Walking can help us decrease blood pressure, decrease the risk of diabetes, cancer and many more. Learn on the benefits of walking. Check out the article we found over at The Science Of Eating.
Running and walking are both excellent aerobic exercises, as both help promote weight loss, improve your sleep, elevate your mood, boost your energy level, decrease blood pressure and cholesterol levels and decrease the risk of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.
Many feel walking is more of a mode of transport than exercise, but it really is one of the best things you can do for your body, your looks and long-term health. Walking is more than just getting from here to there, those steps are improving cardiovascular strength, strengthening & toning your muscles for more fat-burning power and lowing the chance of disease.
Walking vs. Running
Brisk walking actually reduces the risk of heart disease more effectively than running when the energy expenditure of both activities is balanced out. A study where researchers compared data from two studies over a period of six years of 33,060 runners and 15,045 walkers aged 18 to 80, found that when the same amount of energy was expended, walkers experienced greater health benefits than runners.
Running does reduce the risk of heart disease by 4.5% while walking reduced it by 9.3%, however calorie for calorie, walking also had a stronger impact on heart disease risk factors:
- Risk of first-time high blood pressure was reduced by 4.2% by running and 7.2% by walking.
- First-time high cholesterol risk was lowered by 4.3% by running and 7% by walking.
- The risk of first-time diabetes was reduced by about 12% by both walking and running.
Walking and running are low-cost, easy-to-do anywhere, year-round, and even social activities. But since running is more rigorous than walking, so if you’re going to run, you should select a running program to maximize your conditioning in minimum time.
Why Walking is Great For Almost Everyone
Walking is a great exercise for those who are just starting to workout or for those with health problems. Also, for the significantly overweight, walking can be less stressful on the body. An important factor to consider when looking at the difference between running and walking, is that because of the repetitive nature of running, the risk of injury is greater. Running is considered high impact exercise. This can cause injury to the hip, knee and ankle joints. Walking is a low impact activity and is less damaging to the body.
While walking is easier on your hip and knee joints, you should still do lunges or squats twice a week. The RealAge benefit of 10,000 steps a day is feeling 4.6 years younger for women and 4.1 for men. You can even find ways to fit walking in while you work, such as a walking meeting or a treadmill desk.
Next Article: The Health Benefits Of Walking Barefoot
Read full article: 3 DEFINITIVE REASONS WHY WALKING IS MUCH BETTER THAN RUNNING
Robert N Valerie Vasquez
Feb 04. 2016
Rene Lopez