Walking is the most underrated exercise. Doesn’t really fire you up does it? Nor does it conjure up images of super-fit people. Well, let us make a claim, a bold one, walking will benefit almost everyone. From a sedentary person who never exercises to hardcore lifters to CrossFit athletes. The only people who probably won’t benefit from extra walking are those who walk a significant amount as part of their employment. We are talking police/ law enforcement, postal workers and outdoor jobs like sport coaches in which case they need a higher intensity form of cardio. Sorry, but you having a “standing desk” at work does not count, you need to make a deliberate effort to walk daily.
Walking and General health
Leave aside building muscle and strength or performing better in your sport for a moment and think general health which is way more important. Walking is a required component of general health. In the modern world we have an unusual phenomenon called the “fit couch potato”. These are people who exercise intensely (say hit the gym hard 4 times a week) but are very inactive at other times. If their daily activities are tracked, it will reveal they get only 3000-4000 steps. Well short of the 10,000 steps needed for basic good health. This is not good and if you are one of them you need to fix it asap.
How much, when and what effort level should you start at, don’t overthink this one. Just start at ten mins (yes, 10 measly minutes!) and build up slowly. If you are totally inactive these ten mins a day will be the most valuable investment you make and will lay the foundation to begin a vigorous program of exercise down the road. If you are already exercising, then these few walks you do may just be the impetus you need to burn off some extra calories and take your calorie burn below your maintenance, so you begin to lose fat.
Other benefits of walking
For a hardcore bodybuilder, walking may be the best form of cardio to burn off fat while protecting muscle mass. For a power lifter or a person who pounds their body with heavy weights, walking might be the ideal recovery activity. Also, if you are heavy (whether muscular or not) walking presents the least stressful activity for calorie burn without loading the joints.
From a mental standpoint walking is a highly beneficial activity to de-stress. It is one of the recommended therapies for depression. Also, if you walk with a friend or a family member this is time well spent. You can even convert your walks to learning sessions by listening to podcasts or other educational material.
So there you go, commit to walking! Build up the duration as needed. Want to take walking to the next level? Read about Rucking.