Power walking your way to weight loss
REGULAR walking and even slow jogging are for beginners — if you really want to get that morning energy going to face the day ahead, power walking will do you good.
Power walking is literally as the name suggests — regular walking, powered up, that is, done with more intensity and more speed, and with weights added if you’re game.
Fitness trainer Lennox Richards says this exercise is good if you’ve just started your programme and have a goal in sight, but are not quite ready for running, and don’t particularly like to jog.
“You can burn up to 240 calories doing this at just about 10kph, with just an hour of exercise, and you won’t be too tired afterwards, as it’s a low exertion activity,” he explained.
“If you have a fitness partner going along for the exercise it makes it even better, as you won’t even notice all the work you’re putting in. Add a couple dumbbells and this means more calories burned, and more muscle built.”
He explained that power walking is not only good for the body generally but for the mind as well, as the rhythmic movements will help you get your thoughts together, especially if you’re stressed.
“There’s also little to no risk of injury, and you’re helping to keep your bones strong, and your circulation going,” he added. “It’s also a whole body exercise, especially if you’re doing it right and moving your arms in tandem with your legs.”
At the end of the walk you can be assured that you will have got rid of some of the weight, increased your heart rate, and benefitted from a calmer perspective, as the activity will help your body release endorphins.
“Best of all, it doesn’t require any equipment or a gym membership — all you need are working legs, the will, and a good pair of running shoes, and you’re in the game,” Richards said.
He gave these three tips for making your walk worth it:
1) Keep your arms up — they shouldn’t be at your side during the walk, rather, they should be pumping in pace with your legs, moving backwards and forwards as you walk.
2) Keep good posture — don’t hunch or lean forward, just stand straight and march.
3) Don’t speed up too much — keep at a pace you can manage, as speeding up and slowing down will just frustrate the process.
