One of the biggest steps forward for health is also one of the simplest ones — daily walking. It is an inexpensive form of exercise, as all you need is a pair of walking shoes.

Walking a targeted distance in addition to your day to day activities is a good starting point for sedentary individuals to gradually increase physical activity. Not only is it a low-impact exercise suitable for all age groups and fitness levels, it is also convenient and accessible to everyone. You can easily weave walking as a form of active commuting, into your daily life.

How Much To Walk Each Day

businessman casually walking looking at his phone while holding a folder in his other hand 

With growing accessibility to devices with step tracking functions (e.g., mobile phones, smart watches, and pedometers), counting steps has become one of the easiest ways to track an individual’s daily activity levels. According to the Singapore Physical Activity Guidelines (SPAG), it is recommended that an individual participates in aerobic activities (e.g., walking) at moderate intensity for at least 150 to 300 minutes a week in order to achieve positive health benefits such as reduced risk of diseases such as cardiovascular disease and Type-2 diabetes, and improvement in mental health.

While at least 150-300 minutes of exercise has been suggested as a weekly goal to achieve health benefits, any amount of physical activity is better than being sedentary. Therefore, individuals who may have been sedentary may kickstart their fitness journey by including walks at light intensity and progress by either increasing intensity levels from light to moderate or extending walking duration to meet recommendations for their respective age segment.

Sedentary behaviour has adverse impact on your health as it increase your risk of lifestyle diseases, including Type-2 diabetes, cancer and heart disease. For instance, sitting for over eight hours a day can lead to a 90% increased risk of Type-2 diabetes[1]. Hence it is important to break up prolonged sitting with movement breaks throughout the day.

How to Track Physical Activity

smartphone, smartwatch on a laptop keyboard 

You can use a smartphone activity app or a wearable fitness tracker to keep track of your daily activity levels.

Aerobic exercise otherwise termed as 'cardio' is sustained physical activity that increases the heart rate and the body's use of oxygen. Engaging in aerobic exercises improves the ability of the heart, lungs and vascular system to efficiently deliver oxygen to working muscles. Aerobic exercises ranging from light to moderate intensity are: brisk walking, leisure cycling, swimming, jogging and playing basketball.

  • Evidence has suggested that walking brings about positive effects on general fitness as well as health benefits such as: Weight management, brisk walking regularly may  lower your BMI and reduce your waist circumference.

  • Improve sleep quality. Being active in the day will help you to sleep better at night.

  • Decrease risk of hypertension, reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, strokes, and Type 2 diabetes.

  • Reduce stress. Walking is found to improve quality of life for depressed middle-aged women, who reported feeling more energised and more sociable after walking[2]. Another study found that taking a walk during lunch hour can have a significant impact on your mood and help reduce work-related stresses[3].

  • Slow down mental decline. Older people who exercised regularly experienced a slower rate of mental decline[4]. In addition, exercising can help to increase your gray matter in the areas of complex thought and decision making[5].

Related: Ideas for An Active Weekend

How to Make Walking Fun

asian daughter smiling and linking arms with her father and mother while out shopping 

Make walking a daily habit. Try breaking it up into several short walks a day. For instance, you can take the stairs instead of the lift, or give your legs a stretch with a jaunt to your favourite lunch spot instead of driving or taking public transport, and enjoy an evening stroll in the park with your family after dinner.

To make it easy to start walking and to keep at it, try the following tips:

  • Walk along your neighborhood park connector and take in the scenery on your way to the nearby hawker or neighbourhood mall

  • Walk up the stairs instead of the taking the lift.

  • Take the scenic route and walk a longer route to and from your office, at the start of the work day and after work.

  • Find a walking partner, like a friend, colleague or neighbour, so that you can talk to someone as you walk and to keep you motivated.

  • Multi-task and make phone calls, or listen to your favourite music or podcasts through your earphones.

  • Join a walking group. Connect with other walkers on websites like: https://www.meetup.com/topics/walkers/sg/.

          

Download the HealthHub app on Google Play or Apple Store to access more health and wellness advice at your fingertips.

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References

  1. Biswas, A., Oh, P. I., Faulkner, G. E., Bajaj, R. R., Silver, M. A., Mitchell, S., et al. (2015, Jan 20). Sedentary Time and Its Association With Risk for Disease Incidence, Mortality, and Hospitalization in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Annals of Internal Medicine, 162(2), 123-132.
    Retrieved Sep 2016 from https://annals.org/article.aspx?articleid=2091327

  2. Heesch, K. C., Gellecum, Y. R., Burton, N. W., Uffelen, J. G.Z., Brown, W. J. (2015, Mar). Physical Activity, Walking, and Quality of Life in Women with Depressive Symptoms. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 48(3), 281-291.
    Retrieved Sep 2016 from https://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797%2814%2900567-4/abstract

  3. TThøgersen-Ntoumani, C., Loughren, E. A., Kinnafick, F. E., Taylor, I. M., Duda, J. L., Fox, K. R. (2015, Dec). Changes in work affect in response to lunchtime walking in previously physically inactive employees: A randomized trial. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 25(6), 778-787.
    Retrieved Sep 2016 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25559067

  4. Willey, J. Z., Gardener, H., Caunca, M. R., Yeseon, P. M., Dong, C. H., Cheung, Y. K., et al. (2016, Mar 23). Leisure-time physical activity associates with cognitive decline. Neurology,
    Retrieved Sep 2016 from https://www.neurology.org/content/early/2016/03/23/WNL.0000000000002582.short

  5. Killgore, W. D.S., Olsen, E. A., Weber, M. (2013, Dec 12). Physical Exercise Habits Correlate with Gray Matter Volume of the Hippocampus in Healthy Adult Humans. Scientific Reports, (3), 1-6.
    Retrieved Sep 2016 from https://www.nature.com/articles/srep03457