How a morning walk can improve your health

Are you in the habit of taking a morning walk?  If not, should you start?  Scientists have found there are many health benefits to starting your day with an early morning walk.  Eat This, Not That! has a great article, What Going for a Morning Walk Does to Your Body, Says Science.  And it doesn’t have to be a long walk, even 10 minutes can benefit your health.

• A brain boost – Your brain relies on sugar (glucose) for energy and this glucose is in your blood.  Walking increases the amount of blood going to your brain and thus increases the amount of fuel going to your brain.  Researchers from New Mexico Highlands University found that a steady walk significantly improved blood flow to the brain.  Want some tips on improving your walk, then Harvard has some for you, The Secret Trick for Walking for Exercise.  What is the “secret”?  To start, just walk at a steady pace for 5-20 minutes a day a few days a week.  Get your body moving.  But then up your pace to get your heart rate up some by going for a brisk walk.  Fast enough you can talk easily but find it harder to sing a song.  Or, walk at your usual pace and then for a block or two, pick up the pace for a brisk walk.

Walking is good for your brain.

•  After a morning walk, you may find you are eating healthier.  Yes, you will burn some calories when you walk but researchers have found you don’t come back from a walk craving chocolate or sweets.  You may even find you snack less during days you’ve had a morning walk.  Professor Adrian Taylor of Sport and Health Sciences at the University of Exeter notes, ”People often find it difficult to cut down on their daily treats but this study shows that by taking a short walk, they are able to regulate their intake by half”.  Even more interesting, Professor Taylor found that walking can cut chocolate cravings and he has even done research that verified this.  He had 25 people abstain from chocolate for 3 days.  Then they walked for 15 minutes or rested for 15 minutes.  Those that walked had less of a craving for chocolate than the sitters.  Professor Taylor stated that this was the first study to show exercise can reduce chocolate cravings.
• Weight – Harvard studied people with a genetic propensity to obesity and found those that walked for an hour a day, reduced their obesity risk by half.  One has to wonder though, if you are walking an hour day, that alone would reduce your risk.
• Better sleep – a morning walk gets your exercise in early in the day.  So, when it’s time for sleep, you aren’t exercising just before you go to bed.  Researchers reported in Sleep Medicine that early morning walks can improve the quality of your sleep.
• Heart health – how much can walking help your heart?  A lot.  Go for a 30 minute walk every day and you cut your risk of heart disease by a whopping 35-40%.  As noted above, walking improves circulation to your brain but all over your body and can help lower your blood pressure.  Walking helps lower blood glucose so can also help prevent or control diabetes.
• Brain – cognitive function – feeling some brain fog?  Go for a walk.  Researchers studied college students and had some take a short, 10--minute brisk walk and then take a cognitive test.  Just this 10-minute walk improved brain function and performance on cognitive tests.  The researchers noted, “Physical exercise is an important lifestyle intervention for promoting mental health…”. 

Want to improve your health?  Go for a walk.  Even a short, 10-minute walk improves brain function.  Find some time this week to go for a walk and enjoy your neighborhood or a local trail.  Within 15 minutes of our home is a National Park with a nice walking trail through the woods.  Always nice on hotter days as the trail is usually shady.    

Sources:  article , New Mexico Highlands University , tips , notes , stated , Sleep Medicine , Researchers , noted   Image Sources:  brain , Walking , heart health