Walking is one of the easiest ways to exercise. It does not require a lot of equipment, and it has so many benefits.

Walking can:

• Increase your stamina and endurance
  This is exciting news! If you find yourself exhausted at the end of the day—too tired to even enjoy your family—make regular exercise a part of your life. Once it becomes a habit you won't want to give it up, because it will make you feel so good!




• Reduces stress
  How many people do you know that want to reduce stress? Exercise activates your endorphins, which are neurotransmitters (biochemical substances), in the brain that produce a sense of well being. We not only feel stronger and healthier, but also have the ability to deal with everyday stress in our lives in a positive way.




• Reduces your risk for heart disease and stroke
  This is a very important benefit, since coronary heart disease is recognized as the leading killer in the United States, and nearly half of these deaths occur among women.




• Strengthen your immune system
  Walking can actually increase your resistance to stress and illness.




• Strengthens your bones and joints
  This is an added benefit for women, because strong bones and joints can decrease a woman's chance for osteoporosis.




• Decreases your appetite
  I don't know many people that wouldn't want this benefit! You won't be as hungry because exercise acts as a natural appetite suppressant.




• Increases the number of calories you burn
  By walking and increasing the number of calories you burn, you will accelerate weight loss and positively influence weight control.




• Strengthen your heart and lungs
  Walking can help these organs work more efficiently. Exercise strengthens your heart muscle, and a stronger heart will last much longer than a weak heart.




• Decreases a woman's risk for breast cancer
  Studies have shown that women who engage in exercise at least 3 times a week have a decreased chance of developing breast cancer.




• Decreases your resting arterial blood pressure
  Exercise lowers your blood pressure.




• Improves your blood lipid profile
  Exercise lowers your LDL (low-density lipids), or bad cholesterol, while raising your HDL (high-density lipids), or good cholesterol.




• Increases your productivity
  In his book, The Aerobic Program for Total Well-Being, Kenneth Cooper states that aerobic exercise can improve your intellectual capacity and increase your productivity. According to the article titled "Aging Fitness and Neurocognitive Function" published in the National Library of Medicine, September 2001, more oxygen to the brain means an "increased ability to think and reason." Even brisk walking three times a week for 45 minutes improves circulation and supplies more oxygen to the brain.




• Reduces your biological age
  Not only are people that exercise more likely to maintain their weight loss, but according to an article by Mark Lander of the Better Health and Medical Network, reports show athletically and nutritionally fit individuals can be as much as 10 to 20 biological years younger than their chronological age. Dr. Alex Leif of the Harvard Medical School goes so far as to say that exercise is the closest thing to an anti-aging pill known ("Turning Back Time" Better Health & Medical Network, February, 1999).




• Improves control of blood sugar
  When you exercise, your muscle cells become more efficient at receiving and metabolizing sugar as it enters the blood stream. This decreases the need for insulin to be secreted to keep blood sugar levels down.
  
  Walking can also decrease risks of developing type 2 diabetes, the most common form of diabetes. In type 2 diabetes the body's cells are not responding appropriately to insulin that is present in the blood. In a healthy person, insulin signals the cells to let blood sugar in, so it can be used to make energy, or it can be stored. But in someone who has type 2 diabetes, the cells are insensitive to insulin and the sugar remains in the bloodstream for longer periods of time. (Hu, F.B. et al. Walking compared with vigorous physical activity and risk of type 2 diabetes in women. Journal of the American Medical Association 282: 1433-1437, 1999)




• Increases life expectancy The American Council on Exercise reported that during an 8-year study of 13,000 people, they found that those who walked 30 minutes a day had a significantly lower risk of premature death than those who rarely exercised.