.     

Little Side Story
One of my co-workers bought a new phone that has an app for fitness and one of its features is to measure the total steps you’ve taken and calculate how much calories you have burned by walking. According to this app, for taking about 10,000 steps, you can burn little over 500 calories. The number changes depending on your speed and weight. If 10,000 are too much, start with 5000 steps. If  you walk about half an hour a day and move around while you are at work, I think you can achieve this number burning about 250 calories a day. 

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