Benefits of Walking

Walking-- perhaps the most underrated and beneficial form of cardiovascular exercise.

Walking has a multitude of benefits. It helps healthy individuals stay healthy. It helps to reduce pain. It helps to increase functional level, energy level, endurance and other aspects of fitness and health.

Health benefits that you can expect from regular walking include improving or maintaining bone density, increasing muscular strength and durability of other tissues such as joints and tendons, improving cardiovascular health including regulating blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol. These variables can contribute to prevention of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes complications, joint pain, and other conditions.

Walking is one of the most accessible modes of physical activity. Taking it outdoors adds the benefits of fresh air, nature, or involvement in a community or neighborhood. Access to indoor spaces for walking can mean fitness centers with treadmills or a tracks, or can be as simple as going to a public shopping mall. Walking can even provide a social outlet if done with a friend or group.

In fact, walking is a common recommendation we encourage patients to take up alongside their physical therapy. Years ago, people with low back pain may have been recommended complete rest. Now we know from high volume and quality of research evidence that walking is beneficial for people dealing with low back pain. We also know that complete rest is usually detrimental to pain, and is only the recommendation in rare, specific injury cases. Besides back pain, walking is beneficial to patients with many other areas of pain or injury.

While entry into other sports or activities can feel daunting, starting a walking program can be altered to your current level of function easily. For those who are dealing with pain or have not been walking at all, start by choosing a further parking spot during your usual errands, or getting up more often to walk in safe and comfortable spaces (ie. across your home or in the hallway). For a more advanced walker, or as a long-term goal, you can aim to meet the ACSM exercise recommendation, which is at least 150 minutes per week of moderate intensity exercise.

The take-home message is: if you aren't walking, start now, and if you are, keep it up!

Johanna Diamond, PT, DPT

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