How to Walk.

Having taken to walking, we have discussed in the previous post

• Best Place to Walk,
• Best Time of the day to walk, and
• When you should not Walk.

Walking for exercise and walking to lose weight are the two most popular reasons for walking.  However, how to walk is important if you want to get the maximum benefits from walking . You should observe certain do’s and don’ts to get the proper posture while walking, proper movements of hands and feet while walking and how to breathe while walking. Over time,  a gradual increase to a 30 minutes daily walk  would be fine. 

Tips on How to Walk.

Most of us take a walk for exercise and some of us take a walk to lose weight. Whatever be the reason, these tips will answer your question– How should I walk. Do follow these tips to get the maximum benefit from walking.

• Always warm up for a few minutes before resuming your walk. Do a little stretching before you start walking.
• Start your walk with a slow and comfortable speed and then gradually increase the pace.

• No two people walk the same. So stick to your normal style of walking because you are going to be more comfortable that way.
• Right Posture while Walking.  Do not bend your head forwards. Keep your neck straight and chin up so that your ears are in line with the shoulders. What we mean by chin up is that the chin should be parallel to the ground. Your shoulders should be relaxed and in line with your waist. Do not slump. Keep your chest up. This is how you will have the right posture while walking. Ensure that you stay that way during the entire walk.
• Your Feet while Walking. When walking, land your feet on the heels of your feet, which does occur naturally. Then roll your foot and let front of your feet follow on the ground. Spring into the next step by pushing with toes of the foot which is on the ground, using your calf muscles. This sequence of movement may tend to become disturbed when you increase the walking speed, so concentrate and stick to it .In due course it will become natural even at higher walking speed.
• Your Hands while Walking. While walking, your hands should move from front to back and should not cross your body. The elbows will be bent at 90 degrees and the arms should swing to about 45 degrees angle to your body. Do not unnecessarily swing your hands too much. To increase speed, the faster you swing your arms, the faster the legs will follow.
• Look straight while walking, say 20 feet away on your walking path. Do not look down and at the ground.
• Breathe naturally and deep to inhale in the oxygen in the air. Walk fast enough to get tired but do not go out of breath. When tired, your lungs are asking for more air and small nooks and corners (the alveoli) of the lungs have opened up. Taking deep breaths will give that extra oxygen to these small cells of the lungs and blood will get good amount of sufficient oxygen.
• To increase walking speed, short and quicker steps are better than long strides.

Observe this picture for proper strides while walking.

Mistakes that you make when walking.

• Do not take long strides to walk fast. Your feet land wrong, your muscles are unnecessarily strained and you tire faster.

• Do not look down at the ground when walking. This will disturb your correct posture.
• Do not unnecessarily swing your arms and hands too much. Stick to as explained above.
• You tend to slump while walking. Keep your attention on your posture when walking. Later, it will become a force of habit.

These mistakes do nothing but waste your effort and do not give the full value and benefit to be derived from your daily walk. How to Walk or How should You walk, which is explained here, will help to get you the maximum benefits from your walking exercise.

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