Stride out slowly to improve your health
It may be simple, but walking is one of the best – and cheapest – ways to boost mental and physical health. finds six reasons why
Hippocrates once famously said that walking is “man’s best medicine” – and he had a point. When it comes to exercise, going for a walk doesn’t often come top of the list. Trendier workouts such as yoga, HIIT and boxing might get a lot more attention, but walking is secretly one of the most underrated forms of exercise going. It’s great for burning off steam, reducing stress and finding mental clarity, and getting your blood pumping to give your health a boost.
With so many beautiful destinations on our doorstep too, you can save money on expensive gym classes by exploring the UK on foot. We talked to some experts about why walking is worthy of a top spot on your spring fitness agenda.
Better mental health
Around one in four people in the UK will experience a mental health problem each year, and with anxiety and depression on the rise among adults and children, a daily walk is a really good way for the whole family to practice some mental self-care.
“Studies have indicated that exercise releases endorphins, feelgood hormones that can improve your mood, reduce stress levels and encourage emotional and mental satisfaction,” says Dr Luke Powles from Bupa UK (bupa.co.uk).
As well as getting that all-important boost of “happy hormones”, getting out into some greenery is good for the mind. “Research also shows that walking outside in nature can positively impact your mood,” says Powles. “In fact, a 50-minute walk has been found to decrease feelings of anxiety and worry in adults.”
It can be good for combating loneliness too. “A big motivation for joining our walking groups – we have over 500 groups across the UK who often do several walks
a week – is the social aspect of it,” says Tompion Platt, director of advocacy and engagement at Ramblers (ramblers.org.uk). “There’s something about walking in a group that allows you to have really easy flow of conversation. Often, those groups end in a pub or a lunch, so meeting people is a huge part of it – alongside being physically active.”
It can boost creativity
If you regularly find yourself staring at a blank document, shut your laptop, put on your trainers, and make like Steve Jobs. The late Apple founder was known to take power walks to stimulate creative thinking.
“I go for a walk at lunchtime when I’m at work, and that’s really where I get the time to think about things,” says Platt. “Ideas suddenly come into my head.”
Platt, 37, has been rambling since he was a young boy near the Peak District, and says he gets a “real sense of wellbeing” by being outdoors.
“There’s lots of research to back this theory up, but I personally find that if I’m sitting at a desk all day, or at meetings, it’s often when I go for a walk that I have the best ideas. It allows my mind to free up a bit.”
It’s good for weight loss
“Regular brisk walking – fast enough to raise your heart rate, leaving you warm and slightly breathless – is classed as an aerobic exercise,” says Powles. This means it burns calories, can help you to lose weight, and improves your fitness levels.
Depending on your weight, Powles says that a brisk 30-minute walk, at a speed of around four miles per hour, could burn around 150 calories. And if you’re short on time? “To make 30 minutes of walking even more achievable throughout your day, you could break up the session into tenminute chunks,” he adds.
It puts you into the slow lane
Walking is the ultimate LISS (lowintensity steady state cardio) activity. It’s the opposite to all-out HIIT, the current fitness industry buzzword – but that doesn’t mean it won’t offer benefits, says Third Space trainer Luke Worthington (Thirdspace. london).
An example of a HIIT workout would be a 25-minute cardio class with very little rest time, while walking for two hours would fall under the LISS category. “Highintensity exercise is very timeefficient,” explains Worthington. “LISS is just as effective as a fuelburner as HIIT though, and it’s far less stressful on mind and body.”
If you’re feeling stressed and overwhelmed, he believes that the