Image courtesy of the American Council on Exercise

Are you walking your way to better health?  Walking for fitness has proven and measurable health benefits, and it’s completely free!  Among other benefits, a regular walking program can:

• Boost your immune system
• Increase bone strength
• Reduce risk for Glaucoma, Alzheimer’s and Colon Cancer
• Prevent weight gain
• Increase your energy and stamina
• Reduce cholesterol and lower blood pressure

When’s the best time to go walking?  Anytime you can fit it in!  The US Department of Health and Human Services, the American Heart Association and the American College of Sports Medicine have all agreed that two 10-minute walking sessions will benefit us almost as much as one 20-minute session.  You just need a total of at least 2½ hours each week (that’s about 20 minutes a day). Here are some time-of-day tips for early morning, mid-day and evening walkers.

Tips for Early Morning Walkers:

• The night before, get your walking clothes and shoes ready so it’s easy to put them on and head out the door.
• Program your Ipod or MP3 player with an upbeat music playlist, or set it to your favorite radio station to help keep you moving at a brisk pace.  Just make sure you can still hear traffic, and take extra care when crossing intersections.
• If it’s dark outside, wear light colors or clothing with reflective stripes so motorists can see you.
• Watch a morning news show or check your email while gently stretching your calves and hamstrings at the end of your walk..

Tips for Lunchtime Walkers:

• Schedule your lunchtime walk in your work calendar. Think of it as an important appointment – which it is!
• If you can, keep everything you’ll need for walking at work. This way you won’t find yourself saying “I forgot my shoes. I can’t go.”
• Recruit a couple of colleagues to join you.  You can help keep each other motivated, and good conversation makes the time pass quickly!
• Depending on your walking pace and the weather, you may be able to wear your work clothes and just switch to athletic shoes. . If you’re walking briskly, you’ll heat up after about 10 minutes, so avoid the tendency to overdress. 
• Pick a route where you can grab a healthy snack or lunch at the end of your walk, or better yet, pack your own.

Tips for After-Work Walkers:

• Have a light snack at about 4 p.m. (for example, a low-fat yogurt and a handful of almonds, or an apple and a piece of cheese) so you don’t experience a late-day dip in energy and talk yourself out of walking.
• Pick an area that’s not heavily trafficked, since rush hour can affect the quality of the air.
• Walk tall, and do some backward shoulder rolls and gentle neck stretches to relieve work stress.
• If it’s dark, wear light-colored clothing, or clothing with reflective strips so motorists can see you.

Most importantly, have fun! 

For more health information and useful tips, visit our Resources Blog on TotalHomeCareSupplies.com.  To shop for incontinence, ostomy, urological or wound supplies, visit our Total Home Care Supplies web store.

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Image courtesy of the American Council on Exercise

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard that exercise is good for you – and that regular exercise is best.  What’s the best time to exercise?  Anytime!  Of course for most of us, actually finding time to exercise is a workout by itself.  With days crammed full of work, family and errands, personal activities like exercise tend to be the first on the chopping block.

Enter: walking.  Even with a busy schedule, you can find creative ways to fit in a couple of quick 10-minute walking sessions, and presto!  You’re on an exercise program.  The US Department of Health and Human Services, the American Heart Association and the American College of Sports Medicine have all agreed that two 10-minute walking sessions will benefit us almost as much as one 20-minute session.  You just need to fit in a total of 2½ hours over the course of a week (that’s about 20 minutes a day).  What are the health benefits of walking?  Surprisingly, just walking daily improves cholesterol, boosts bone strength, lowers blood pressure, helps prevent weight gain and increases energy and stamina.  It also reduces glaucoma risk, halves your odds of catching a cold, and even reduces your risk for Alzheimer’s and colon cancer, among other benefits.

You can squeeze in those 10–15 minute sessions by stretching your legs around the neighborhood after work, walking to a lunch spot that’s 10 minutes away or heading to the corner store for a few items.  Instead of trying to find the closest parking spot when you’re going to the store or out to meet friends, park a little further away and use the extra time you would have spent searching for a close spot to walk there.  If you take the bus, get off a stop early.  Here are a few more creative scheduling suggestions:

• During the work day, take the long way to the copier or restroom. Walk over to talk to someone instead of calling. Instead of a coffee break, take a 10-minute walk break! You’ll burn a few extra calories and help prevent the muscle stiffness that comes from sitting in a chair all day.
• To catch up with an old friend, schedule a walk together. It’s a great way to get some exercise and fresh air while you’re enjoying each other’s company. Chances are that you’ll be so focused on the conversation that you’ll walk farther than you planned.
• Discuss business plans with colleagues while going for a short walk instead of sitting at a desk.  See if you can develop a new corporate culture of “walking meetings.”
• On weekends, take a family walk and reconnect with your family members.  If the kids want to go to the park or a friend’s house, great!  Walk together to get there.
• Turn shopping into an aerobic activity. Shopping is walking, so don’t stop for 10 minutes straight and before you know it, you’ve worked in one of your daily sessions.  Check with your local mall for mall walker programs, and you’ll have company.

Have any other creative walking suggestions?  We’d love to hear them!

For more health information and useful tips, visit our Resources Blog on TotalHomeCareSupplies.com.  To shop for incontinence, ostomy, urological or wound supplies, visit our Total Home Care Supplies web store.

Care More.  Spend Less.  Save Now.