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Walking Tips

Walking is one of the easiest and most pleasant ways to burn fat and be in shape. It is also a great stress relieving exercise, and you can do it alone or with your friends.

5 tips to help you get the most of you walking session:

• Invest in a pair of excellent walking shoes

The last thing you want is to shorten your walk because your feet are hurting. Poor shoes can cause damage to your feet, knees, hips, joints and back. A good and stable pair of walking shoes can make your walk more pleasant, and consequently lengthen the time that you walk. Again means more calories burned.


• Warm up and stretch.

Walking is one of the best exercises you can do for stress relief and long term fat loss. But, you must be aware of the importance of taking plenty of time to warm up and stretch before you workout. The repetitive flexing of the shin muscle can create soreness when a walker increases their speed or distance. You can stretch by pointing and flexing your foot, and also rotating your ankles.


• Choose the right location

Walk up and down hills. The best way to take advantage of your walking excursion is to walk on areas that have flats and some hills as well. Walking on an incline is one of the fastest ways to increase calorie burn. A good practice is to stop for a few minutes to do 10 - 15 squats or lunges to tone your lower body.


• Get your arms moving with your legs.

Bring your upper body into your workout by moving your arms. This is an easy way to walk and burn more calories. Moving your arms helps you to move faster, therefore, you burn more calories because you walk greater distances. If you want to tone up and use more arm muscle during your workout, try carrying 2 - 5 pound hand weights.


• Increase your pace, not your stride

The best way to burn more calories when you are walking is to increase your speed, and not your stride. It is easier to pull a muscle when you increase stride. Again, if you walk faster, you cover more distance, and burn more calories.

Source: Editorial Staff, January 2007
Last update, July 2008