1. Walking gives time to have family gathering
We live in a world where time is premium. Everyone is almost busy doing something. It is difficult to find family time together and almost everyone in the house seems to have a different specific schedule. Walking offers a wonderful leisure activity that the whole family can enjoy at the same time. This offers a bonding experience like no other – a time where you can leisurely stroll around the park and get things done as well. It offers a perfect opportunity for the entire family to put out their devices to the side and enjoy the simple pleasures of life.
2. Walking gives strength to your heart (in more than one way) When you spend time with your family, it will give you enlighten you about the things that the other person is going through. Research has provided slight evidence that people tend to be more open during the time they are exercising. The exact reason is unknown and scientists are still working on to find the exact reason but one of the reasons associated with this is the hormonal shift in the body that helps people relax while exercising. Hence walking can not only make the heart healthy, it also offers you an opportunity to connect better with your partner and your kids at the same time. Two benefits in one. 3. Lose weight together In a lot of cases, obesity problems can run through the entire family. This happens when people are collectively into bad habits. Walking can help you become slimmer but also provide a perfect opportunity to talk about such issues.
4. Avoid dementia and create new memories Research has shown that walking can help people fight dementia. Not only it can help you fight dementia, collective walking can help you to make new memories. 5. Free vitamin D
Vitamin D is a proven source of health and an anti-depressant. The modern life means that there are hardly any opportunities to get this free supplement. You are either traveling in a car or staying indoors. If you manage to sort your schedule, you can enjoy walking with your family and have free Vitamin D dose, every single day.
6. Extra energy to go through the day and perfect family relaxation Exercise is known to boost energy levels and relax at the same time. Walking is the easiest exercise and offers a perfect family relaxation for anyone involved. 7. Collective happiness
Exercise helps release hormones in the body that create an air of happiness. When all the members in the family go out together, this can help create a collective air of happiness. Get your family today and convince them to take a walk with you and enjoy these wonderful benefits.



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Mornings are a difficult time– most of the people are stressed out for the busy day ahead or wish to relax because it is a weekend. A very low percentage of people are actually morning people and most people wake up to a dreaded sound of the alarm. Not an ideal case when you wish to live a happy and long life however with a little tweak in your morning routine, you can reap many benefits of early morning walk.
Morning walks have been scientifically validated as one of the most significant of all physical exertions. There are no current impending dangers hovering over it as it is one of the safest physical exertions suitable for everyone. It is perfectly safe and completely harmless for everyone, irrespective of their age as human beings are naturally designed to walk and contain long lasting stamina to walk.

1. Ideal for weight loss: The human metabolism has been designed in such a way that it works best after long breaks. Normally in a 24 hour day, the longest gap between two snacks comes between dinner and breakfast. Any light exercise in the morning is a better strategy towards weight loss and walking is ideal because it’s a rhythmic long activity.

2. Gets the energy level high in the morning and maintains a good start to the day: Walking offers a great boost for a long difficult day. It provides you with an opportunity to start a day full of energy and also helps in maintaining energy levels throughout the day.

3. Helps increase immunity by offering positive stimulant to immune system: The immune system gets a hormone boost early morning and continues to work on that through the day.

4. Offers ideal help against heart disease: Not only it is a good exercise, if you are walking outside, the air is at its freshest and cleanest. This provides antigens and positive feeling that helps fighting off heart disease among other things.

5. The best anti-depressant on offer which is free: A timely walk every morning helps keeps the system in balance and stress at bay.

6. An ideal sleep schedule: Morning walks are good way to fix your sleep schedule and wake up when necessary.
7. Better blood circulation: Your blood circulation becomes absolutely perfect if you prefer going for a brisk morning walk. This in turn reduces the risk of many diseases which may be the cause of the lack of physical activities.

8. A proper fight against diabetes: Diabetes patients are regularly advised by doctors to take regular morning walks. Regular walking habit early morning has resulted in lower medication levels for diabetes patients.

9. The perfect daily routine: An early wake up time, ample time to take breakfast, enjoy a little morning walk, shower, and rest can help you create a perfect daily routine based on your work schedule. No stressing out, no running about trying to fix a last minute sandwich, and easy morning routine to start a day filled with adventure.

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According to a comprehensive research carried out by experts at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress suggested that regular exercise can increase life span.

The research, presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress, followed 69 people between the ages of 30 and 60. Those who engaged in daily moderate exercise, such as a brisk walk or jog, high-intensity interval training (HIIT), and strength training experienced anti-aging benefits that could add an additional three to seven years to your life
The researchers recommended a 20-minute daily walk to reap these benefits, but while I agree a daily walk is a phenomenal health tool, I don’t view it as a form of exercise. “This suggests that when people exercise regularly, they may be able to retard the process of ageing,” said Sanjay Sharma, professor of inherited cardiac diseases in sports cardiology at St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in London.
“We may never avoid be-coming completely old, but we may delay the time we become old. We may look younger when we’re 70 and may live into our nineties. “Exercise buys you three to seven additional years of life. It is an antidepressant, it improves cognitive function and there is now evidence that it may retard the onset of dementia.” The study also reveals that people who tend to start this earlier, have a higher chance of getting the benefits associated with walking. A common problem observed with people who do not indulge in walking is that there are no underlying medical conditions. People can start walking but for different reasons which have nothing to do with medical ailments, they stay away from the health exercise. These factors include, lack of interest in exercise, a difficult routine where no or little importance is paid to exercise, and other simple matters are all very common. A lot of people are also already aware of the benefits that walking has to offer them but they are still not keen in gaining those benefits. Imagine all the books that you can read in the additional time, all the places that you can visit, all the people that you can meet, and all the extra things that you can do in your life if you are able to prolong your life and youth by a period of seven years. This also includes that not only there is a chance to increase quantity of your life there is a definite correlation that the quality of life will improve. Next time, you think that you are too tired to walk or there is some show on tv that you just cannot miss, remember that but just adding a simple tweak to your daily routine, you are adding a possibility to live longer and will be able to do those things that you’ve always dreamed about doing but have found very little time to actually do. Start now. This is the perfect time. Photo credit: Hernan Piñera via Foter.com / CC BY-SA

Walking is essentially an activity that most of us are able to perform without loads of effort. There are of course always outliers but for a major portion of population, walking comes naturally as breathing. However just as there are many techniques and methods to work, and not every one of them is perfect, walking comes with the same condition. With a little effort and technique change, you can convert your walking into a strenuous and healthy exercise. Bear in mind, even the normal regular walk is helpful however with a few tweaks in your walking routine, you can utilize the full potential of this easy to do exercise and become healthier and happier. The best bit is that if you manage your technique perfectly, you can tone your body. This will help you trim your waistline without much effort if you are looking at that and also help you work out on the muscles that you require working on giving you a perfect toned shape. Not all physical activities need to be really complicated for them to give you a perfect body. With a few simple technique changes, tweaks, and long hours you can become a lean mean machine just by walking. The technique: In order to turn your normal walk into a fitness stride you require a good posture and purposeful strong movements. Ideally, these are some of the steps that you can consider and changes in your technique for you to work on. These will take time to get used to and will also take time to show results. The results won’t be immediate and also if you feel some pain and discomfort consult your doctor and revert back to the easier routine of before.

• The head position: One of the key elements is the head position. Maintain a strong head position where your neck muscles don’t let the head droop and maintain a straight steady head posture. You may look with your eyes in any direction you wish to, but the head should point forward and slightly upwards, and not at the ground.

• The neck: Maintain a position between a fully relaxed neck and shoulder posture and a steady shoulder and neck posture. The balance is important; you can neither be too stiff, nor too relaxed.

• The arms: You need to be swinging your arms freely with a slight bend in your elbows if possible. A little pumping with your arms is okay to do just as the marching soldiers do. That helps you maintain momentum as well as exerts extra energy.

• The back and stomach: You need to maintain a walking posture where the stomach muscles are slightly tightened and the back should be completely straight. Arched back in any direction can lead to long term problems – ensure that you maintain a good back posture while walking.

• One smooth natural flow: Maintain a smooth walking rhythm where you flow through the body in one motion. Balance the stride length and maintain it, lift the knees so that your foot leaves the ground and walk with a rhythmic flow. Increase the speed to a level where you can maintain it for longer durations without feeling stressed out.

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Dr. Darrenn Mitchell has seen a lot of sports injury related patients in his life. Working down under, he has met not only athletes at the top of their game but he has also seen ordinary people having serious exercise related injuries. Although the types of the injuries are different – a common theme of how the injuries were sustained remains the same; extra effort in trying to increase the physical limitations of their body!

He concludes that most of the injuries that he sees can be easily prevented. Although these injuries were preventable, once you have them, you have to suffer a lot. His tips to prevent some crucial injuries

1. Do not mix exercise pain and discomfort with long and chronic problems: it is very easy to confuse between the two but they should not be mixed.
2. Use the best gear possible for exercise: Do not in any case try to save money on exercise gear and other stuff related to that. There are other avenues where you can save money but this is not an area where you should experiment. Find the best shoes possible to wear – foot injuries are very common and may result in life long problems.
3. Understand your physical limitations: It is very important to understand what your body can and cannot do. Although exercise helps increase endurance, it is a painstakingly slow process sometimes. The initial gains come quickly but once you have accomplished the initial goals, progress will become slower.
4. The mental side of remaining healthy and injury free: Not only you require physical strength to master injuries, you also have to show decent amount of mental strength to overcome injuries. People often forget that if you remain positive, mental strength can help you make things better.
5. Recovery time: Even if you don’t want it, it is better to take a lengthy recovery period in case you get an injury. Even if you feel that you have the strength to go back to full throttle – do not do that. It is a common trap that many people feel. Recursive and repeat injuries are more dangerous than the initial injury and take more time to heal than the first injury.
6. Get routine physicals: In case your body is showing symptoms, consult the physician quickly.
7. Learn from your elders: Go through the medical histories of your parents, grand-parents and other people in your family to see the history chart. Identify the possible problems that you are most likely to suffer and plan according to them. If your family has a history of back problems, be more careful to any discomfort if it is related to your back. Pain in the shin area may not be as dangerous to you as pain in lower back – although both cause discomfort, one should raise immediate concern and a check-up while the other can be allowed natural rest and recovery time.

Dr. Darren Mitchel concludes that if taken care of, approximately 55% of cases that he has seen could have been avoided. Be smart, exercise properly and maintain good living lifestyle to enjoy life at optimal. Best of luck!



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In this post, we are going to try to expand the exercise limit. It is well and good that you are exercising hard and slowly increasing your threshold but most people observe that very soon they reach their performance plateau and they cannot go any further. Performance plateau is the point at which you reach your maximum limit and no matter how much you try in your current physical scenario, you are unable to move any further. A performance plateau is dangerous because in order to move on from there, people are guilty of spending extra energy, time and effort which may result in causing injures and adverse health conditions.

Although walking does not carry potential to serious injuries like more strenuous exercises, it can definitely cause foot and leg injuries among others that can become seriously damaging to quality of life. How to develop a strategy suitable for incremental growth once you have reached your performance plateau?

• The organic method of thrashing your performance plateau: The organic method involved in crossing your performance plateau requires a calculated and sensible approach. The alternatives include but are not limited to increased diet, steroids, and supplements among few. As we have always claimed in our blog that there is no magical way to remain fit. Fitness as it is, is an on-going process rather than means to an end. In order to grow organically from your limitations, you need to possess information and data about your physical limitations. If you are stuck at 14,000 steps a day, you must analyze yourself and see what the areas that you can improve are. In certain cases, you need increased nutrients of some sort, in certain cases you need to move to a more rigorous exercise to build certain muscles that are not being developed by walking. If you choose to use the organic method, you need to have complete information on as many variables involved in exercise as possible. Having a device like pedometer helps because you have a lot of information already available to you. A careful manipulation of all the information can lead you into identifying areas that can easily be improved.

 

• Staying injury free while shattering your limits: Here comes the hard part – you wish to outdo your own self but you are afraid that you are exerting a bit too much. As they say, sometimes running away does not mean that you have accepted defeat – it only means you require more time to analyze your problems. Things like warm-ups, dynamic warm-ups and introduction of incentives can slowly help you alleviate your performance. A longer warm-up focusing on weak muscles can be increasingly important in your quest to outdo your own self.

 
  The mental aspect: One of the main concerns in such an activity is maintaining the mental balance. It is very easy to become over encumbered by pressure. Such an occasion leads to making silly and unnecessary mistakes.




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As we discussed in the previous article, as a person aiming for a regular and active lifestyle, one must try to understand the physical limitations of their body.
How to be aware of your own physical limits?
As a general rule, every single human being maintains a few distinct features in their body. Although we may appear all the same, there are intricate small details that remain different for all individuals. This uniqueness is often mistaken – a person gaining weight easily as compared to a person who finds it impossible to gain weight cannot be judged on the same barometer. In order to find about your physical limitations, a comprehensive exercise plan is necessary

• Find a starting point: A person of your height and weight may have a totally difference endurance point. It can all be down to the breathing capability (air intake), metabolism rate, muscle strength, bone density or other factors. All the information that you read and see are general guidelines and not rules. If you have an exercise partner and that person continues to outshine you or is considerably lower in performance benchmarks than you – there is nothing to worry or celebrate. To accurately estimate your starting point, you should spend one week where you try to see how far you can go without discomfort tiredness and pain. If you have chosen walking as your desired activity, see how many steps you can do. Do this activity over a week to find your median average and threshold. Once you have obtained data over a longer span of time, you are in a better position to estimate your performance benchmarks.

• Monitor exercise gains properly: Instinct is not always the best way to judge your performance. Yes you may feel lighter and even your size has gone down a little – you still need to find accurate measures to calculate your gains. Injury prevention revolves very finely around the amount of effort that you are spending to the returns that you are obtaining. If you are able to maintain a fine balance between the two, you will be able to remain injury free. Consider an example – if you have set yourself a target of additional 400 steps every day until you reach 10,000 steps a day, you can easily calculate the amount of calories that you burnt and the physical tiredness that you felt. If at any moment you feel that you are unable to do more or you require eating more to perform the task – the incremental gain goes in the negative (you start to consume more calories to balance out the negative impact of exercise).

A comprehensive exercise plan can help you to create a plan within your physical limitations without spending extra energy.
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As it goes, life is always ready to teach you a free lesson about maintain good shape. No matter what you try to remain fit, there may always be some unexpected accident that can cause some unfortunate sports stress related injury.
It may come in the form of a minute blister bothering you while walking or it may be the result of slipping and falling resulting in some broken bones. Muscle spasms and strains are almost always a possibility and always seem to remain close.
A lot of people often end up injuring themselves in the process of trying to do a little more exercise than their body can handle. Three of the most common reasons of getting injured are

• Trying too much: every single body has a different threshold. This value may be different for different people but no matter who you are and what you do, a threshold always exists. It is very easy to forget your threshold and do a little too much – it is also very difficult to judge what your exact threshold is.

• Trying things too quickly: you see your neighbor doing extra exercise or you see the people in your gym around you doing a lot and you feel you have to do more too. You try too hard and try to move from one thing to another quickly but it results in only becoming a negative thing for you.

• Not enough training: Unless you are born as a Greek God, it is necessary that you give your body enough time to train itself. You have to understand how things work for your own body – no matter how many internet videos you see or how many trainers you consult, the only person who can well and truly understand your body is still just yourself.

Injury Aggravation:
Common injuries are simple to ignore. In the regular everyday life of ours, it is very easy to just consider some things as usual elements of life and forgetting their ramifications. A common injury can get aggravated over time making recovery longer and painful.
If you feel that there is anything that is preventing you from exercise you should rationally identify the problem. The age old debate between discomfort and pain continues to confound people – while sometimes pain may just be a discomfort indicator, at other times it is a cause of serious concern.

1. Check your exercise routine – if you are walking 10,000 steps a day, with every day that you complete your task, the activity should become easier for you. If it continues to remain difficult and the pain continues to increase, you need to check if things are going smoothly.
2. A visit to a physician isn’t a bad idea – in case the symptoms remain, it is always great to see a physician for detailed check-up.

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Well 2015 is over and 2016 has finally started.

Myths of 2015:

1. We will finally find a health food that will help us fight obesity: 2015 started with a lot of fanfare about people finally being able to solve the jig saw puzzle of magical health foods. There was a lot of talk but it all materialized to nothing. There were no miracle foods, no omega 3 supplements and no magical pills that could help for weight loss or better health.

2. The diet pills will finally start working: Another thing that did not happen in 2015 was that diet pills continue to remain a sham. No matter how they are marketed and sold, it is still pretty obvious that no such miracle drug has been invented.

Facts of 2015:

1. Organic food has silently gained more importance: Last year, organic foods started to become main stream. There is still debate about their benefits but the bottom line is, in 2016, organic food market will continue to grow,

2. De-Toxins, Omega 3 and other health foods: Eating yogurt remained a good thing, having less meat, going for green tea and other healthy trends remained “in” all year round. Although we are consuming more junk food than ever, people are beginning to start viewing at health foods and other healthy alternatives with less suspicion.

3. Exercise still isn’t main stream: In most modern world societies, exercise still didn’t become main stream. Although more people are exercising than before, a vast majority still are not exhibiting regular exercise.

4. Fat shaming and cyber bullying continues to happen: No matter how much we try to push it under the carpet, bullying and fat shaming remains a constant problem the world over.

What should we expect in 2016?

Pretty much the same as 2015

Although certain things will continue to improve (more research on organic food), a miracle cure is still out of sight. In order to remain healthy, people should remember to eat healthy and fresh. Meat should become an optional item rather than a necessity.

One thing that continues to remain a constant in healthy life is walking. In 2015 doctors all over the world recommended people to walk and they will continue to do so in 2016 as well. On that note, it is good to say goodbye to the last year and begin another one – hopefully, this one will be even better than the last.
Good luck and keep walking!


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Not only walking is beneficial for our internal organs, walking plays an important role in the health of our feet – yes our feet that we often do not even bother to think about.

David Goysett, expert podiatrist at the Third Space Medical center in London’s Soho states, “Our feet were made for walking. And that’s exactly what they should do. It’s the best way of exercising the 50-odd muscles we have in our feet. This is becoming increasingly important as we become more sedentary. Just like any other muscle in the body, you have to exercise it to keep it healthy and able to maintain its function. When you don’t exercise them, the muscles become weaker.”

He further goes on about how important it is to manage foot health through walking. “The 26 bones within the foot, plus its ligaments, are exercised gently by walking, so they are not in danger of stress”. This is not as simple as it may always seem, after a long walk Goysett recommends that you should take good care of your fee.  “It’s a good idea to stretch them out, much as you would any other muscle after exercise. That should reduce any aches and pains the following day.”

There is also another area of grave concern that I will touch in some other future post and that will revolve around the posture and way of walking. Although walking comes natural to us, not all of us are doing it right. This may come as a surprise to a lot of individuals but the fact is, not all of us are walking right. Odd as it may sound, even a simple activity like breathing requires careful manipulation and although all of us are breathing, not all of us are breathing right.

Summarizing this post in points

1. Walking can help you with alleviate your physical strength: If done properly and regularly, walking can help you tone your body muscles and provide you with endurance.

2. Walking helps both internal and external organs to function better.

3. Walking has more medical benefits than we know of yet. A regular rhythmic walk can help in better cardiovascular health, better secretion, stronger immunity and resistance to disease and can help improve mental condition. People suffering from stress can find walking beneficial.

4. Walking helps create better personal image raising self-esteem for different people. In a world where we are all faced with bullying, walking can provide a relaxing activity where people can enjoy their own mental space and get healthy.

5. Walking helps in getting strong legs and feet. Although feet are very important, their health is often ignored.

I hope this article will get your interest back in walking. With your memories refreshed and ambition ready, let us get walking!


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There are more reasons to walk than ever before. Regular walking as some other aerobic activities has shown positive impact on the cardiovascular health of different individuals. Carried out in moderation, walking alone can provide you with stronger heart and can result in improved blood supply in the vascular system.
It is though required that you devise a plan today that works for you. If you manage regular walking with a comprehensive diet and other exercise plans, you can have weight loss and toned muscles.

In a recent interview with a renowned newspaper, Dr. Craig Williams a sports science lecturer at the University of Exeter stated: “It (regular walk) can improve muscle endurance as well as muscle strength, especially in the lower body. It is good for bones and improves the body’s cardiovascular system. It also helps boost circulation. Power-walking – keeping a brisk pace at moderate to high intensity – can burn the same amount of calories as jogging or running. So it is useful for helping with weight loss.”

Going even further in the interview, he stated: “Because it is low impact, it does not have the same potential for injury as jogging. Yet it can offer all the benefits”. A lot of people find jogging difficult to manage and although it has great benefits, a lot of people with knee problems find it impossible to maintain a regular and steady jogging routine.

Dr. Craig Williams is not alone, there are other experts interviewed by the same newspaper who agree with him. Marcus Davis, an osteopath with the Harley Street Back Centre in London is one who agrees in totality with Dr. Craig. He says: “Walking helps to drain the lower legs of excess fluid and can help prevent varicose veins through the pumping action of the calf muscles. The increased supply of oxygen exercise promotes also gets rid of the waste products in the tissues. ‘And because more people are able to walk at a consistent speed than run, it is a more beneficial form of tissue-cleansing, particularly for the over-50s, for whom jogging can actually cause more problems”

The benefits of walking are not finished here, in his statement, he further carries on the subject by discussing how potentially helpful regular walking can be for people who are suffering from chronic injuries. “Walking is also better for the spine than running, as it puts less stress on the discs. Yet we were designed for constant movement, not sitting in cars or in front of computers, which causes negative pressures on our spinal cord. Regular walking is excellent for spinal discs, which receive minerals and vitamins through the pumping action it causes. ‘And the best thing is that you can see results from walking reasonably quickly – although it depends on each person’s individual level of fitness, age and how often and fast they are walking.”

If you needed added incentive to start regular walking, this here is ample incentive for you to carry on. Start today and feel the benefits of regular walking! Photo credit: pedrosimoes7 via Foter.com / CC BY

It is another year, another beginning and some people will be trying their best to start their life on a better note. I am assuming you are one of those people who want a fresh start to life in this year. If you are one of those who wish for better things to happen in comparison to last year, you are at the right place.
Over the course of a few years, I have been trying my level best to keep people interested in the healthy life style. It isn’t difficult but it is also not easy. As I have said countless times, there are no shortcuts. People need to understand this today that life does not offer any shortcuts. I need to say this even more today because every time I turn on the TV channel or look at some internet sites, I see people talking about miracle diets and rapid solutions. Such things do not exist and I cannot repeat this often. There is no short cut to better health (as of now). You cannot just eat something and think that it will fix everything.
The human body is designed to endure hardships. It is like a machine that requires to be used regularly and properly. You cannot sit idle and be reckless and hope that all is going to be fine. You have to take charge and as I can testify from my own experiences, if you try, you will be able to do so. At the start of this New Year, I will start afresh in mentioning some of the core concepts that can help you live a better life.
As I have stated earlier, I am a massive fan of regular walks. In my opinion, regular walking is simple, easy, and thoroughly enjoyable activity. In this series of articles, I will try to refresh memory of old followers and provide some material for new readers. At the end of the day, you control your health and only you are responsible for it.
In the first two articles, I will be presenting some views from famous and respectable doctors, and in the last one, I will be doing a small recap of the last year along with some discussion on health trends for 2016.
I hope you end up reading all the articles; together we can work for a better us. Let us take the opportunity for this New Year and finally fulfill our New Year resolution. Photo credit: eliot. via Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA

In the last part of this series of blog posts, I will close of the benefits of walking by going in detail in some of the benefits that are easily ignorable but have extreme importance in life. Like many things, we sometimes forget that the end results are not certain milestones but happiness from the activity itself. An activity may not offer us many benefits except the fact that it makes us happy and that is actually very important for our wellbeing. The best part about walking is, not only it is great for our wellbeing; it also has great potential to make us happy.

9. Increase energy levels when you walk!

In order to understand energy and how the human body works, first I will give you a simple example however you may or may not be able to relate to this example. A lot of times we wake up in the morning and we feel that we are still tired despite having a good night’s sleep, also sometimes, we spend the whole day resting and relaxing yet still feel tired at the end of the day. Such paradoxes are confusing because a body should not feel tired after a day of rest but it does. The contrary situation to that occurs when we have performed a physical task that requires a lot of energy from us yet we still feel refreshed and energetic once we accomplish them. The energy boost has to do a lot with hormones that run within our body. When physical activities reach a certain stimulation point, the brain order certain hormones to be released which help alleviate blood pressure, control oxygen intake, increase muscle cleansing and remove toxins which tire us from our body at a faster speed. This kick is often felt in extreme physical sports however a similar and long lasting effect can also be created by simple walking. The increased energy boost may not be as obvious as compared to after or during a game of soccer or cricket but it certainly will help you get refreshed and feel active.

1. Walking makes people happy!

I have kept the last and most important benefit till the end. Studies concluded have shown that moderate exercise like brisk and sustained walking can act as antidepressants. Spending time in the nature, looking at trees and going for strolls has shown decreased blood pressure and stress levels and continuous exposure to nature during a walk has shown a general increase in overall health and happiness. I will not go into the detail of the last benefit, I want you to try this for yourself and tell me if that actually works for you. Stay green, stay clean and keep walking!
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Continuing with the last two posts, I am going in detail of the benefits that walking offers. It has to be said that there are many gadgets and tools that can help you evaluate your daily walking statistics and if you are really keen on monitoring the benefits, you should get some to keep a track of your daily walking activity.

1. Complete gradual toning of muscles in the body!

The best thing about walking is that it is a full body exercise involving almost all the components in your body from the neck muscles down to your calves and feet muscle. Although, there are exercises like running and swimming that are more involving, walking steadily combines all the muscles without too much effort. While you are swimming, you may feel tired far more quickly as comparison to walking hence it is a great exercise to start the workout with.


Fitness experts often declare walking as the most complete exercise that is possible to undertake by all age groups. It takes care of the calves, quads, hamstrings, glutes and back muscles. If you are able to include uphill climb, the glutes are excessively exercised without over tiring them. A walk with proper posture includes abdominal muscles and shoulders as well making it the perfect rhythmic exercise that is extremely suitable for the body.


The biggest advantage about walking is that it is an endurance activity. Endurance activities help the muscles to gain strength without becoming bulky resulting in lower weight and stronger muscles. If you want to understand the difference, you can look at the comparison between long distance runners and sprint athletes. While sprint athletes require strong muscles to carry them to extreme speeds, distance runners possess less bulky muscles that make them carry less weight around but are super strong.

2. Intrinsic benefits of walking – Soaking up free Vitamin D:

There are many natural vital minerals that the body requires but often finds difficult to get. Although, it is present in some diet forms as well, the most reliable and easy source to get Vitamin D is from the natural sunlight. Most of the people living in the modern world however, due to their busy routines get very little time to spend under the sun. Unless you are specifically having sunbathe on a day of good weather, soaking up sunlight has become a very difficult task for people of today.



The growing demands of the workplace have ensured that more and more people every year in the UK are having a vitamin D deficiency. This has led to decreased immunity and deteriorating bone and teeth health for many British citizens. While walking does not directly contribute to increase of Vitamin D in your body, it provides you an ample opportunity to spend some necessary time in the sun. A word of advice, before you plan to venture out in the sun, find the appropriate sun protection so that you can avoid the hazards of excessive sunlight (including sun burn and certain forms of skin cancer).







Photo credit: ” Ajnagraphy ” (János Csongor Kerekes) / Foter / CC BY-ND

In continuation to the last post, I will continue listing some of the benefits of walking that we all need to remember from time to time. The best part about walking benefits is that we all know about these benefits but we often forget because we get extremely busy in our lives.
It is hence necessary that we keep remembering that walking is an extremely easy to do and useful activity that we must all indulge in from time to time.

1. Walking helps you reduce weight and stay healthy!

Weight loss is one of the most sought after things in the world. All over the planet people are searching for magical foods, super diet plans and the holy grail of them all medical pills that can help reduce weight. Although there are some not-traditional means that have shown some success, it is easy to notice that old school methods like consuming more calories than eating is still the only sure shot of achieving weight loss. In most cases, you have to consume roughly 5 per cent more calories than your input to lose weight. From a simple glance, it looks easy, but is that actually easy to achieve?

Have a look around you and see how many people in your circle are actually happy with their personal weight and you will find out that this task, despite looking very easy, is actually not very easy. The reasons are simple; there is a lot of great tasting food around but not too many avenues to burn those calories down. It is effective and easy but going to a gym regularly requires empty time slots along with some financial input every month which does not suit all people.

Walking steps in here – a cheap (literally free) alternative that is also not very difficult and almost possible for every single person. No matter what sort of personal shape you are in currently, you can start walking (the distance does not matter that much in the start anyways!). In terms of calorie burning, walking does not offer immense returns but once you have developed the basic stamina and skill to walk fast; you can burn as much as 200 calories in a walk roughly lasting 20 minutes. Once you have developed walking muscles, your calf muscles and your back muscles, you can increase the speed of at which you walk along with the distance to easily get extra benefits. The increased muscle mass also means that the fat will be burned faster and you will burn more calories once you get used to walking longer distances over higher speeds.

A great way to start getting back in shape!!

2. It can help you fight against mental & physical diseases!

Mental health is a topic that many people shy away from because of their fear about the disease. We do not possess a lot of knowledge about mental disease and most of the medication only works in certain cases. The increased problems of Dementia and Osteoporosis have been extremely dangerous for old people making living difficult for high age group segments. Currently, the statistics show that almost 8 per cent of people over the age of 65 are suffering from dementia and the problem becomes even more dangerous when the percentage rises to almost 20% for people over the age of 80.

The health benefits of an active lifestyle have been known to scientists and ordinary people alike but they become even more startling when statistics reveal that the probability of dementia goes down by almost 30 per cent for people who engage themselves in healthy activities. According to the reputable Age UK foundation, older people walking more than six miles per week are more capable of avoiding brain shrinkage than people who walk less than six miles. In order to preserve your memory, it is suggested to people that they should start walking more.
Not only that, a lot of problems related to joint pains can be eliminated by regular light walks. Dr. Benjamin (M.D and Medical Practitioner with over 20 years of health care experiences in renowned hospitals around the world) suggests that walking helps bones and joints become stronger and more capable of managing stress that comes with age. The stimulation and strengthening of bones mean that conditions like arthritis and regular joint pains that come with age can be better managed.

















Photo credit: Hernan Piñera / Foter / CC BY-SA

No matter what we say, there are still many things in the world that are free and still brilliant. I mean, it is difficult to see that the air that we breathe in, is important until it is taken away from you. The other day, I was watching this movie (Interstellar) and I just realized how important oxygen is despite us not thinking about it most of the time.
The same is the case with walking; it is an exercise different to many others in many ways. For starters it is much gentler than other forms of exercise yet equally useful if done over a sustained period. It is also very low on requirements – you can do it anywhere (almost always free), you do not require a lot of gear (gear helps but is not always necessary) and it is suitable for almost all people of different age groups and physical abilities. I have written before how well walking is but like all things important, repetition only helps in getting the message through.
I will list some more reasons here for you to think about the benefits of walking

1. The heart is where it hits the most!

Truly, this feels more like lyrics than any scientific fact but at the end of the day, your heart requires you to walk more and feels healthier when you do it. The benefits of regular walking are immense and difficult to list all of them in one post. Regular walking has been scientifically proven as a key agent in decreasing the probability of a heart disease. We all know how the bad cholesterol can cause problems to the heart – regular walkers though, have a great advantage as walking helps reduce the bad cholesterol levels from the body keeping both the levels of good cholesterol high and blood pressure in check.

Doctors have been suggesting people of all ages to start with walking as an alternative to harder exercises, not only it helps build stamina, it offers steady cardio training to the heart making it more capable to survive tough training regimes. Going just by the statistics, brisk 30 minute walk everyday can help prevent high blood pressure and reduce the probability of getting a stroke by a WHOPPING 30 per cent.

2. Increase power to the immune system!

The immune system is a fascinating mechanism within our body and even now, we know very little about all the details (the microorganisms, blood platelets and antibodies) that are working simultaneously to keep our body healthy.  What we already know for sure though, is the fact that regular walking can help decrease the risk of certain types of Cancer, Asthma, Type 2 Diabetes and other dangerous and life threatening disease.

According to the prestigious British Medical Journal, sustained walking can reduce the risk of different diseases ranging from Stomach & digestion problems, Colon issues to Cancers of different kind by a hefty 20 per cent. Considering the amount of people suffering from such disease and the problems associated with the modern lifestyle, that number is extremely high and provides a lot of hope to healthy people for a great, active and healthy life.



Photo credit: pedrosimoes7 / Foter / CC BY

As the saying goes “The best day to start was yesterday, however since that is not possible, today will do”   This has been one of my favorite saying for some time now. I can tell you that when I was struggling with some of my own issues, this saying really helped me.
The problem with weight loss is that it is an extremely difficult process. There are so many tasty distractions around us that it becomes difficult to stay away from them. Some of us are unlucky to have bodies that find it easy to gain weight – scientific research has proven that some bodies are inclined to have a higher equilibrium weight and they try to reach that weight regardless of our efforts.
This may be an excuse to be obese, but that is not the reason why someone should not try to stay healthy and lose weight.
This post is in continuation to the post that we had over here about the New Year Resolution. Almost three months have passed since the dawn of 2015 and it is a good time to reflect on the progress of how the weight loss challenge or resolution has been going.
So answer this question honestly, have you been happy with your weight loss regime in the last three months?
How many times did you let temptation overwhelm you into making decisions that you later had to regret?
Was it easy for you to follow a simple plan so far?
A few years ago I read an interesting research about heart patients who suffer a stroke or cardia arrest. Two thirds of them despite having a cardiac arrest that almost curtailed their life prematurely revert back to activities that brought them in the hospital in the first place. This includes smoking, drinking and over eating to mention a few activities.

Scientists observed that the one third who managed to refrain from their previous lifestyle used the power of regular enforced motivation. They created charts, motivational posters around the house, placed stickers on the fridge to constantly provide them motivation to avoid their bad habits. In turn, they manage to not succumb to their temptations while the others found it hard to do so.
Hence this is the purpose of the post – to reinforce the promise that you made to yourself over the New Year’s Eve to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
It must have been difficult and trust me on that, I can totally understand the struggle that it is. However you have to keep faith in your abilities and stay strong and not worry about the progress.
If you manage to control some of your temptations and even if you have not lost as much weight as you wanted by now, worry not.
I always say that losing weight is not about the end goal, losing weight is about enjoying the process for a healthy lifestyle. Even if you are not exactly at the weight that you wanted to be by now, as long as you are managing the process, it is great.
Remember your weight loss challenge and keep trying – even if you are not there now, you will be there eventually.
#Believe Photo credit: globalcosmic / Foter / CC BY

In the first part, we talked about walking accessories like pedometers and heart monitors. In this one, we will discuss general accessories required for walking, running or other outdoor activities that you require

Walking and Exercise Belts:

I have been always annoyed by things in my pocket while I am walking. If you have keys, the sound of them clanging together with each other is extremely annoying. Add to that modern smartphones, wallets and other essentials that are carried in the pocket and this creates for a truly miserable experience.

For such problems, the best accessory to have is a walking belt that comes with storage. Although it is the same as a fanny pack, a walking belt is much advanced version of the age old product. These products are ergonomically designed in such a way that they do not harm the body with any repetitive stress injury. This makes using them extremely safe and beneficial.

Most of these belts come with extra space where you can store your smart phone, wallet and keys absolutely safely. Innovations in modern science have ensured that the materials used in these products are water resistant. This makes these products doubly effective – not only the things stored within the pockets will be safe from perspiration; they will also remain safe in case you are stuck in the rain.

Biggest Benefit:

Hands free walking experience with the belief that your documents and important items are absolutely safe from rain, sweat and casual loss. No annoying sounds while walking and safety of electronic equipment.

Walking Sticks:
Although not necessary for all age groups, walking sticks are essential if you are unfortunately suffering from some problems with your knees, joints, old age related problems or live in suburban areas where they may come in handy in case of rain or protection against small animals.

They are a great accessory and also come handy in camping trips and hikes.

Biggest Benefit:
Extremely useful when walking terrain is slippery or has elevations in it.


Sweat Shirts and Comfortable Walking Pants:

Comfortable clothing results in better walking experience. Buy a few set of exercising clothes and other essentials that you can keep exchanging for your everyday walks.

In most cases it is important to purchase high quality comfortable exercise clothes. Since you will be walking every day unlike gym which in most cases is based on alternate days, it is necessary that you have more than one pair with you. Ideally, if you have 5 pairs, you will not have to worry about doing laundry every second day.

Biggest Benefit:
Chose fabric that is comfortable on your skin and helps you avoid walking rashes

Shoes and Socks:

Lastly, you have to have proper walking gear that takes care of your ankles and distributes stress evenly. Good shoes will provide you with comfort and ease and the whole walking experience will become comfortable.

The same goes for socks, woolen socks are ideal as they not only absorb perspiration, they reduce odors that can be generated in socks.

Biggest Benefit:

Good shoes and socks take care of your feet and joints.




Photo credit: Bev Goodwin / Foter / CC BY

Walking as I have mentioned a lot of times is an extremely healthy activity. It is simpler than jogging and puts less stress on your knees and ankles. It is also easier to get used to – often people looking to shed weight are confused and self-conscious about being able to replicate regular people who jog.
Walking offers an easy way to get started and slowly becomes a habit that you can carry over a long time.
Before you start walking regularly, you should know about some accessories that will help you in your routine walks.


Pedometers:  
Pedometers are great tools to monitor your daily walks. They help you analyze and monitor your progress. We have already talked in detail about how helpful pedometers can be so I will not go in too much detail.

Biggest Benefit:

They let you monitor your daily walk even when you are doing your routine tasks. This helps create a sense of achievement which increases positive energy.
Heart Monitor:

This is an important accessory and must be used by individuals who are keen to take their health to the next level.

How do heart monitors work:

Hear monitors track your cardiac function by monitoring your beats per minute. This provides critical data about human heart during intense activities which a person carries on every day. When you exercise, your heart rate jumps up – if untrained extreme exercise instead of beneficial is dangerous for the heart.

Athletes train their heart through practice so that it keeps working within normal limits. The tiredness and breathlessness that you feel in exercise is a direct result of increased cardiac activity.

If you are a beginner, you have to find suitable parameters for the working of your heart. As long as you stay within these parameters, you will find yourself safe from dangers involved in over exertion. It is hence very important for individuals to keep a track record of their heart rate through heart monitors.

There is more, most heart meters come with advanced features including calories burnt, alarms if heart rate is reaching dangerous levels and other extremely important information that your body is generating.

Biggest Benefit:

Heart monitors are extremely beneficial for both beginners and advanced users. When you are a beginner, you require an understanding of your upper and lower limit. Heart monitors help you achieve an idea about these limits. Now you can exercise without fear of burnout, fatigue and over exertion and focus on just exercise alone. For advanced users, the information provided by heart monitors can be used to find out progress in their abilities. The learning curve is often steep in the start but overtime it slowly plateaus. At such instances, people often require encouragement to see whether they are really improving any further or not.

With the help of heart monitor, such information is no longer based on speculations. You can easily see that upon more exercise or walk, your heart will tend to remain stable longer and provide you with more stable beats per second or minute readings.


We will discuss other important walking accessories in part 2 of the article Photo credit: marumeganechan / Foter / CC BY-ND

When I was a kid, I remember my mom telling me to eat my greens. I of course was not a very difficult child but my other siblings were not as easy going as me and often finishing the greens became a challenge for them.

I can though safely say that ever since that time, I have had a great interest in eating vegetables like peas, cucumbers, broccoli and spinach (just to name a few). Things that most of the people find difficult to eat or get used to as kids

Spinach:
It may not make you strong like Popeye, but Spinach is an excellent source of vital minerals available in nature. It is rich in folic acid and iron making it a wonderful supplement.

Spinach is also rich in anti-oxidants and it has extremely high fiber content (which is true for most greens).

If you can get fresh young leaves of Spinach you can use it freely in your salads.

Spinach Recipe that you must try:
  Palak Paneer:
Traditionally an Indian Recipe that has been a centerpiece of vegetarian dining. Palak (Spinach) Paneer (a form of cheese made from milk) are fried together with herbs and spices in vegetable oil to create a rich extravaganza of taste.

Even meat lovers who find it difficult to have their meals in absence of meat will not be able to find any flay in this rich recipe. Although this may not be an ideal recipe if you are watching your weight but if eaten moderately, it can provide a rich exotic taste with the benefits of spinach.
Check your local Indian Restaurant or search online for authentic recipe to fully enjoy this amazing dish.
Peas:   A source of vegetable protein with very little fat and loads of slow carbohydrates (based on the GI method), peas provides an ideal source of nourishment.
Dishes based on peas are consumed in almost all cultures. The problem is that even as boiled peas are rich in nutrients they often are a food that children do not fully appreciate. If the children dislike peas, chances are that when they grow to become adults, they will still not be very fond of peas.
Pea recipe that you must try   Aaloo Matar Gajar (Potatoes, peas and Carrots)


This is another traditional Indian recipe that you can make with ease and comfort. This is a very common dish which is eaten by millions of vegetarians in Asia.

Instead of boiling the ingredients in water, take some oil and onions and fry them till the onions are golden brown. Add potatoes, carrots and peas and add spices of your choice. In order to even add more flavors, you can add chopped or grated tomatoes first in the pan of olive oil and let them fry before adding onions and other vegetables.

Common spices include cumin, coriander, ginger, cinnamon and cloves. You can use any or all based on your preference. Add salt according to your taste and you will have a wonderful vegetarian lunch or dinner ready for you.
In our next article, we will find more green vegetables for you and find you some traditional recipes that you can enjoy!!!

Photo credit: knittymarie / Foter / CC BY-SA