better
SELF-CA RE
hot favourite with all
exercise enthusiasts,
walking has great health
benefits, but taking
rounds in your local park
can be monotonous enough to make
you quit. Here are some tips on how to
get the maximum out of your walking
routine and add spark to it.
I JU ST START W ALKING.
You
I don’t need to stretch first. Begin
walking slowly to warm-up, then
gradually increase your pace.
*\
C O U N T TH E BEATS. During
—mi
a moderate-intensity walk, aim
for a heart rate of 50 to 70% of your
maximum heart rate. Maximum heart
rate is 220 minus your age. If you’re
35, your maximum rate is 185 (220-35
= 185), and 50 to 70% of that is 93 to
130 beats per minute. On a vigorous
walk, your heart rate rises to 70 to
85% of your maximum heart rate (130
to 157 beats per minute for age 35).
— BUMP UP YOUR ROUTINE,
O if you want to lose weight.
Do 6o minutes of moderate or
vigorous activity five days per
week and you’ll see a difference.
/
STRAP ON A PEDO M ETER
*4“ and follow your normal routine
for a few days. If you log fewer than
5,000 steps a day, you are considered
inactive. Only at 10,000 steps a day are
you truly active.
r PICK UP TH E PACE.
Moderate-
i ) intensity' walking is more than an
easy stroll. It’s a brisk walk at about
5.6 km per hour. You may breathe
harder, but you should still be able to
hold a conversation.
(
-» PARK TH E CAR. W ALK.
Start
) walkingto a friend’s house
in the vicinity once a week or
walk toyour nearby market for
chores. Consider startinga‘walk
pool’ with other parents to take
kids to school, if close by.
BREAK IT UP.
You don’t have to
walk it all at once. Three 10-minute
bouts of walking give you the same
benefits as one 30-minute daily' walk.
O EXPERTS RECOM M END 30
( ) minutes of moderate-intensity'
exercise at least five days a week to
maintain good health.
( \S T A Y HYDRATED.
Drink water
«/ before you get thirsty'. Thirst
during exercise can be a sign of
dehydration. Drinking water helps
you recover faster from exercise.
m
W HEN YOU GO
SH O PPIN G,
walk around
the perimeter of the store before
you go in. When you need to use the
restroom, go to the one that’s located
the farthest away.
| | RELY ON YOUR
I I PEDOM ETER.
Today’s
pedometers do more than count
steps. They also track your heart
rate, calories, and distance. Some
even recognize brisk walking spurts.
For example, a pocket pedometer by
Omron Healthcare tallies your brisk
sessions and feeds your workout data
into your computer.
I
t y
START SMALL.
One walker
A
began with five minutes a day.
Six months later, she was up to 6.4 km
(and minus 25.4 kg).
і
у
BURN, BABY, BURN.
A 70-kg
I
person walking for one hour
at a moderate pace burns about 280
calories. Do that five days a week and
you use up to 1,400 calories. Keep it
up for just five weeks, and you’ll lose
0.9 kg (7,000 calories). To lose 500 gm
of fat, y'ou need to burn 3,500 calories.
I
STAR T A W ALKING CLUB.
I *+Get friends or members of
your locality together at a fixed
time every day. Chart out routes
for the day and walk in pairs.
| r IF YOU CO U N T STEPS, figure
I t )out how many steps you usually
walk, then each week bump up your
daily count by
500
to
1,000
steps.
VARY YOUR ROUTINE.
Go
f
slow, walk fast, and then slow
down. Run a few minutes and then
again walk slowly. Vary your routine
for variety.
■
n
VARY YOUR ROUTE.
Circling
I
the block gets boring, so map out
new routes in your neighbourhood,
but avoid lonely stretches. Stay safe.
