Remarkably Effective - Walking To Lose Weight

Are you too busy, too tired to go to the gym?

There's good news for you. You can use walking to lose weight.

People who find ways to increase the amount of walking they do each day to at least 30 minutes, and do this persistently every day, will have burned 11 pounds of body fat in a year. All you need to do is make sure that in the course of your daily activities, you spend a half hour walking.

Double Your Walking

Of course, if you normally have a lot of errands that keep you going the better part of the day, so that your total time walking is one hour per day, you will have burned 22 pounds of body fat in a year.

And you didn't even have to go to the gym to accomplish this. The challenge is in the fact that many of us sit at a desk in front of a computer during our work day.

The answer is to use a bit of imagination in finding ways to increase the amount of walking you do every day.

A favorite trick is to park your car away from the building everywhere you go so you get some extra walking.

Find A Walking Partner

Another way is to invite your lunch partner to go for a half hour stroll after lunch. You don't even have to interrupt your conversation. Just get up from the table and go for a walk.

The key to this is to be persistent, to do it regularly. The benefit comes from the cumulative effect of this pleasant daily practice. Naturally, you will want to watch how much you eat, so that you don't negate the benefits of your daily walks.

Diet And Exercise

Research has proven that people who adopt a weight loss program will be more successful if the incorporate some form of exercise in their weight loss plan. Walking is just about the best way to have an easy physical activity to lose weight. It's not strenuous, and it can be fun if you do it with a partner or two. You can be each others' support group.

Consider this; have you seen many overweight mail delivery persons? Not likely! Their jobs have a built-in exercise routine. And they certainly do it consistently every working day.

If you have thought about including exercise with your natural weight loss efforts, but cringe at the thought of endless hours at the gym, you can use walking as an alternative way to increase your physical activity.

Get In Shape Gradually

This form of physical activity is particularly well suited for people who are severely overweight, since they would find more strenuous forms of exercise to be too taxing for their system. However, walking allows you a great way to gradually get back into improved physical condition as your weight loss plan brings your weight closer to a normal level.

Once your weight loss, and your walking make you more physically fit, you may well feel that you want to incorporate regular exercise at a gym under the supervision of a qualified fitness professional.

Be Consistent

For walking to be most effective as an aid in your weight loss program, you have to be consistent, and you have to make sure that your cumulative walking is at least 30 minutes per day. Weather permitting, your healthiest walks will be outside. However, you can beat bad weather by Mall Walking. It will be just as effective.

You will have to pay attention to any signs of stress on your muscles and joints. While walking is normally not very taxing on your body, this could be different if you are carrying an considerable amount of excess weight.

Just stay alert, and don't ignore signs of mild to severe pain. Good walking shoes, and well padded socks will be important for comfort and to avoid injury.

If at all possible, you will want to select loose, comfortable clothing. The more pleasant you can make your walking, the more likely you will be to persist over time to get maximum benefit.

If You Walk Alone

If you walk alone, you may find that your mind will be busy as you become more at ease during your walks. Creative insights are likely to pop into your mind, making this a side benefit of this moderate exercise practice.

For those times when you walk alone, you may want to listen to music to help pass the time, and to give more rhythm to your walking pace.

Try to stay alert to your surroundings while listening to music so you don't expose yourself to accidents and injury. Also, don't forget you are exposing your eyes and body to strong sunlight, so wear sunglasses when appropriate.

Make sure you find ways to keep your walking enjoyable so you can get the long term benefits of diet and exercise. To increase your motivation, make sure you enjoy this time out of the house, and away from your daily obligations.

This is your special time. You deserve it.

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