Walking: When does it count as a fitness exercise?

What distance does one have to walk, over what period of time and at what pace, to satisfactorily say they have exercised? Christine Wanjiru Wanjala finds out.

No one thinks there’s much to it; you just wake up with your two legs put one in front of the other, and walk. Mundane as it is, this activity has a lot of benefits when it comes to fitness.

Arthur Musoke, a fitness trainer at Garden City Fitness Centre, categorises walking among other cardio-respiratory exercises. In a lay man’s language, these are those exercises that help one breathe better. Since it is an activity that does not require special equipment, it is easy to start it and keep doing it.

A good starting point would be getting a good pair of rubber-soled shoes because, as the fitness trainer advises, the wrong shoes will cause pain. “Ensure there is enough space around the toes, as the foot tends to expand with the heat that comes from sweating,” he says.

Your health status and fitness level will determine how much walking is good for you and how fast you see the results. The best person to know this is the individual. He says that to know whether the walking you are undertaking for fitness is working or not, you should feel your body straining and pushing.

A slow effortless walk might not be of much benefit. “If for example you notice you are not feeling the effort, you try rougher terrain like uphill to build resistance.” If you are really unfit, you start out slow and as your body adapts, you increase the speed or the distance. The trainer thinks one would need about three kilometres of walking daily if they were depending on walking alone for fitness or to lose weight. But he warns, it also depends on diet, age, general health among other factors.

What anyone who is looking for fitness should remember is that walking is more like a complimentary exercise. Achieving full fitness is highly unlikely with the kind of on-again off-again walks that people engage in mostly while going about their daily routine. What one needs is to combine it with other exercises, for example, a brisk walk after an aerobics session.

One can also begin walking to prepare their body for other workouts like jogging or the gym. This is great for helping the body adapt for those who have never or not exercised for a long time. Musoke stresses the importance of combining walking with other forms of exercise. Even with walking, one does not need to throw their gym clothes away. You can walk when you are not able to access the gym, but walking needs to be accompanied by other exercise.

Even if one can just put on their shoes and walk without needing an instructor, the trainer urges anyone to visit a doctor and a trainer before starting. “You need to determine your fitness level and establish how you are doing health wise before you start any exercise regimen.” He says people with conditions like diabetes, asthma, heart problems and high blood pressure benefit greatly from walking since it is not strenuous.

Walking early in the morning boosts your energy for the rest of the day and in the evening relaxes you so you sleep better. The trainer adds that both times are okay for circulation and breathing but recommends a morning walk more than an evening one. He reasons that one is more focused in the morning and is able to go further as compared to the evening when one is exhausted after a long day’s work. A treadmill in the gym is a form of walking even if one does not move from one place to another. It comes with adjustable speed so one can be able to pace themselves.

On the matter of knowing how much is too much, Musoke says the walking individual is the best judge. “You can feel you are pushing the edge.” He suggests a way of making the exercise more effective; combining jogging and walking. “You can jog for five minutes then walk then jog slowly for another five. Keep alternating between the two and reap the benefits of both,” he says.