It’s the easiest workout you can do, but it does not make it any less effective. Going for a daily walk – even if it’s as short as 20 minutes – offers a number of benefits that affect your mind, your heart, your muscles and ultimately your longevity. After all, as doctor Robert Sallis, physician and sports medicine with Kaiser Permanente, explained to Consumer reports: “Walking is the most studied form of training, and several studies have shown that it is the best thing we can do to improve our overall health and increase our longevity and functional years. “
Not sold yet? Read on, because here are just a few of the things that happen to your body when you choose to take a 20-minute walk every day. (Remember: To maximize health benefits, make it one brisk And for more knowledge that will help you make the most of your walk, make sure you avoid the big mistakes you should not make when walking, experts say.
A brisk 20-minute walk should take you about a mile and require you to walk somewhere between 2,000 and 3,000 steps, resulting in a calorie burn of about 90 to 110 calories. (Every walk, know that you are essentially burning the equivalent of a bag of Lay’s potato chips!) By making sure you walk fast, your heart will kick in gear to increase your blood flow to your muscles, and you ‘I maximize your calorie burn. Over time, the resulting benefits will include better cardiovascular health, better cholesterol and blood pressure levels, and less inflammation. And for More reasons why you should walk more every day, make sure you are aware of the big side effect of sitting too much on the couch, says new study.
A large study published in 2015 American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that a brisk 20-minute walk each day could reduce the risk of death by up to 30%. Among the participants in the study, those who lived otherwise sedentary lives and simply assumed a short daily walk most dramatic benefit for all groups studied. “The greatest reductions in the mortality risk of all causes were observed between the inactive and the moderately inactive groups above levels of general and abdominal obesity,” the researchers conclude, “suggesting that efforts to encourage even small increases in activity in inactive individuals may be for public health benefits. . “
In other words, simply getting off the couch for a short walk has a huge impact on your longevity. And do not forget that Sign up for our newsletter to have the latest wellness news delivered directly to your inbox!
According to research by the University of Georgia and published in the journal Psychotherapy and psychosomaticsGoing for a 20-minute walk just three days a week for six weeks can result in 20% more energy levels and less feeling of fatigue.
A new study published in the journal Scientific reports says you should go for increased creativity. What’s more, the more you go, the more More you become creative. “The most active of the volunteers also turned out to be the most creative, especially if they often walked or otherwise trained moderately,” explained The New York Times. Bonus: The study also noted that the more active you are, the more likely you are to be a happier person overall. Win win!
You have to walk further on foot to take full advantage of this, but according to a larger study from 2011 of 7,740 women and 4,564 men, a research team led by the Department of Nutrition at Harvard’s School of Public Health found that “a brisk one-hour daily walk” can actually reduce the body’s genetic “influence on obesity.”
The study showed that sitting and watching TV for up to two hours every day actually exacerbated the effects of your obesity-relevant genes by up to a quarter. However, an hour on foot provides the equivalent of turning off these genes. And for better fitness advice, make sure you know the most effective way to exercise every day, say psychologists.
