Why I am addicted to walking and why it is something for you too
My Fitbit says I took 15,859 steps on Sunday. Where I almost get a bit fanatic about it, because I could have easily taken those 141 steps for the 16,000. But to walk in circles around my living room to achieve that? Oh, really all people with a pedometer know that I have definitely done that once. But besides those steps taken, walking brings me more.
There are women in my surroundings who take this number of steps before they bring the kids to school, which I naturally admire, but it works a bit differently for me. I have a sedentary job, because try writing while walking. I live too far from the office to bike, because then I have to spend 1:45 hours going and 1:45 hours coming back. Which is nice on a recreational and sunny day, but honestly: how many of those days do we have in the Netherlands? So I mainly move by car. It's just that my new house has stairs, because there were days in my life and previous ground-floor apartment where my legs didn't encounter any stairs. So, lacking children and a walking job, I actually have to make an effort to take steps; it doesn't happen automatically.
’In the mornings, I now walk at least what my normal travel time is, which amounts to at least three quarters of an hour but often an hour. That might be due to my poor sense of direction when I wanted to explore the forest adjacent to my backyard. Since the visiting dog Saar has been here, I walk for at least another forty minutes in the afternoons. And then I also take a little walk in the evenings. So it happens that I hit 8,000 steps before noon. Which brings me more than a cheering pedometer. It may be that under the influence I even said that the Pieterpad or the Camino Santiago seems like something I would like to do.
Walking makes you happy. Researchers at the University of Michigan showed that hiking makes you happy because it reduces stress and brings about all positive emotions. I don't know how it is for you during this quarantine time, but I am all for positive emotions, so bring on that happiness.
Walking increases your metabolism. After four weeks at home, I actually didn't dare to step on the scale, because: quarantine kilos. I ate everything, I drank even more, and in the meantime, I didn't count a single calorie. What I did do? Walk. While I thought I was at least three kilos up, it turned out to be three grams down. I immediately ordered a burger in the evening to celebrate.
Walking provides that much-needed vitamin D. If you go outside between 11:00 AM and 3:00 PM, which is probably easier now than when you spend time in the office, then your skin absorbs vitamin D . That's exactly what you want, because it helps prevent colds and fights inflammation. Long story short: it makes you healthier.
In my case, all that walking might even ensure that I can get back to normal exercising, because those kilometers in my legs seem to help my hernia retreat and my back recover. A study from the University of Tel Aviv even showed that walking three times for twenty to forty minutes a week is just as effective for lower back pain as training with special devices. You had me at ‘special devices’, because then walking is much simpler.
Okay, I have to go. My watch says I only need 232 more steps to complete the hour. By the way, email me if you want to turn it into a walking challenge: adeline@amayzine.com.
