Are you one of those people who wonder why all means of losing the excess flab on your body is so expensive, rigorous, inconvenient or painful? Well, there is a very easy means through which you can lose weight fast – and it is through regular walking!
Walking is a low-impact activity that we have been engaged in since the time we learned to walk. It requires no expensive gadgets or trips to the gym, just a pair of comfortable walking shoes and that’s it! Walking, as an exercise is particularly good for people who are 40 plus, because it exerts the least amount of stress on your muscles and inflicts almost no injuries to your muscles, joints, bones or ligaments.
Brisk walk for about 40 minutes a day has been proved to prevent the onset of diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, etc. It also helps to lose and control weight. It strengthens the muscles and bones and is therefore very important therapy for arthritis and osteoporosis. It improves the general level of fitness and flexibility of muscles, in addition to improving the blood circulation in the body. It regulates the blood sugar levels and aids in improving the cardiovascular functioning. It also aids in toning up the upper and lower body muscles. Walking also helps to lower the blood pressure and reduces your cholesterol levels.
You must do walking first thing in the morning or right before your dinner. You must walk at your target heart rate for about 40 minutes on at least 3 days in a week for optimum weight loss results. Always remember to warm up (by walking at a slow pace for about 5 – 10 minutes), followed by stretch and cool down (by walking at a slow pace for another 5 – 10 minutes). You must maintain the correct form while walking. Keep the back straight and tuck in your stomach tightly while pumping your arms back and forth throughout the walking session.
Slight alterations in walking as an exercise include weight-walking and power walking. If you can manage to hold light weights in your hands and hold your hands high up and continue to walk this way, then it will be all the more beneficial for weight loss. This technique is known as weight-walking. However, it can place extra stress on your hips.