Walking is exercise and it’s good in a lot of ways, but too many people rely on minor exercise to “think” they are losing weight. You don’t, well not much anyway. If you don’t change your diet, the most you’ll lose IF you’re lucky is 10 pounds. Probably less.
Here’s the thing, if you don’t exercise for at least 65%-85% of your theoretical maximum for heart rate, you don’t get benefits for your heart. You must do this FIVE times per week. John Hopkins and Brown Uninversity both did studies that showed, less than this provided NO beneift at all.
So the thing is if you don’t do that minimum you aren’t getting any heart benefit from it, and no weight loss from it.
But here is the kicker, people who walk DO lose weight and feel better. So what is going on.
Most likely this, people eat mindlessly. They eat while watching TV, at the computer and when they’re bored.
If you’re out walking around you not likely to be eating. Kids who play sports after school aren’t getting that much additional exercise, but they’re not home in front of the TV or computer eating mindless and usually high calorie, non-filling foods.
Furthermore, walking at a leisurely pace is a RELAXING thing. It brings the body’s stress levels way down and this is a major thing. Stress can rip your body apart. Without these stress levels the body feels better and actually heals faster and has better resistance to colds and such.
I love to walk. In the summer I walk everywhere, simply because it’s really relaxing to walk home from the gym or wherever. I don’t fool myself into thinking the 2 mile walk is going to lose me any more weight or keep my heart fit, but it sure is nice and relaxing and gives me time to be alone with my thoughts.
I recall last summer on a beautiful night out, I saw two young people walking arm in arm and each one had a cell phone talking to someone else. What a sad thing I thought, they should be enjoying each other, not letting phones rule their lives.