A strong, fit back can literally be a lifesaver since it is the key to keeping you moving–and your entire body in shape for life! Walking is one exercise that can to be performed regardless of where you might be in any given moment, and only requires some time. Even briskly walking for short periods of time each day adds up to a goof exercise regimen.
Here’s a quick self-answered quiz to help you test how much you know about the benefits of walking and learn more health facts to help increase your lifespan.
Research shows you’re likely to live longer if you walk at least:
A. 5.5 miles per week?
B. 10.5 miles per week?
C. 15.5 miles per week?
A. 5.5 miles per week is correct!
Walking this much at a slow pace of 2 miles per hour can be enough to lower your risk of things like heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure by 31%. People who walked farther and faster got even more benefit, in case you needed some extra motivation.
Women who walk 30 minutes a day may cut their risk of stroke by:
A. 10-20%
B. 20-40%
C. 40-60%?
C. 20-40% is correct!
Just a little can do wonders to help your blood move through your body the way it should. Any time you can spend walking is good, but push yourself a little: Getting your heart rate up can strengthen it and lower your blood pressure.
If you walk 10,000 steps, you’ve gone about:
A. 1 mile
B. 5 miles
C. 10 miles
5 Miles is correct!
This is a good goal for overall health. If you can’t quite make that, any walking you do helps. You can work your way up slowly: Use a pedometer to count your steps, and try to kick it up by at least 500 each week.
Walking is as good for your heart as running.
A. True, if you do enough of it
B. False, you need to raise your heart rate
C. Neither is really good for your heart
A. True, if you do enough of it is the correct answer!
For years, many experts thought that really pushing yourself — and your heart rate — was the best way to strengthen your heart. But it turns out that brisk walking is just as good when it comes to cutting your risk of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes — as long as you do about twice as much of it.
Brisk walking counts as cardio exercise.
A. True
B. False
C. It Depends
A. True is the correct answer!
Ideally, you should log at least 150 minutes of exercise that raises your heart rate every week. Walking can definitely count toward this goal. You don’t need any special equipment (except a decent pair of shoes), and you can do it practically anywhere. But to get cardio credit, you have to do more than stroll to the fridge and back. If you can belt out a song, you need to pick up the pace.
To boost your mood, try taking a walk in:
A. A Shopping mall near your home
B. A city so you can sight-see as you move
C. A leafy, natural area
C. A leafy, natural area is correct!
Scientists at Stanford University asked people to walk 90 minutes in either a woodsy area or an urban one. Those who strolled in nature had less activity in an area of the brain linked to depression. That supports earlier studies that showed that people who live in cities tend to have more mental health issues, like anxiety and mood disorders, than people who live in the country.
Exercise like walking lowers your risk of breast cancer because it:
A. Turns off genes that let cancer cells grow
B. Lowers the estrogen in your bloodstream
C. Protects your cells
B. Lowers the estrogen in your bloodstream is correct!
Women who are active are 30% to 40% less likely to get breast cancer. Women and men who walk briskly or do other physical activities regularly are also much less likely than others to have colon cancer. To cut your cancer risk, try to walk at least 30 minutes almost every day.
Walking is good for people who have type-2 diabetes because:
A. It lowers blood sugar levels
B. It helps you lose weight
C. It helps your body use sugar
D. All of the above
D. All of the above is the correct answer!
Exercise helps the hormone insulin get sugar out of your bloodstream and into your cells, where it can be used for energy. That can lower your risk of complications from diabetes, like nerve damage and kidney disease. A 10-minute walk after each meal is enough to do the trick.
If you have arthritis, you should:
A. Walk regularly for exercise
B. Avoid walking too much — it strains your joints
C. Walking won’t help or hurt you
A. Walk regularly for exercise is the correct answer!
Got achy, creaky knees or hips? You have good reason to get walking then. For starters, your joint fluid moves around when you do, and that gets oxygen and nutrients to your joints and cartilage and helps prevent friction. It also strengthens your leg and core muscles. When your muscles do more of the work, your joints hurt less. A regular walk may also help you slim down, and a thinner body means less pressure on your joints.
Walking is good for your bones because it’s:
A. Weight-bearing exercise
B. Resistance exercise
C. Balance training
A. Weight-bearing exercise is the correct answer!
Activities that make you bear the weight of your own body against gravity are important because they stress your bones, and that leads them to make more cells and become more solid. Other exercises that are good for your bones include high-impact activities, like jumping rope; stretching; and strength training with weights. Talk to your chiropractor about what’s best and safe for you.