Taking steps to stay healthy
“Walking is man's best medicine.” — Hippocrates
“The sum of the whole is this: walk and be happy, walk and be healthy.” — Charles Dickens
“Walking is the best possible exercise. Habituate yourself to walk very far.” — Thomas Jefferson
It would be a bit of an understatement to say that I like to walk; it would be closer to the truth to say that I'm addicted to walking.
Walking is arguably the finest form of exercise. Unlike jogging or running, it's easy on your joints, and unlike bicycling or sports, it doesn't require any special equipment, or skills, or a partner. It doesn't even require much space, and almost anyone can do it: during the Covid lockdown, a 99-year-old British veteran raised $39 million for charity by doing 100 laps in his 82-foot garden.
Years ago, I heard that walking 10,000 steps a day was a good objective. Since my smartphone has a built-in app that counts my steps, and since I carry it everywhere I go, it's easy to track my daily step count. At some point, I have to admit that 10,000 steps may have gone from being a healthy objective to an unhealthy obsession: as of the date this column is published, I will have walked for at least 10,000 steps every day for 846 days in a row. (Over that span, I have averaged almost 15,000 steps per day.)
Time-wise, walking 10,000 steps takes at least 90 minutes, and distance-wise, it's about 4 miles, or roughly from Canyon Oaks to the City Plaza, or from Trader Joe's to Costco. Neither rain nor heat, nor international flights, allday car rides, holidays, injuries, or illnesses have stayed me from the completion of my appointed rounds. When I'm home, I usually get my steps in by either golfing, picking up trash in Bidwell Park, or walking around my neighborhood. Traveling presents more of a challenge, often requiring me to do laps in airport terminals, pace back and forth in hotel rooms or hallways, or to take early morning or late night walks around unfamiliar neighborhoods.
And yes, sometimes it feels like a chore to get up and walk for an hour and a half, when it's so much easier to just sit on the couch and watch TV. But never once have I come back from a walk with any regrets … well, except for that time I got attacked by a pit pull and had to get rabies shots.
In addition to its physical benefits, walking lets you exercise your mental muscles as well. I like to write poems and stories for my grandkids, and most of them have been composed while I'm out for a stroll … it's hard to keep your mind from wandering when your body is busy doing the same thing.
If it were available in pill form, walking would be considered a miracle drug. According to the Mayo Clinic, taking regular walks improves your mood, cognition, memory, sleep, stamina, balance, and coordination, strengthens your immune system, and reduces stress and tension. Heck, it can even improve your sex life!
And of course, walking is great for weight control: taking 10,000 steps daily burns about 400 calories, or about a pound per week. At that rate, I would weigh 50 pounds more every year if I'd maintained my caloric intake but chosen to sit instead of walk for those 90 minutes each day. Conversely, if I walked 10,000 steps daily but didn't consume an “extra” 400 calories daily, I would lose 50 pounds per year, which means I would vanish completely in a little over 3 years. Fortunately, and serendipitously, a couple of craft beers per day happen to amount to about 400 calories, so I have achieved happy equilibrium.
I know many people aren't able to devote the time and effort required to walk 10,000 steps a day, and that's fine. It's definitely easier for a retired empty-nester like me than for someone who's still working full-time or has kids to take care of at home. But everyone can resolve to walk a little more. We live in a beautiful place, and there's no better way to appreciate it than to be outdoors.
And if you don't believe me, I cordially invite you to go take a hike.