Something as simple as walking can have myriad health benefits. There are many people who are in a fat loss process who have underestimated the act of walking. When we talk about walking we are talking about even a walk at a normal pace. It has more health benefits than you can imagine. Therefore, we are going to dedicate this article to mention the different benefits that you get from walking.
If you want to know the benefits of walking, keep reading this post.
Walking for fat loss
When we face a stage of fat loss, we have to prioritize generating an energy deficit in our day to day. The sum of calories that we ingest through food has to be less than the energy that we expend with our physical activity and our basal metabolism. For this, there are tools such as a low calorie diet and associated physical exercise. When we talk about physical exercise we are not referring to exercise with weights and cardiovascular exercise. However, walking does not fall into either of those two categories.
When we refer to a term known as NEAT, we are referring to physical activity that is not related to exercise. That is, on our daily basis, we walk to the store to buy, climb stairs, walk the dog, etc. These activities also help burn fat as they generate caloric expenditure over time. If we manage to increase this NEAT, we can generate a greater energy expenditure in our daily routine without the need for demanding physical activity such as cardiovascular exercise (running, jogging, elliptical, cycling, etc.)
Not only do we manage to increase energy expenditure by walking, but we also benefit from numerous advantages.
Benefits of walking
We are going to analyze one by one the benefits that walking gives us.
Reduces the risk of being hypertensive
There are people who suffer from blood pressure above normal levels and, if we walk frequently, it can help us reduce these blood pressure values.
Produces favorable effects on cholesterol
If we walk constantly day after day it will help us also reduce LDL cholesterol levels (also called bad cholesterol) by helping you also reduce your body weight and stress.
Helps in preventing the onset of diabetes
Those people who eat large amounts of sugar in their day to day and do not do any physical activity are more likely to suffer from diabetes. Therefore, a regular walk to which your body can process the chemical substances in your body faster and thus you can appear to be of this disease.
Improves sex life
Although it seems that there is no relationship between it, sex and exercise go hand in hand. There are several studies of women between 45 and 55 years of age who exercise more exercises, which include daily walks, they have reported that they have more sexual desire and more satisfaction.
Increase vitamin D levels
As we know, vitamin D can be incorporated through sun exposure. If we go for a walk during the day we can benefit from this exposure to the sun. We remember that vitamin D plays a fundamental role in many aspects of bone health and the immune system. Let's not forget that it is necessary to protect yourself from the sun's rays so that the skin is not damaged. However, a short-term daily exposure is usually sufficient to produce the vitamin D our bodies require.
We also infer vitamin D from food.
Helps lose weight
If we walk even 40-45 minutes in one go We can start burning fat 20-25 minutes after starting the walk. Walking at a moderate pace not only helps us burn stored fat but also helps us build muscle that serves to increase our metabolism.
Increasing the basal metabolism is beneficial to generate a greater energy expenditure for the simple fact of staying alive. If we have a higher energy expenditure at rest, we do not have to generate such a pronounced cut in the calories in our diet.
Avoid obesity and cellulite deposits
These are some of the problems that most attack today's society. We live in a global obesity pandemic and most women after a certain age have cellulite deposits associated with the accumulation of fluids and fat. If we walk hard and short several times a day we can have the same effect as an aerobic resistance session. In addition, it helps maintain body weight and balances metabolism.
Contributes to taking fewer medications
By just walking half an hour a day, many people suffer from depression and have managed to improve their mood. While you are walking you can reduce negative thoughts, reorder your ideas, organize your day to day, reduce anger and tension and, therefore, mental fatigue. There are studies that have shown that this exercise favors the results of antidepressant medications.
Improves circulation
Among the benefits of walking we have an improvement in the circulation of our extremities, especially the lower ones. This is how we prevent the appearance of varicose veins and keep all the organs of our body in good condition by having a good blood flow.
Tones legs, glutes and abs
Walking can help shape the legs by giving better definition to the calves, hamstrings, quadriceps and lifting the glute. If we also pay attention to the position while we are doing the walk, we can also tone the abs.
Walking is good for bone health
If we walk daily we will be stimulating and strengthening our bones, so we will increase bone density.
Fight breast cancer
Studies show that regular walks in women diagnosed with breast cancer they are 45% more likely to survive than those that are inactive.
Reduces the risk of developing colon cancer
This has been proven since walks help speed up digestion. This or prevents food that is not digested from accumulating and that the stool does not produce inflammation.
Strengthens the heart
By having a greater pumping of blood we can reduce heart disease and stroke by up to 27%.
I hope these tips have helped you to better understand the benefits of walking.