Benefit of Exercise

As a jogger, I’d heard people mention fitness walking, but never paid it much heed. After all, I reasoned, isn’t fitness walking a fancy term for walking a bit quicker than usual? Nothing like the jogging I did every day. I felt a bit superior I guess, as I thought jogging was the best aerobic activity. It had to be; it was energetic and hard work. Walking was something people did for leisure, like taking a stroll on a nice evening or walking the dog. Nowadays, my views have changed completely.

There’s no doubt that jogging is great for getting you fit. Unfortunately, it can also have a damaging effect on your joints. Like many joggers before me, I found out the hard way. Luckily, I recovered from my injuries, but I was advised not to do any more jogging. Now all I had to do was get back into a fitness routine. I wasn’t keen on sport, I’d never learnt to swim, and I hated going to the gym. Part of why I enjoyed jogging was that I loved being outdoors, getting all that fresh air into my lungs while I exercised. So what activity could I do that incorporated the things I liked? The answer was staring me in the face – fitness walking.

I discovered a neighbor had started doing fitness walking and she was kind enough to invite me to go out with her. And I loved it. Although it wasn’t as vigorous as the jogging had been, I found I was still getting a proper cardiovascular workout. And, since fitness walking is a low-impact exercise, I was no longer risking injury every time I was active.

I now do fitness walking regularly, and I feel just as good as when I was a dedicated jogger. Except now I don’t have sprains and inflammation to deal with anymore. And there’s been an unexpected bonus to using fitness walking; I now have more time to enjoy my surroundings as I exercise. Instead of putting on my headphones and ignoring the scenery as I concentrate single-mindedly on getting through my run, I notice the changing of the seasons and people going by. I’m even becoming an authority on bird species!

So, if you’re trying to find an outdoor activity that will get you fit but won’t impact heavily on your joints, fitness walking is the very thing you need. If you’re unsure how to go about it, check online or in your local bookstore for information. Once you get started with fitness walking, you’ll love it!