If you need to lose weight, walking is one of the easiest exercises you can do, and it's also one of the most effective when it comes to weight loss. If you're sedentary, it's a very easy way to begin an excise program, too, according to Shirley Archer, who is a health educator and fitness expert from California.
Walking helps you lose inches and pounds, of course, but also gives you a psychological boost. Let's take Jim Wilson, for example. A financial adviser from Arkansas, Wilson lost 50 pounds just by walking, over the course of six months. He says that as his excess weight came off, and as he kept walking, his self-esteem rose significantly. He also sleeps much better and feels healthier, too.
Even if you simply want to walk to lose weight, you'll also gain medical benefits that can't be disputed if you walk. In fact, it's cardiovascular exercise that can help you reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke, and other injury. It lowers your cholesterol and blood pressure, improves your heart's function, and can tone your muscles all over your body.
If you need to walk for weight loss, don't make it a chore; and if you're just starting out, don't be drastic about it, either. Doing just a little can make all the difference in the world. Start small. Walk to work. If your office is too far away to do that, take the car but then park about 15 minutes away from the building and walk the rest of the way. Simply walking the 15 minutes to and from your car gives you a total of 30 minutes a day in walking.
At work, take the stairs instead of the elevator. If you can't manage three or four flights of stairs, take the elevator to one floor below where you have to be, and walk one flight of stairs. As you become better conditioned, take the stairs two at a time. This will help you burn calories off (yes, those for lunch, too), and you'll burn more at the same time and keep your weight loss going. And don't send an e-mail to a colleague in the same office building. At least a couple of times a day, pop over and tell him or her in person. Don't pick up the phone unless you absolutely must; instead, walk over and say what you need to same person. This gives you a chance to get up and away from your desk for a little bit and gives you a little bit of exercise, and it also gives you a good mental health break that will give you an emotional boost.
As you continue, if things are getting boring, try something new. Remember, exercise should be fun. So if you find your walk becoming a bore, ask a friend to come with you and then have a good conversation with each other as you walk. Not only do you have a chance to talk to each other, but it helps you pace yourself because if you can talk while you walk, you know you're not going too fast. This makes exercising more effective and keeps you going, too.
Or, if you walk alone, listen to music while you do so. Pick something with a good walking beat and pop your headphones in, then get up and get moving so that you get energized. Even if weight loss is your actual goal, walking is also a good way to spend time with yourself alone, and it's enjoyable to boot.
Again, walking should always be fun. To change things up a little bit, plan a route that's going to end somewhere you want to be. Go visit a friend, go shopping at your favorite grocery store, or visit your favorite park. Change your route out every day, and make the destination its own reward. If you don't want to go to the park, you can pick up a few groceries as you need to, or you can see the next big movie that's out at your local movie theater. Of course, you're scheduling this walk with your weight loss goal in mind. When you reach your goal, you can give yourself an extra special treat for all you've accomplished.
Walking helps you lose inches and pounds, of course, but also gives you a psychological boost. Let's take Jim Wilson, for example. A financial adviser from Arkansas, Wilson lost 50 pounds just by walking, over the course of six months. He says that as his excess weight came off, and as he kept walking, his self-esteem rose significantly. He also sleeps much better and feels healthier, too.
Even if you simply want to walk to lose weight, you'll also gain medical benefits that can't be disputed if you walk. In fact, it's cardiovascular exercise that can help you reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke, and other injury. It lowers your cholesterol and blood pressure, improves your heart's function, and can tone your muscles all over your body.
If you need to walk for weight loss, don't make it a chore; and if you're just starting out, don't be drastic about it, either. Doing just a little can make all the difference in the world. Start small. Walk to work. If your office is too far away to do that, take the car but then park about 15 minutes away from the building and walk the rest of the way. Simply walking the 15 minutes to and from your car gives you a total of 30 minutes a day in walking.
At work, take the stairs instead of the elevator. If you can't manage three or four flights of stairs, take the elevator to one floor below where you have to be, and walk one flight of stairs. As you become better conditioned, take the stairs two at a time. This will help you burn calories off (yes, those for lunch, too), and you'll burn more at the same time and keep your weight loss going. And don't send an e-mail to a colleague in the same office building. At least a couple of times a day, pop over and tell him or her in person. Don't pick up the phone unless you absolutely must; instead, walk over and say what you need to same person. This gives you a chance to get up and away from your desk for a little bit and gives you a little bit of exercise, and it also gives you a good mental health break that will give you an emotional boost.
As you continue, if things are getting boring, try something new. Remember, exercise should be fun. So if you find your walk becoming a bore, ask a friend to come with you and then have a good conversation with each other as you walk. Not only do you have a chance to talk to each other, but it helps you pace yourself because if you can talk while you walk, you know you're not going too fast. This makes exercising more effective and keeps you going, too.
Or, if you walk alone, listen to music while you do so. Pick something with a good walking beat and pop your headphones in, then get up and get moving so that you get energized. Even if weight loss is your actual goal, walking is also a good way to spend time with yourself alone, and it's enjoyable to boot.
Again, walking should always be fun. To change things up a little bit, plan a route that's going to end somewhere you want to be. Go visit a friend, go shopping at your favorite grocery store, or visit your favorite park. Change your route out every day, and make the destination its own reward. If you don't want to go to the park, you can pick up a few groceries as you need to, or you can see the next big movie that's out at your local movie theater. Of course, you're scheduling this walk with your weight loss goal in mind. When you reach your goal, you can give yourself an extra special treat for all you've accomplished.
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Author JohnGG can help you find your perfect weight. Take the free Weight Loss Survey and get his free report and .mp3 'The 4 Esssential Factors for Weight Loss' plus Weight Loss Tips.
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