Why should you walk to improve your health?

SKĐS - With just simple steps, free and can be done anywhere, walking is a natural way to help the body stay healthy and the mind clear.

1. Walking helps train the cardiovascular and respiratory systems

Content

• 1. Walking helps train the cardiovascular and respiratory systems
• 2. Build muscle
• 3. Maintain a stable weight
• 4. Protect your back and joints
• 5. Promote digestion
• 6. Improve venous circulation
• 7. Maintain body strength and flexibility
• 8. Provide oxygen to the brain
• 9. Improve your morale

A sedentary lifestyle is gradually causing our hearts to lose function. Daily walking helps exercise the heart, making it work stronger and more effectively: heart contractions will become more effective, the heart will pump more blood to the organs in the body... Therefore, walking reduces some cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess cholesterol, etc.

One study even found that brisk walking can prevent atrial fibrillation – the most common heart rhythm disorder. Walking also improves breathing as breathing becomes slower, deeper and easier.

2. Build muscle

Walking works the lower body muscles (legs and buttocks), but also engages other parts of the body such as the back, shoulders, arms (arm swing) and abdominal muscles, thus toning the body. These are the real benefits of walking in preventing age-related muscle loss, helping the muscles in the body become more flexible, stronger and more efficient.

Walking has many health benefits.

3. Maintain a stable weight

Like any endurance activity, walking requires the body to burn calories, thereby preventing weight gain. In the long term (depending on the frequency, duration and intensity of walking), it also promotes weight loss and fat loss. This is especially important for older adults, as the aging process makes them more susceptible to weight gain and excess fat accumulation.

4. Protect your back and joints

Walking is a gentle, full-body exercise that strengthens the abdominal, back, and leg muscles – the foundation of good posture and a healthy spine. When these muscles are exercised regularly, the spine is better supported, reducing the risk of back pain and degenerative disc disease.

For the skeletal system, walking creates a moderate impact force that helps stimulate the circulation of synovial fluid - the "natural lubricant" of the joints, helping the joints move flexibly, reducing pain and stiffness, especially in people with knee osteoarthritis or mild arthritis. In addition, the habit of walking regularly also helps increase bone density, prevent osteoporosis and maintain flexible mobility with age.

5. Promote digestion

Walking gently after meals is a small habit but brings many benefits to the digestive system. When exercising, the abdominal muscles work rhythmically, helping to stimulate intestinal motility and gently massage the internal organs, thereby promoting the digestive process to take place more effectively, reducing bloating and preventing constipation.

In addition, walking also helps the stomach empty faster, limiting the condition of gastroesophageal reflux that often occurs after a full meal. Experts recommend walking after a meal for about 15 - 20 minutes, for 10 - 15 minutes, at a slow pace, avoiding strenuous exercise immediately after eating to avoid stomach cramps or digestive disorders.

Walking improves your mood.

6. Improve venous circulation

When walking, the leg muscles contract and relax rhythmically, acting as a “biological pump” to help blood circulate better from the legs back to the heart, reducing venous congestion and pressure on the lower limbs. Maintaining this habit every day helps strengthen the leg muscles, improve lymphatic circulation, thereby making the legs firmer, more flexible and reducing the feeling of heaviness and fatigue – especially in people who have to stand or sit for a long time.

7. Maintain body strength and flexibility

When the terrain changes – such as walking on slopes, stairs or uneven surfaces – the nervous system and position sense organs (sense of balance, orientation in space) are activated and trained. As a result, regular walkers have better balance, faster reflexes and a reduced risk of falls, especially in the elderly.

In addition, strengthening the muscles in the legs, hips and back also helps the body to be more stable and move more steadily in all situations.

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8. Provide oxygen to the brain

Walking helps improve blood flow to the brain, increasing the supply of oxygen and glucose – two essential “energy sources” for nerve cells to function effectively. Thanks to that, the brain is stimulated, helping to improve memory, concentration and creative thinking.

Studies at Stanford and Harvard Universities show that just walking 20-30 minutes a day can increase the ability to generate new ideas by up to 60%, while reducing the risk of cognitive decline and dementia in older adults. In addition, walking outdoors also helps relieve stress and improve mood by stimulating the production of endorphins - the body's "happy hormones".

9. Improve your morale

Brisk walking is not only good for the body but also an effective “mental therapy”. This activity helps reduce stress, stimulates the body to secrete endorphins – a natural pain reliever and euphoria. Many studies show that maintaining the habit of walking for about 40 minutes a day, 5 days a week can significantly reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression and improve sleep.

Walking is simple, easy, inexpensive, and suitable for all ages. All you need is a comfortable pair of shoes and a little determination, and you can start your health journey today.

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Source: https://suckhoedoisong.vn/vi-sao-nen-di-bo-de-tang-cuong-suc-khoe-169251105182508206.htm