The Health Benefits of Walking

The most common issue that individuals run into when it comes to exercising is time. Our day-to-day lives consist of trying to find time for the things we enjoy, for the people we love, and even to get a moment’s silence. This, in turn, leaves us wondering: if I can’t do what I love, why would I carve out time to do something I dislike, namely, strenuous exercise? As someone who is a fitness enthusiast, I can understand this. I love exercising strenuously, and if I had to spend time doing something I dislike, which would take away the opportunity for me to work out, I would be devastated. Intense training is not for everyone.

However, exercise is still important for our health and health matters to most people. What is a reasonable solution? Walking. For most people, walking is very easy. Walking is not very stressful on the body — in fact, it can reverse the effects of stress by lowering cortisol levels (1). It is an activity that you can do while enjoying other things, like listening to music or an audiobook, or even the company of a friend. Some people find that their creativity is sparked while walking, while others use walking as a coping method for psychological distress. Further, it doesn’t take much walking daily to reap its benefits for our health. For instance, according to a meta-analysis reviewed by the European Journal of Epidemiology in 2009, 30 minutes of walking alone…