Testimonies of how regular walking changes lives

The benefits of walking are well documented. A number of studies have showed that walking regularly is one of the most effective ways to a healthy life because, experts say, unlike most other exercises, walking works on all the muscles and organs of the body. But as it turns out, reading research data and hearing real life testimonies are two different things. 
Testimonies from Ugandans that walk regularly have revealed that walking is more than exercise. It is meditation, it is massage, it is an aphrodisiac, it is a path to weight loss and it heals not just the body but the soul too. We talked to five walking enthusiasts across the country and now we bring you the amazing stories of transformation, healing and fulfillment. They also offer advice on how to do it right in order to get the best out of it. 

READ: Here is why you should walk more

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Lwanga Charles Miti
Miti is a farmer who also happens to be a student at Uganda Christian University, Mukono. He started walking in 2020 during the Covid-19 lockdown when walking was the only means of transport available. So, he had no choice but to walk to his farm, to the market and his parents’ house, among many other places. He narrates his walking journey:

I started with random walks, about three times a week. My most frequent route was from Kyengera Town in Wakiso District to Namagoma Village (a distance of about five kilometres). Along the way, I joined a group of residents who often did hikes as a means to exercise and kill time. I loved the idea since I also wanted to lose some weight. 
Benefits
●Weight Loss – When I started walking regularly, I was 94kgs. This was rather heavy for me to carry around, especially because I work on a farm. I have been able to cut it down to 74kgs by setting periodic targets and working on them daily, without making excuses.

●Improved health - My health has improved. I rarely go to hospital nowadays, probably because I lost so much weight. Prior to 2020, I would be stuck with huge medical bills at least monthly. 
●I am more aware – Walking has made me more self-aware, aware of my purpose and aware of my surroundings. Nature walks have given me an appreciation of nature that I did not have before. I am now a climate activist working with SaveSoil Global Movement. 

●Connecting with people – I have also loved the connections made during walks; because at UCU, we now have a walking club. The stories, experiences and testimonies shared are quite inspiring and informative.
●Mental health - Walking refreshes the mind. As I walk, I often listen to music, podcasts and audio books. The lessons learnt are quite liberating. Because of that, I am now very interested in nutrition, spirituality and other activities that altogether contribute to my holistic growth.

●Opportunities – I have had the privilege to visit various places and prestigious offices, met important people and earned various work opportunities due to the walks. I am currently managing a Fitness Club at UCU, a privilege I achieved due to my dedication and commitment to health promotion. The benefits are inexhaustible but altogether; walking has helped me grow holistically, improved my social network and given me a new identity.

Final word
With the rather unhealthy lifestyles we lead today, walking is the best choice one can make daily that is guaranteed to produce results in one’s life - far beyond imagination. A lone walk is okay, but a walk with a colleague is superb. Walking is medicine. 

Veronica Primrose Kisaakye – businesswoman 
Veronica Primrose Kisaakye is a businesswoman in Kampala. She started casually walking in 2021 after the second lockdown. In 2023, she took it a notch higher. She had suffered chronic back pain due to a herniated disc for more than 10 years. She kept getting episodes of back pain that would ground her to a halt for months, sometimes, half a year. After talking to a friend and researching about the advantages of walking, she was encouraged to make walking part of her life. She narrates her walking journey:

Around 2019 I developed high blood pressure and the physician advised me to exercise regularly. He emphasised running or jogging. However, because of the pain in my sick back, jogging was off the table because it would exert undue pressure on my back and make it worse. I had had a bad back since my second pregnancy about seven years prior. 

When the doctor mentioned walking, I recalled a time I was planning to travel to India for surgery only for a doctor to tell me that I should try walking first and if it does not work, then I could travel. After that, I read everything I could online about the benefits walking and came to the conclusion that it might work for me. I embraced it and it is now part of my life.

Today, I walk four to five days a week, especially if the weather is conducive. Having embraced walking, I made it part of my routine. People end up not doing it because it requires a lot of discipline. In fact in 2021, I fell off track because I was not committed to it. But right now it feels uncomfortable missing more than two days of walking.

Benefits
●In 2023, for the first year in 11 years, I did not experience an episode of back pain. Every year for the last 12 years, I would suffer so much back pain that I would be forced to stay home, unable to get out of bed for months. I would then go through expensive physiotherapy to get back on my feet. But that did not happen last year, because of walking regularly. 
●Cut orthopedic costs - Walking has reduced my expenditure on hospital bills, both for physiotherapy and the orthopedic surgeon.

●⁠No more hypertension- I managed to keep my blood pressure under check. Lately, my blood pressure is normal 
●Weight Management- I have kept my weight under control. It is not instant weight loss. For one to lose weight, there should be some level of consistency.

Last word
Walking is the only holistic physical exercise to the body. It is the only exercise where all organs are active. Walking is not just physical, it is emotional too. It helps me manage stress levels. Walking gives me a chance to connect with nature and meditate about life generally. From the health perspective, the advantages of walking are countless. 

Lucky Ninsiima - farmer
Ninsiima is a farmer in Bushenyi District, western Uganda. She started walking in 2022 when her big brother jokingly castigated her for wasting too much money on boda boda. She used to take boda bodas, even for distances she could easily walk. She narrates her walking journey:

I used to spend more than Shs15,000 unnecessarily, daily, on boda bodas because every outdoor movement meant hailing one. My big brother made fun of me and I saw the futility of my folly. So, two years ago, I started walking primarily to save money. 

The beginning
Before I started walking, even the thought of walking was unfathomable. When I tried walking after seeing Joe Walker do it with ease, on my very day, I called my boda boda man to take me back home after walking just half a kilometre; my body was burning. 

The first few weeks I would pant and become very hungry and thirsty. I would then take a break after two kilometres to rest and eat something before continuing. I would literally drag myself forward till I got back home. I later joined the Joe Walker walking community and would get encouragements from the members. So kept at it and got better.

Today, I walk daily, either a long distance walk of 20kms and above, or as short as three kilometres. But every day I get on my feet and be active. Admittedly, walking is very hard. It requires a lot of patience, concentration, commitment and sacrifice. It equally comes with a lot of temptations. The day you step out to walk is when you will see a new nice eating place that has been set up and you want to check it out. It is the day you will meet the people that want to chat. That is the day the weather will be either too hot or too rainy. Walking calls for a lot of discipline and resilience.

Benefits
●Walking has greatly helped me endure long working hours on the farm since I am a farmer. Walking has not only helped me shed unnecessary weight, but it has helped me build stronger bones and muscles. 
●Walking has helped me save money. Today, I only take a boda boda or a taxi when it is urgent or when the distance is longer than 45kms.
●Walking helps my mind ward off stress. Whenever things become hard, I walk over them and come back refreshed, with a renewed mindset. 
●I am fit. I can now easily take on a 50km walk without panting and with minimum water intake. 

Last word
●Walking is therapy. Shut down everything and go for a walk, your body, mind, soul and spirit will thank you for it. 
●Walking gives you a clear perspective on everything whether it is relationships, work, spirituality, life, name it. The more you walk, the more you meditate through things. 
●Walking has helped me heal through pains of loss faster than any counselling could. 
●Walking helps me shape business concepts much faster. Being an entrepreneur, every day, a business idea is born. And right there on the road, with no pen and paper, just with my mind, the idea becomes clearer and at the end of the walk, I have already decided whether to pursue or drop it. 
●Walking has helped me realise that all things are possible, just take one step at a time.
●Now I also walk for fun. Just walking to relax. 

Stella Kamakune – social worker
Kamakune runs a charity that supports children living with autism. She says she has been walking all her life owing to the fact that she grew up in a family of many boys. She literally had to walk just to keep up. Two years ago, she signed up for a challenge to walk about 10kms. Then last year, she decided to challenge herself to walk-run every day for 100 days. She never stopped after the 100 days. She has now been walking for close to 260 days consecutively. 

Beginning 
I decided to start walking for fitness four years ago, before covid. I wanted to start a new hobby; hiking, and my coach recommended that I walk to prepare. Prior to this, I had been using walking as a way of cooling off stress for a long time.  

When I signed up for my challenge to walk for 100 days consecutively, I thought I could not do it. I thought, “I am supposed to be at work by 8am, how am I supposed to do this?” But I told myself, “You wake up at 5am, you do your reading then by 6am you are already out of the house. Instead of going to TikTok to see what is trending, you can use those 30 minutes to walk.”

Making time
I have always been an early riser. If I wanted my day to be good, I would wake up early in the morning, go for a walk and my day would go well. So, it was not so hard for me to get serious with it. In my neighbourhood, I found a very safe space where I can walk between 30 and 40 minutes and cover three and a half kilometres. So, every day by 6am, I make sure I am out of the house and I go for a walk. That is how I make time. 
Benefits
●Advocacy - Last year but one, we walked from Posta Kampala heading for Posta Entebbe, a distance of about 45kms This was an all-day gig.  The reason I walked all those long kilometres is because I needed to speak for the voiceless. I belong to a group called Familio Foundation and we create awareness about autism spectrum disorder, so most of the time I use my walking to reach out to the community about autism. Usually, I end up starting conversations around it while I am walking and the people I encounter on the way. 
●Improved health - Walking has really improved my health. I would usually suffer a number of health issues such as constant colds and back pain. My shoulders would also ache due to over sitting but ever since I got serious with walking every day, all that is gone. It is very rare for me to suffer back pain. I have become fit and do not get sick easily. When my friends tell me they have a cold, I advise them to walk because I know it works. 

Proven research
According to www.health.harvard.edu, these are some of the health benefits of walking:
1. Counteracts the effects of weight-promoting genes. Harvard researchers looked at 32 obesity-promoting genes in more than 12,000 people to determine how much these genes actually contribute to body weight. Among the study participants who walked briskly for about an hour a day, the effects of those genes were cut in half.
2. Helps tame a sweet tooth. A pair of studies from the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom found that a 15-minute walk can curb cravings for chocolate and even reduce the amount of chocolate you eat in stressful situations. And the latest research confirms that walking can reduce cravings and intake of a variety of sugary snacks.
3. Reduces the risk of developing breast cancer. Researchers already know that any kind of physical activity blunts the risk of breast cancer. But an American Cancer Society study that zeroed in on walking found that women who walked seven or more hours a week had a 14 percent lower risk of breast cancer than those who walked three hours or fewer per week. And walking provided this protection even for the women with breast cancer risk factors, such as being overweight or using supplemental hormones.
4. Eases joint pain. Several studies have found that walking reduces arthritis-related pain, and that walking five to six miles a week can even prevent arthritis from forming in the first place. Walking protects the joints, especially the knees and hips, which are most susceptible to osteoarthritis, by lubricating them and strengthening the muscles that support them.
5. Boosts immune function. Walking can help protect you during cold and flu season. A study of more than 1,000 men and women found that those who walked at least 20 minutes a day, at least five days a week, had 43 percent fewer sick days than those who exercised once a week or less. And if they did get sick, it was for a shorter duration, and their symptoms were milder.

Joseph Beyanga aka Joe Walker
Joseph Beyanga aka Joe Walker is a corporate executive with Nation Media Group. He rose to fame in 2022 when he walked to Bushenyi District and last year to Mbale City in eastern Uganda in a bid to raise awareness about road safety. Since then, he has brought together walking enthusiasts who share a mutual love for walking. This year, he plans to walk to Fort Portal, starting February 26. 
He narrates his walking journey:
I started walking in September 2021 after being told by a doctor to do so. I was battling some sort of inflammation which was causing pain in my back. He told me I needed to get rid of accumulated sweat which he believed was causing the inflammation. I started walking to gid rid of the pain in my back, but now I am walk to get rid of the pain on our roads.

Frequency
I walk minimum, three to four times a week, for a minimum of two to three hours. On average, I walk at least 15kms. On how I make time for it, there is a lot of time in the 24 hours that make a day. It is all about priorities. 
A philosophical take
Walking is perseverance. Walking is resilience. Walking does not happen in your feet; walking happens in your mind. Walking is not a physical exercise, it is a mental exercise. You know your body does not just do what your mind wants. If you say I cannot, then you will not. But if you say the impossible is nothing, it will become so. Walking teaches you the power of incremental actions in achieving big things. 

Mental fortitude - Walking enabled me to regain control over my mind. Right now, if I say I am going to do something, I will do it because I have discovered that it is not the body but rather the mind. I have been able to do so many things that I never knew I could. Things I thought were impossible are now so easy. To date, I have clocked 5,138 kilometres in two years and four months. In my mind, this was impossible before. My mind has become sharper. I find it easier to find solutions. You are more open to possibilities. 

Courage - Walking has helped me see clearly that every difficulty can be overcome one step at a time. So, walking has helped me build the courage to take the first step. I never knew I could spend 30 minutes in a tab of ice. But I did it. 

Breaking mental barriers - Walking has helped me break mental barriers. We grow up thinking I cannot do this or that. Only that other person can do it. That thinking builds mental barriers that we are not even aware of. But because of walking, I have pushed the limits and broken the barriers I thought were impossible. Now, whatever is thrown at me, I am not afraid. 

Deeper sleep - I sleep for less hours but get deep sleep. Because of this, I am able to go to work early and leave early so that I have plenty of time to walk. Before, I would sleep for eight hours but now even six hours are too much; and I never doze. But if I chose to sleep during this interview, I can. I am just in superb control of my body. 

Better sex - Sex is better because I feel every nerve in my body. Sex is a game of nerves and exercise has helped me sharpen my nervous system. 

Stress relief - Walking takes away stress. It is what it is.