There is no easier exercise than walking. Due to technological advancements and the introduction of Segway, people are not walking as frequently and as far as they used to. Although our continuously developing civilization has presented us with different ways to achieve the best possible comfort, walking for a longer distance may present health benefits.

And this may mean walking farther than the way from the house to the car, or from the entrance of the office building to the elevator door.  You can just do better than that. Many studies have shown that simply by walking longer distance than what we are accustomed to can promote better health and reduce the risk of developing certain disease.

Walking for Better Brain Health and Improved Memory

A new study conducted by a group of researchers from the University of Pittsburgh in Arizona found that walking a minimum of around 13 kilometers a week can help in maintaining brain size and memory efficiency while a person grows old. The study was published in the official online journal of the American Academy of Neurology, an association comprised of more than 22,000 neurologists and other neuroscience professionals which is dedicated to promoting neurological care of the highest quality. Their discovery has presented hope for people with high risk of developing cognitive impairments co-factored by senility including dementia and its most common form which is Alzheimer's disease.

Dr Kirk Erickson from the University of Pittsburgh, and author of the study, said that brain size shrinks during late adulthood. He said that this phenomenon causes memory loss and may lead to more worse cognitive problems like dementia. He added that the results of the study encourage individuals to walk as frequently as they can to reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia.

The researchers involved 299 dementia-free participants and data indicating the number of blocks they walk in a week. They then took brain scans of all the participants after a period of nine years to measure any possible shrinkage. The procedure was then repeated four years later and they were also asked to undergo a series of tests to evaluate their overall cognitive skills and detect any sign of impairment.

The study concluded that the participants who walked a minimum of 72 blocks a week, which equates to approximately 12 to 13 kilometers, had greater volume of gray matter in their brain compared to the participants who did not walk as much. The results were based on the data they had gathered for the nine-year evaluating period. The study also observed that walking more than the aforementioned distance did not have any effect on the participants' cognitive functions nor did it increase gray matter volume.

The four years following the 9-year period revealed a dramatic discovery. 40 percent or 116 of the participants had developed dementia or minor cognitive impairment. This showed that the people who walked the most reduced their risk of developing cognitive problems and dementia by 50 percent. Kick said that regular exercise during midlife years can improve the brain’s memory and other cognitive functions, and helps reduce decline while the person ages into senility. He suggested that getting regular exercise needs to be an imperative for everyone regardless of age.

The study on walking and memory loss received support from the National Institute on Aging.

Health benefits of Waking

Needless to say, there are endless benefits of walking, not only to the body but it has also showed beneficial effects to a person's brain and help in reducing the risk of developing dementia and other cognitive problems. As a popular suggestion, people prefer to walk to burn extra calories after a heavy meal or to burn unwanted fat. Since walking is a natural and spontaneous movement, it is considered to be a low-impact and gentle form of exercise. This makes walking advisable to people who are restricted from performing strenuous physical activities.

Below are some of the health benefits that you get from walking:

• Walking can help in managing weight and in maintaining a healthy body mass index. If you are trying to lose weight, walking can actually help speed up the process.
• Walking can also reduce the risk of suffering from cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and colon cancer.
• It keeps the muscle, bones and joints in perfect working condition.
• It helps ease the pain brought about by inflamed joints such as in arthritis.
• It helps in stress-management.
• It reduces the tendency of falling into depression and anxiety by promoting a happy mood and better sleep.
• Walking keeps your blood pressure in check since it lowers the blood pressure, especially those of hypertensive people.
• It is known to increase good cholesterol levels (HDL) and lower bad cholesterol levels (LDL).
• Walking is good for the heart. It promotes strength and endurance of the cardiovascular system.
• It also promotes better lung capacity.
• Some say it increases sexual drive.
• Leisurely walking can also serve as an avenue for friends and families to bond and enjoy a short, probably 30 minutes of walk around the park of by the seashore.
• It's also a perfect means of socializing with other walking enthusiasts.

The Correct Ways of Walking

Though walking is a very natural movement, a person may still tend to walk the wrong way. This may be the improper distribution of weight on the legs and the feet or the incorrect posture of the body while walking. It's true that walking is one of the mildest forms of exercise. But this doesn't mean that a person is safe from suffering from any injury just because he preferred to take walking as a means to exercise instead of going to the gym.

Distributing your weight to your abdomen and your hips can make walking more energy efficient and effective in terms of burning as much calories per tread. This also reduces the risk of getting injured and strained.  Also, this will leave you with sufficient energy to walk more.

Before starting to walk, be sure to have your body standing straight to equally distribute your weight to your upper body and your lower extremities to make you more stable. And once you start walking, feel your butt cheeks lifting and tightening as you do each step. Notice how your heel steps off the ground first and the rest of your foot rolling down and lifting back from your heel and up. Rest your shoulders and avoid shrugging or hunching too much. This allows your hands to glide naturally in the air in synch to the movement of your hips and legs.

Finding the Perfect Walking Route

The best places to walk in are the places with good ventilation, preferably in parks and beach shores. Remember that the most important part of walking or any other form of exercise is breathing clean and fresh air. This promotes the circulation of blood and the healthy distribution of oxygen in your body. This process contributes greatly to the health benefits of walking.

Sources
eurekalert.org
mayoclinic.com
health-benefits-of-walking.com