Lately, I’ve been turning to walking for exercise more often than anything else. With our apartment gym still being basically closed (and not having a regular gym membership at the moment), walking has been my go-to.
To be honest, though, I hadn’t done much research on if walking is actually that great for your health, before this. So I wanted to see if my efforts to walk more were actually benefiting my physical and mental health as much as I felt they were.
Based on my research, there are even more benefits of walking for exercise than I could have expected!
Is a Daily 30 Minute Walk Enough Exercise?
Depending on your health & fitness goals, a daily 30-minute walk can be a great form of exercise. Is it “enough” is a question to ask yourself based on your goals.
If your goal is to lose weight, walking 30 minutes to an hour every day is a great way to burn calories consistently (source). If your goal is just to be more active (like me) walking is an incredible form of exercise.
Walking is a low-impact exercise, so it’s easier on your joints and less likely to cause you injury than high-impact exercises (source). For me, this is a huge benefit of walking, due to my years of dealing with shin splints from running.
The American Heart Association recommends adults get at least 150 minutes/week of moderate-intensity and 75 minutes/week of high-intensity exercise. They also recommend to simply spend less time sitting (walking is a great way to accomplish this) (source).
If you can squeeze in a 30-minute brisk walk (2.5 mph+) 5 days a week, your moderate-intensity exercise requirements are met.
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Is Walking Better for You Than Running?
Cardio is healthy whether it’s walking, running, biking, etc. If it’s “better for you” than running completely depends on your body, and your health & fitness goals.
Cardio of any sort is beneficial for a few reasons:
- Helps maintain a healthy weight
- Strengthens your heart & stamina
- Boosts your immune system (source)
- Increases feelings of wellbeing & positivity
If your goal is to lose weight, both walking and running are great. Running burns more calories based on time. If you run for 30 minutes, vs. walking for 30 minutes, you’re going to burn more calories from the run. You’re using more energy running, so that makes sense.
But on the downside, running can lead to a lot more injuries than walking. Especially if you’re prone to certain injuries (like shin splints) or start running too much, too fast, you will have a high chance of injury.
Running can commonly cause stress fractures & shin splints (source). It’s a high impact exercise and if you don’t properly train (starting out slow) and fully recover, these injuries are likely to happen.
Walking, on the other hand, is a lower impact exercise and easier to do without injuring yourself. I love running and ran track/cross country for years. But after years of dealing with shin splints, I had to fully stop running because it was best for my body.
Now, I’m an avid walker and have noticed many of the same benefits I got from running, by going on long walks. Both are excellent forms of cardio, it just depends on your individual preferences and proneness to injury. 🙂
I have these walking sandals that feel better than any other sandals or tennis shoes I’ve bought for long walks! My shins have been in excellent condition since wearing them, they’re super comfortable, and actually cute (unlike most walking sandals)!
Why Walking for Exercise is Amazing for Your Health (Mental & Physical)
Besides being a low-impact exercise and an excellent form of cardio, walking is great for your mental health. Walking allows you to have time to yourself, listen to podcasts/music you love, and to get lost in nature. The time in nature alone is great for mental health/clarity.
A few other benefits of walking include a boost in your self-esteem, mood, and quality of sleep. It’s also been shown to help decrease stress, fatigue, and anxiety (source).
After a long day at work, I love to go on a 30-minute walk to destress and regroup. It allows me to just be for a little bit and clear my mind. I’ll throw on my headphones and head out into nature. 9 times out of 10 I come back feeling a thousand times better than when I left.
It’s also a great bonding experience if you have a walking partner. Leave your phone at home and go on a walk around the park with your significant other (or friend/kids/parent/etc.). It allows you to just focus on each other instead of being constantly distracted by our phones/social media.
Related: The Benefits of Taking a Social Media Break & Trying Out Digital Minimalism
In Conclusion
Walking is an excellent form of exercise, regardless of your health goals. Whether it be weight loss, staying active, or improving your mental health, walking daily can help accomplish all of these.
I’m challenging myself to walk 5 miles a day for the next 30 days. I will keep you all posted on how it goes and write a post on the benefits I experience!
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Comment below with:
- Do you already enjoy walking for exercise?
- Are you more of a treadmill or walk/run in nature person?
- What is your main health & fitness goal for the upcoming month?
I LOVE this post. I’ve often debated with many people that walking is a good form of exercise but they haven’t believed me. I walk almost daily while pushing a stroller and I get a good sweat going from that!! I definitely would take the outdoor walks over a treadmill – I really hate that thing LOL. My main goal is to maintain what I’ve been doing as it’s been working well for me… and not to go backwards!!
Thanks so much, Samantha! Dang, pushing a stroller while walking is definitely amping up the exercise! I break a sweat most of the time just from walking around in the heat. Agreed! The treadmill gets boring and tedious after a while. & that’s a great goal and very similar to mine! 🙂