There is no doubt that getting out of our houses, taking a walk, and seeing the outside world is a good thing. It doesn't matter if you are an extrovert or an introvert (because I know that some of you would say they are introverts, and hence, it's not good for you). Walking is beneficial for everyone and for all ages; it's a great exercise for improving and maintaining health.
Today I will share with you seven reasons why you should get out of your house and take a walk every day.
Reasons Why You Should Walk Every Day:
There is no shortage of reasons whatsoever on why you should walk; I can write an entire book on the topic believe me, but today let's squeeze it into seven reasons why people should walk regularly.
1. Walking Improves Your Mental Health
It's scientifically proven that if you want to boost your mental health or improve your mood, then walking is one thing you can do. Walking is something that a lot of psychologists and therapists recommend to their patients who have depression, anxiety, and emotional instability. It doesn't even matter if you walk at a slow pace or at a fast pace; it doesn't matter how many calories you have burned or for how long you have walked; just simply tying your shoes and strolling down the neighborhood, breathing in fresh air, and seeing unfamiliar faces ought to make you feel better about almost everything.
Walking can clear your mind and take it off of things that are burdening you and worrying you; it can make you feel relaxed and at ease. There are times when I feel like there is a fog surrounding my mind. When I feel that way, I wear my coat and just walk. I go wherever my legs take me and just allow myself to breathe while the fog clears away little by little.
2. Walking Improves Your Gut Health
Do you know that situation when you eat something and you feel like it's sitting there in your stomach, weighing you down and unwilling to just continue its journey down? We have all experienced this unpleasant feeling that comes from indigestion. I have irritable bowel syndrome, and I suffer from indigestion a lot. Sometimes, when it's really bad, I walk until it subsides. Walking is also good if you have flatulence and need to release some gas (there's no shame here, people, we are all humans). Not just that, but walking can also enrich the microflora in your digestive tract and diversify it, which promotes digestive tract health.
3. Walking is Good for Your Skin
In the article "How Running Can be Good For Your Skin," we talked in depth about how running can be good for your skin's health. This applies to walking as well. Walking stimulates blood flow and increases the circulation to your skin cells, which supplies your skin with the essential nutrients it needs and promotes its health.
4. Walking is Good for Weight Loss
Walking can help you with weight loss and weight control, especially when it's combined with a diet. Walking for 30 minutes every day is enough to make you burn 150 calories more; this, of course, depends on your weight and your pace.
Specifically, for those who have belly fat and want to trim their waist, one study has found that walking exercise is an excellent strategy to follow if you want to overcome abdominal obesity.
Generally, if you just want to shed a few pounds, try walking every day for 30 minutes or more. You can start with a slow pace and a shorter duration, then make your way up from there.
5. Walking for Hair Health
Walking can promote hair health in the same manner it promotes skin health. Your hair follicle requires a lot of nutrients to thrive and stay healthy. Since walking can significantly improve blood circulation, more blood will reach your hair follicles and, thereby, more nutrients. However, that's not the only way in which walking can promote hair health; remember how we talked earlier about how walking reduces stress? Well, guess what can be related to hair loss? Yeah, stress.
Last year, I lived through a tremendous amount of stress when my family and I had to leave our home all of a sudden. This stress caused my hair to fall down like crazy. That's why, if you are experiencing hair loss or hair health issues due to stress, I recommend that you take a daily walk.
6. Walking Improves Heart Health
I remember once I read a journal by the name "Walking: The First Step in Cardiovascular Disease Protection," and I found it quite interesting. This study has summarized that walking can potentially play a key role in the primary and secondary prevention of heart disease. This means that walking regularly can protect your heart and your vascular system from chronic illnesses.
According to a study published in the European Society of Cardiology, walking at least 2337 steps a day reduced the risk of dying from diseases of the heart and blood vessels (cardiovascular disease) [source].
7. Walking Improves Sleep
A lot of you out there have insomnia for various reasons. In fact, occasional and short-term insomnia affects 30% to 50% of adults at some point in their lives. We try to force ourselves to sleep, but if you talk to a doctor, they might tell you that sleep is not about sleep time; it's about daytime and the early hours of night. That's absolutely true!
Walking is one of the activities that you can practice to sleep like a baby at night. If you start complaining from lack of sleep, take a stroll at night and walk until you break some sweat, then take a shower and go to bed; trust me, this is a wonderful recipe for a good night's sleep.
Conclusion
Walking is one of the best exercises out there; it's an exercise that is accessible to almost everyone. Regardless of how fit you are and regardless of your age, walking is something you can do. Like I said, start slowly, and then walk your way into a healthy life.
Hair loss ;{]~really I've been bald for 22 years!