Health | MAY 2014
MAKE WALKING YOUR ‘NO-WORKOUT’ WORKOUT!
T
his is a very popular time of year for running, with almost everyone having just run a marathon! Discussions about carb-loading and tapering make the rest of us feel lazy, but there is no need to panic. Before learning to run, we learnt to walk, and actually, walking delivers all the benefits of running, while being a lot kinder to our knees.
deny us the amazing health benefits of walking. In truth, most of us aren’t walking effectively enough to deliver any real advantage to our bodies. To develop the ideal walking posture you need to build strength from the inside out. By aligning the body properly, posture is corrected and movement becomes more fluid while discomfort such as back pain lessens. Walking is a brilliant way to look after your heart, safeguard your joints whilst improving your posture, stamina, confidence and strengthening your back, legs and bottom. Transform your core fitness and see inches drop off your waistline - fit more walking into your daily life!
Not only is walking better for your joints, but it is also simple to do and, when done regularly, has been shown to reduce the risk of developing chronic illnesses such as Type 2 diabetes, asthma, strokes and some forms of cancer. Amazingly, half an hour of brisk walking (4 mph) can shift 150 calories. But before you relax in your comfy chair, smug that you have already done your 30 minutes on the school run, it has to be Liz Marks APPI Teacher & Presenter the right kind of walking! The NHS recommends aiming for 10,000 steps a day. My unique six-week walking course, Pilates & This may sound like a lot, but you are probably already Walking Strong, provides improved cardio vasclocking up 3,000-4,000 steps. Try using a pedometer to cular fitness with complete postural alignment work out your daily average, then gradually build more so each step you take is highly effective. In the steps into your daily routine - an additional ten minutes fresh air of the beautiful Sussex countryside it is of brisk walking will add 1,000 steps to your daily total. suitable for people of any age and fitness levels. To achieve the anticipated benefits you must be walking Go to www.lizmarkspilates.co.uk or call 0771 at a moderate intensity, i.e. faster than a stroll. 3253604 for more information about my walking However, it’s not just the amount of walking we do classes, bespoke Pilates sessions in my private that is important, but how we do it. Quite simply, the studio or my regular class schedule at Henfield vast majority us walk wrong, using the wrong muscles Leisure Centre. in the wrong way and at the wrong time. This can
4 4 | B N 5 M A GA ZINE
sales@bn5magazine.co.uk