Exercise Information
Site Map | Privacy Policy

Six Simple Strategies to Turn Your Walks into Workouts





If You are already fitness walking several times a week - great! Now its time to step it up a bit. Here are 6 ways to turn your walks into workouts. They involve adding a little creativity but with these few simple techniques you can maximize the benefits of your walk and get more of an overall body workout.

Swing it!

Have you ever made fun of the walkers who swing their arms? Well they know something you don't. This is the best way to increase the effectiveness of your workout. Bend your arms at your elbow 90 degrees as you walk. Swinging your arms will quicken your pace, raise your heart rate and help you to burn 5 to 10 percent more calories. Continue walking at a quick pace with your arms swinging naturally by your side. As you walk gradually bend them into the 90 degree angle. Keep a natural rhythm to your swing. Walking with bent arms will help with your gait, balance, and propulsion."

Interval walking

Breaking up your walk into slow and fast segments is a great way to increase your stamina, build muscle and burn more calories. "Vary the pace of your walk so that you have a phase of working hard (up to 90 percent of your maximum heart rate) followed by a recovery phase where you stroll slowly bringing your heart rate down," Head for the hills

Rough it!

If you normally walk circuit on sidewalks or paved road shoulders, it might be time to find a trail. "Walking on a rough but level track requires 50 percent more energy than walking on a paved road," Find a local park that has hiking trails or maybe there is a hiking club in your area that you can join. Look in the phone book or on the internet under volksmarching.

Circuit walking

A combination of walking and strength training. This may seem a little foreign at first but give it a try and you'll find that time go by quickly and you'll become stronger for it. Walk for a while then stop and do an exercise like sit ups or push ups on a park bench or even jumping jacks, just some exercise other than walking. This will shock your body into a new level of fitness.

Enter an event

Sign up for a 5K or 10K walking event or even walk for a cause, Breast Cancer or pregnancy center. Set a goal and train for that goal like an athlete. This will keep you motivated and push you towards the next level of fitness walking.

Reward yourself with a good pair of walking shoes.

Tina Seay is the author and webdesigner of http://www.LearnSomethingToday.com Her goal is to help others achieve their goals and live a quality life. Her other website include http://www.YourWeddingStory.net and http://www.ForTheCatLover.com

This article can be printed as web-content or in a newsletter or ezine with the author's bio-SIG included.


MORE RESOURCES:

The Money Times

Exercise, sleep help women fight cancer
WRAL.com, NC - 3 hours ago
I started swimming, and I exercise five times a week," Nemcheck said. Through her cancer battle, Nemcheck said she learned that exercise and sleep are keys ...
Why You Need to Exercise, Sleep Well, and Brush Your Teeth FitSugar.com
Regular Exercise Helps Elderly Cancer Survivors SmartAboutHealth
Elderly Cancer Survivors Get Benefits From Regular Exercise dBTechno
MarketWatch - U.S. News & World Report
all 571 news articles


Exercise Keeps the Brain Young
U.S. News & World Report, DC - 2 hours ago
21 (HealthDay News) -- In experiments in mice, exercise appears to reverse the decline in the production of brain stem cells usually seen with aging, ...


Telegraph.co.uk

Water aerobics help delivery go swimmingly
Los Angeles Times, CA - 2 hours ago
Although more and more doctors recommend moderate exercise during pregnancy, studies have shown that expectant mothers usually fall short when it comes to ...
Exercise 'helps women in labour' The Press Association
Aquarobics May Help Ease Labor Washington Post
Water Aerobics During Pregnancy May Make Childbirth More Bearable MedPage Today
Expressindia.com - KARK
all 91 news articles


Health Department Sets Record For Mass Dispensing Flu Exercise
Today's THV, AR - 4 hours ago
The Arkansas Department of Health set a new record for its Mass Dispensing Flu Exercise and immunized 123172 Arkansans against influenza last week. ...


China Daily

Pakistan army stages UAV shoot-down exercise
NavyTimes.com, VA - 8 hours ago
Kyodo via AP ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s army has conducted a military exercise to shoot down drones, the Defense Ministry said Friday in the wake of repeated ...
Pakistan army flexes muscles to shoot down drone aircraft Monsters and Critics.com
Pakistani Army Tests Missile Capable of Shooting Down Drones Bloomberg
all 604 news articles


Exercise During Pregnancy May Improve Perimenopausal Fitness
Medscape - 15 minutes ago
Compare exercise and fitness levels at long-term follow-up in perimenopausal women who exercised during pregnancy vs those who did not exercise during ...


David S. Goldstein: The Exercise Corner: It's all technique!
Norwich Bulletin, CT - 9 hours ago
Although there were plenty outlandish and ridiculous, but always thoroughly entertaining segments, there was one that stood out among the exercise genre. ...


Exercise caution to prevent hunting mishaps
Wausau Daily Herald, WI - 6 hours ago
Deer hunting season is here. Look in the woods and among the bare trees and falling leaves and you are likely to see a tree stand. ...


Ultimate team-building exercise: Flacco or Ryan? - NFL
ESPN - Nov 20, 2008
By Scouts Inc. The best rookie quarterback right now? The top NFL team not named the Titans or Giants? After watching all the film, Scouts Inc.'s pro scouts ...


Hot New Low Impact Exercise Videos Helping America Lose Weight Fast
PR Web (press release), WA - 12 hours ago
DanceX 'Everybody's Workout' are new exercise videos that are not for fitness junkies but for ordinary Americans who have some weight to lose but want to ...

Exercise - Google News

© 2005-2006