Walking is an ancient physical practice with profound benefits for our overall health. Let’s see how walking can act as both a preventive and corrective measure.
Below are the physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and emotional aspects that occur when considering walking as a Preventive and Corrective means.
1. As a Preventive Means
• Physical Health:
-Cardiovascular strengthening: Reduces the risk of heart disease, hypertension and stroke.
-Weight control: Helps burn calories and maintain a healthy weight, preventing obesity and associated diseases.
-Muscle and bone strengthening: Tones the muscles of the legs and core, improving posture and preventing injuries.
-Joint health: Improves joint flexibility and lubrication, reducing the risk of arthritis.
-Strengthening the immune system: Increases circulation and the production of white blood cells, improving the body’s defenses.
• Mental Health:
-Stress reduction: Releases endorphins, neurotransmitters that act as natural pain relievers and improve mood.
-Improved concentration: Increases blood flow to the brain, promoting mental clarity and the ability to concentrate.
-Prevention of depression: Regular physical activity is an effective complementary treatment for depression.
• Emotional Health:
-Increased self-esteem: Achieving goals related to walking can improve self-confidence.
-Improved sleep: Regular physical activity contributes to deeper, more restful sleep.
• Spiritual and Mental Health:
-Connection with nature: Walking in natural environments can promote a feeling of peace and well-being.
-Meditation in movement: Walking can become a meditative practice, encouraging introspection and connection with oneself.
2. As a Corrective Means
• Physical Health:
-Injury recovery: Gradual walking can help you regain mobility and strength after an injury.
-Chronic pain management: It can relieve pain associated with conditions such as fibromyalgia or arthritis.
-Improved circulation: Helps reduce swelling and the feeling of heaviness in the legs.
• Mental Health:
-Anxiety treatment: Regular physical exercise can reduce anxiety symptoms.
-Combat boredom and monotony: Walking can help overcome low moods and find new perspectives.
• Emotional Health:
-Overcoming depression: Walking is an effective tool to combat the symptoms of depression.
-Anger management: Physical activity can help channel negative energy and reduce impulsivity.
Finally, I present below certain specific recommendations so that our walks result in effective benefits:
Recommendations for Walking with Benefits
• Regularity: Walk at least 30 minutes every day of the week.
• Intensity: Adapt the intensity of the walk to your physical condition.
• Variety: Alternate between brisk walking and walking uphill to work different muscle groups.
• Posture: Keep your back straight, shoulders relaxed and look forward.
• Warm up and cool down: Spend a few minutes at the beginning and end of each walk to stretch your muscles.
In summary, walking is an accessible and beneficial physical activity for all ages and physical conditions. By incorporating walking into your daily routine, you will be investing in your physical, mental and emotional health.
Remember that walking is a natural practice for humans and the most important thing is to find a walking pace that is comfortable and pleasant for you, and enjoy it to the fullest.
Let’s make some reflections and explanations about these two concepts.
Assimilating and apprehending the word “corrective” is easy; but “preventive” is not.
When we walk we can lose weight, that is a corrective effect, that is, it is curative; However, when we say that we can improve our cardiovascular system (heart, veins and arteries), we do not say that by walking we can correct and heal it, but we mean that it is preventive to prevent it from deteriorating or continuing. deteriorating.
Let’s detail the above.
For example, prevention is equated to reducing the risk of several diseases, including those related to heart disease and stroke. Our WALK-RWD System is preventive because it avoids the danger of certain diseases not occurring. The preventive nature of the system is also because it prevents any disease from spreading or developing further.
From personal experiences, the corrective result achieved by walking, in terms of body weight, is the following: Depending on the type of diet (a personal diet [1]), the amount of food we eat at each meal (again a diet) and each person’s metabolism, we lose from 1 milligram (0.00003527 ounces) to 3½ milligrams (0.000123 ounces) for each step we take walking.
Health parameters vary (because they are a variable) for each person, at the stage of their life and for the day on which any laboratory study is performed, but once the data is obtained, it is considered a constant, in which the doctor bases his analysis and makes the evaluation and his prescription to relieve the patient. For another time or date, that same parameter will be different, that is, it varies from one time to another. The same thing happens for other people, the parameters are indices that vary but become constant quantities when obtaining the medical laboratory results.
Now, one of the parameters -among others- that are measured in laboratory studies to determine the health status of an individual, with respect to their cardiovascular system, is triglycerides, which is measured in “mg/dL” ( “mmol/L”), in milligrams of cholesterol per deciliter of blood. The limits of this parameter are:
Normal: less than 150 mg/dL (less to 8.3 mmol/L)
High limit value: 150 – 199 mg/dL (8.3 – 11.0 mmol/L)
High: 200 – 499 mg/dL (11.1 – 27.7 mmol/L)
Very high: equal to or greater than 500 mg/dL (equal or bigger to 27.8 mmol/L)
If a person results – through a medical laboratory study – with a level of 214 mg/dL (11.9 mmol/L), it means that they are at the “High Limit Value” level.
Walking does not correct by reducing this abnormal level, but it is preventive, in the sense that if we walk daily, for example 2-3 miles/day (3-5 kilometers/day), so that these will not continue to deteriorate. levels, taking into account the medical evaluation, prescription and diet (scrupulous and precise) that that particular person must follow.
In other words, in this case of triglycerides – as in others – we cannot say that with walking certain units of the parameter measured in “mg/dL” (“mmol/L”) of triglycerides will be lost for each step taken. It is not corrective, however, we can say that walking IS preventive because it prevents this health parameter from continuing to increase.
Another health parameter in which walking is corrective is the heartbeat frequency (heartbeat frequency or also called pulse), which is immersed in the cardiovascular system, as it regulates lowering that frequency to normal levels. Sedentary people can have levels of 70 or 80 beats/minute, while athletes have it at 60 beats/min and below this level. A person in their 70s or 80s may decide to walk 2-3 miles/day (3-5 kilometers) and lower that level at some points immediately after finishing walking.
Another case is that of cholesterol, where we can appreciate the preventive aspect of the system. Cholesterol in the blood is one of the most important parameters and the danger of its deterioration can be avoided by walking, however, when this element integrated into the blood cannot be reduced sufficiently by this means of walking (and the corresponding diet), the person can and should go to their doctor to prescribe an appropriate medication to correct their blood cholesterol level.
Finally, I would like to mention that walking is also recommended for people who have suffered a heart attack. Always under medical supervision. Walking after this type of event improves both the physical and psychological aspects of the person, as they recover their emotional state of disability, apart from what we already mentioned from the physical point of view, regarding the frequency of the heartbeat for their respective pumping of blood throughout the body. Notwithstanding the above, excessive walking can cause arrhythmias in people predisposed to it, especially when they suffer from heart failure.
Let’s take daily walks, of at least 30 minutes, and this will help us in the two specified ways, they will act by themselves as Preventive and Corrective means, which will generate profound benefits for our overall health.
[1] Loya Lopategui, Carlos, Flavors Diet. The Art of Savoring Food, EMULISA, Mexico, 2024. Version available on Amazon, Kindle Edition: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D42N64W7