What if there was something simple and free you could do every day that could help you feel less stressed, more energized, help support healthy blood sugar levels, longevity, and more? It’s such a simple activity that yields such important results, yet is shockingly often overlooked. It has even been called the most underrated form of exercise.
That activity is walking. Let’s take a look at some of the specifics:
Walking and Longevity
Research (and common sense) has shown that inactivity in older adults can be very detrimental to health and wellness. With this in mind, it is absolutely necessary for older individuals to begin an exercise program encompassing any activities they are able to perform safely. Walking can be an excellent starting point and a gateway to other forms of vigorous activity for older adults. In fact, even engaging in less than the recommended amount of physical activity still has benefits. A study that looked at over 100,000 seniors who used either walking as a sole means of exercise or other types of exercise that researchers adjusted for, found that inactivity was associated with a higher all-cause mortality than those who walked even less than the recommended amount. And for those that engaged in the recommended amount of activity, the all-cause mortality rate was even lower.
For optimal health, researchers recommend engaging in a minimum of 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity or more than 150 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity per week (Patel et al, 2018).
In practical terms, meeting this requirement could mean moderate intensity walking for just 22 minutes per day. A lot of the pushback I get from patients when I suggest they join a gym or begin an exercise program tends to revolve around time constraints and/or lack of skills required to execute the movements. When these concerns arise, at a minimum, I suggest that they begin vigorously walking as much as they can. Most people have a hard time convincing me that they don’t have the time or the skills to take a walk.
Walking and Blood Sugar
Taking a post-meal stroll can be a wonderful activity to help support healthy blood sugar. Postprandial walking has been shown to support healthy blood sugar.
In one study, researchers took a look at how 2 different walking strategies affected older adults. They compared walking for a sustained 45 minutes once per day versus walking for 15 minutes 3 times a day after each meal. While they found that both walking strategies improved 24-hour glucose control, walking for 15 minutes post meals significantly improved 3 hour post-dinner glucose (DiPietro et al, 2013).
Walking and Cardiovascular Health
One of the biggest cases to be made for introducing walking into your daily routine is the robust body of evidence that it improves cardiovascular health. Walking has been shown to aid in cardiovascular health in both observational and intervention studies (Murtagh et al, 2010).
Wrapping it Up
If you’ve gotten this far, you know what to do.
-Dr. Roger Haddad
Are you looking for a Savannah, Ga chiropractor? Axis Chiropractic is conveniently located right off of Highway 80 on Whitemarsh Island and serves Whitemarsh Island, Wilmington Island, Tybee Island, downtown Savannah, and the greater Savannah area. Dr. Roger Haddad sees patients dealing with a wide range of issues including headaches, neck pain, and back pain as well as patients looking to support overall wellness and athletic performance. He is dedicated to leading a proactive life through the principles of chiropractic care. His goal is to empower the Savannah, Georgia community with specific and patient centered chiropractic care. Let Axis Chiropractic help you with your chiropractic needs.
References
DiPietro L, Gribok A, Stevens M, Hamm L., Rumpler W. Three 15-min Bouts of Moderate Postmeal Walking Significantly Improves 24-h Glycemic Control in Older People at Risk for Impaired Glucose Tolerance. Diabetes Care. 2013;36.
Murtagh EM, Murphy MH, Boone-Heinonen J. Walking: the first steps in cardiovascular disease prevention. Curr Opin Cardiol. 2010;25(5):490-496. doi:10.1097/HCO.0b013e32833ce972
Patel AV, Hildebrand JS, Leach CR, Campbell PT, Doyle C, Shuval K, Wang Y, Gapstur SM. Walking in Relation to Mortality in a Large Prospective Cohort of Older U.S. Adults. Am J Prev Med. 2018 Jan;54(1):10-19. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2017.08.019. Epub 2017 Oct 19. PMID: 29056372.