MANILA, Philippines - We have heard it so many times, walking can burn calories. Yet, not everyone of us knows how to maximize the benefits of walking every day.
It has been said taking thousand steps a day will improve your mood and over all health, but it may not have a significant effect on your weight loss, unless it is performed in the right way.
So how do you do the right walking to fitness? Here's a simple guide:
The right posture
The right way to walk is by maintaining your tall posture, with relaxed shoulders and widened chest. Beth Scupham/CC-BY
Sure walking is basic, but there is a right way to do it. Walking the Weight Off for Dummies, said that walkers who bend forward may develop problems in their lower back, hips and legs. The right way to walk is by maintaining your tall posture, with relaxed shoulders and widened chest. Pulling your abdominal area inward will also add more intensity to the walking. Moreover you should keep your head and chin up for easy breathing.
Work your way up
Stock photo of a pair jogging in a public park. Ed Yourdon/ CC BY-NC-SA
Set a baseline but do not just settle for a 20-minute walk per week. Challenge yourself by increasing your walking session gradually. You may increase each work out by 5 minutes per session and also increase its frequency.
Work with intensity
Ordinary walking does not qualify as a high-intensity workout, but it can be tweaked into one. Bill Dickinson/CC-BY-NC-ND
Slowly increase your speed. You can always mix in some fast-paced intervals. Add some High-intensity Workout. Ordinary walking does not qualify as a high-intensity workout, but it can be tweaked into one, Mercola.com said. Dr. Hiroshi Nose from Shinshu University Graduate School of Medicine in Matsumoto, Japan, said HIIT consists of of repeated intervals of three minutes of fast walking, aiming for an exertion level of about six or seven on a scale of one to 10, followed by three minutes of slow strolling.
The faster you are walking, the more calories you burn.
Literally, step it up
Adding hills or challenging terrain will speed up calorie burning. whologwhy/CC-BY
Adding hills or challenging terrain will speed up calorie burning. Walking on cobblestones, or on as rocky ground as you can find, may have even more profound benefits. Walking with terrain challenges all the muscles in your body. In turn, your metabolism will be pumped up.
Track your progress
In an era where multitasking has become more of a necessity rather than a skill, the Huawei TalkBand B2 is the perfect companion for your busy life allowing you to continue working without having to fumble for your phone and miss that important call.
Wearable devices are hot in the market today. From GPS mapping apps, to simple pedometers and fitness trackers. Recent research showed that wearing a fitness-tracking wristband did help overweight postmenopausal women increase their activity levels.
In an era where multitasking has become more of a necessity rather than a skill, the Huawei TalkBand B2 is the perfect companion for your busy life allowing you to continue working without having to fumble for your phone and miss that important call. With its innovative 6-axis motion sensor, the TalkBand B2 can automatically detect different activities with higher accuracy, such as walking, running cycling or climbing/hiking. It can also calculate the amount of calories burned by different activities to help you plan your workouts, diet and more. You can then sync the data with your mobile phone and even share your achievement with your friends via social networks.
The same six-axis sensor, likewise allows the TalkBand B2 to automatically identify and record motions accurately, detect the duration of deep sleep and light sleep, and provide consumers with health tips on ways to improve their sleep pattern.