Is Walking Really Enough Exercise?

If you’re someone who’s interested in increasing your fitness level and seeing improvements in your health, you may have given some thought to starting a walking program. But you ask yourself, is walking really enough?

Can it help you manage your weight and better control your diabetes?

First, there are two things that you must remember.

One, exercise has a much lower impact on body weight control than diet does. So if you want to control your bodyweight better, the method of doing that will be making sure that you’re eating right first and foremost. Exercise is just a bonus after that.

Second, as with blood glucose control, exercise will help but not nearly as much as choosing the right food will. It’s critical that you select the foods that will help your body maintain control such as proteins, fiber, and healthy fats.

With these two things out of the way, let’s consider a few more things.

Anyone Can Do It

The first nice thing about walking is that anyone can do it. There are no barriers to entry with this one, making it an ideal choice for anyone who’s hoping to kick-start their fitness plan.

Whether you’re fit or unfit, young or old, you can go for a walk provided you don’t have a limiting injury.

Speed/Incline Is Variable

Now to address the question of whether walking can help you lose weight and/or improve your fitness level, the answer is yes. Remember that you can easily adjust the speed or incline as you walk, which will make it more or less intense and give you the level of benefits you’re after.

These are two things that can be done based on where you walk or if you’re on a treadmill, by simply pushing a few buttons.

If you start walking on an incline, you’ll also get some strength building results as well as it’ll force your hamstrings, quads, glutes, and calves to work harder than they would on a flat ground.

Can Be Done Anywhere

Another nice thing about walking is that it can be done virtually anywhere. You don’t need a special trail or machine to walk. Just go outside and walk around the neighborhood. Of course, you can find nice trails to walk on and this can give you a better overall training effect due to the fact that you’re switching it up and no two terrains are the same.

The point is, there’s no real excuse not to walk. Unless you are injured and physically can’t go for a walk, you can do it anywhere. At home, on holiday, or when you’re away for work. Even a 10-minute walk will be enough to help stabilize blood glucose levels and help better control your diabetes.

Is Relatively Enjoyable

Finally, the last nice thing about walking is that you can make it enjoyable by going with a friend, listening to music, or even watching TV if you’re in your home walking.

This means that you’ll have a better overall level of adherence and adherence is one of the biggest factors that will dictate your success.

So to answer the question, yes, walking is enough. Is walking alone ideal? Not exactly. You should still make an effort to do some strength training activities as well however if you really can’t and all you can do is head out for a walk, it’s definitely better than nothing and will get your needs met.