The UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, in their May 2008 edition, offers the following advice to get more out of your walking workout:

• Walk briskly for at least a half an hour every day, or one hour four times a week.
• Walk as much as possible. Skip elevators and escalators and take the stairs. Leave the car at home if you can walk to a friend’s house.
• Use a pedometer for motivation. Aim for 3,000 steps a day, then work up to at least 10,000 (about 5 miles for the average stride).
• If you want to go faster, instead of taking longer steps, take faster steps.
• Swing your arms. This can burn 5 to 10% more calories.
• Add some interval training. Speed up for a minute or two every five minutes.
• Walk up and down hills to build stamina and burn more calories.
• Choose varied terrains. Walking on grass or gravel burns more calories.
• Try a walking stick or poles to enhance your upper-body workout.
• Use hand weights, carefully. They can boost your caloric expenditure, but may alter your motion and lead to muscle soreness or even injury. Start with one pound weights.
• Try backward walking. Even at a slow pace, it provides fairly intense training. Be careful when going backwards outdoors; a deserted track is ideal. For added safety, go with a forward-walking partner.
• Choose the right shoes. Avoid stiff-soled shoes that don’t bend. “Walking shoes” have flexible soles and stiff backs to prevent side-to-side motion.

Discussion Question:
What do you (or can you) do to walk more?

Tags: fitness, walking