The benefits of daily brisk walking are numerous.

What exactly can we gain from a brisk walk on a daily basis?;

Walking is an activity that we all do during the day, without knowing the multiple benefits that it offers to our various body systems. In fact, we often underestimate this activity, believing that other forms of exercise, such as weights, are naturally superior for improving our health.

The importance of this activity is emphasized by the guidelines of the American College of Sports Medicine, which recommends 30 minutes of walking on a daily basis for the better functioning of all body systems, especially the heart.

Physical benefits of brisk walking

Fast walking is an intense exercise for many people, which seems to improve a person's fitness, regardless of age and gender. Aerobic capacity, muscular strength, mobility and flexibility are improved with this activity.

The person can more easily carry out daily activities of minimally required work, with economy and confidence, thus improving the level of his/her quality of life. How important fast walking can be, when it can give us maximum autonomy and freedom of movement.

It exercises us

Climbing stairs, carrying objects and moving from place to place are activities that can easily be done with this form of exercise. We increase muscle strength in our lower limbs, particularly in our quads and hamstrings, improve our balance ability as we have the unipedal support phase and better cultivate our rhythm and coordination.

Helps the heart

The heart's function is clearly improved by fast walking, as it learns to work under pressure and adapt to greater loads. Thus, more blood is delivered to the heart with each beat to enable it to cope with the demands. Heart rate therefore increases during exercise and decreases at rest, reducing the risk of hypertension.

Prevention of chronic diseases

Brisk walking helps to prevent chronic diseases, as it reduces the factors that can lead to a chronic condition or an unfavourable condition for the body.

In particular, it lowers blood glucose levels and improves lipid profile, as it increases the high-density lipoprotein that is desirable, making brisk walking an ideal form of exercise for people with diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. Regular heart rate monitoring is important in these individuals to avoid potential complications.

Can prevent the early onset of dementia

Research conducted at the University of Kansas has shown that aerobic exercise such as brisk walking can prevent the early onset of dementia and reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. Across the world, more than 35 million people suffer from Alzheimer's disease and the condition is unfortunately getting worse.

According to scientists, people who exercise even briskly on a daily basis are less likely to have similar mental illnesses than those who do little or no exercise.

This is because people who exercise have more volume in the hippocampus, a part of the brain that becomes responsible for verbal memory and learning.

Reduces the risk of osteoporosis

The joints are protected in the best way, as the bones increase their density, due to the impact of fast walking, reducing the risk of osteoporosis at an older age, while people who perform this activity seem to have a lower chance of developing an infection or upper respiratory disease, since fast walking is a means of shielding the respiratory system of the body.

Improves our metabolism

Another important advantage of this type of exercise is the improvement of the person's metabolism. Fast walking, especially when performed on a daily basis, helps in losing kilos and reduces the girth of the abdominal area. The person gains a better image of his/her body and does not feel any insecurity about it.

Psychological benefits of brisk walking

You might think that brisk walking will make you feel even more overwhelmed when you're feeling overwhelmed from a stressful day, but research shows that walking, at any pace, increases levels of cortisol, epinephrine and norepinephrine, hormones that help increase energy levels.

So, walking fast after a long day at the office has the benefit of eliminating stress, relaxing the muscles and helping to get a quality and quantity of sleep, without disturbances.

In short, then, brisk walking improves our mood, removing possible negative thoughts from our minds and making us happy and optimistic.

By Dimitris Alepliotis, gymnast