Walk your way to healthy path

“At young age, our body is more flexible and receptive to change. As we grow older, it may take time for it to adapt. Don’t be in a rush, and let it take it's own time. With age our metabolic rate drops, and so does the ability to build muscles. Both are important when we indulge in physical activity. Be mindful of the two and increase the intensity accordingly” Fitness experts to share a few tips and care one must take while walking and running

Everything in life has to have a philosophy — Walk towards your goals; walk towards your objectives; walk towards your vision; walk towards your mission. And certainly, run away from everything which is unproductive, uncreative, and creating disharmony.

So walking and running could be made very creative. The first thing that walking and running do to you, is help you circulate your blood, air and oxygen; increase your vital capacity of your lungs; and most importantly, stimulate your heart. This will lead to circulation of your mind and thoughts. Your stagnant mind gets activated as well as stimulated and there is a good chance that creative thoughts can come to you as you walk. So walk and run to get energised, illuminised and naturalised in your rhythm & flow.

— Dr Mickey Mehta, Holistic Health Guru and a Corporate Life Coach

Tips    A Step in the Right Direction

The Gait: Carrying a good posture is as important as walking itself. Walk with a tall spine synchronising your opposite arm and leg movements. Slightly tuck in your belly button and try to walk straight looking at front. Dropped head, misaligned shoulders and curved spine are not good signs and one can experience postural pains after prolonged walks which can hinder your wellness journey.

Breath: Breathe from nose all the time that’s the powerhouse of aerobic fitness. There are enough researches that back up on nasal breathing for all aerobic activities.

Hydrate: Drink a glass of water before you start your walk and if you plan to walk more than 30 min do carry your hydration along. Keep sipping water / lemonade  every 10-15 mins if walking for more than 30 mins.

Foot wear: Barefoot is best but still if you are walking on surfaces which are not barefoot friendly try to wear lightweight, flexible, less cushioned, wide forefoot shoes/ slippers. Try to incorporate 10 min barefoot walk on grass in the morning this gives a boost to your health and fills your body with tons of positive energies to take your life head on.

— Gagan Arora, Lifestyle Coach & Celebrity Trainer, Founder — Kosmic Fitness

Tips   for people who want to start running or walking

WALKING

l Start with slow walks.
l Keep the duration up to 20-30 min in the beginning.
l Take care of hydration. Drink water pre and post walk.
l Walk on alternate days for more benefits, one can do some yoga or other exercises on rest of the days.
l Increase the duration by 5 min every week.
l Max duration of walk to be 45 min, try increasing speed as you progress.
l Take rest — a day off can refresh you physically and mentally.

RUNNING

l Start with a mix of run and walk. That is running for as long as you can, taking a walking break when and if, you run out of breath.
l Start with a short duration, this will help your dormant muscles get conditioned to the new task in hand.
l Dress up suitably, if your attire does not let the sweat dry and keep soaking it, you may feel drained sooner.
l Take care of your water and salt intake. During an intense workout, we lose more salt and water than normal.
l It’s important to do a warm-up and cool down. This basically means just do some basic stretches to mobilise your body before the run, and post the run just some static stretches, or even an easy walk may help.
l Increase your running distance slowly, week on week.
l Make sure you eat well balanced and nutritionally rich diet. When you start any exercise routine, it’s advised to cater to the extra needs of your body.
l Do not try to achieve too much too soon, it may lead to injuries.
l Women lose more muscles than men, traditionally. It is thus important to ensure your diet is suitably supported with protein iron and calcium to be able to support any physical activity.
l Men normally have a stiff body, and hence need to work more on Yoga and stretching to ensure that they remain injury free.

— Tarun Walecha, Coach & Fitness Expert, Founder Of Running Group RunXtreme