Many of us have a habit of morning walks. Many of us try to adopt the habit of morning walks. It is a habit that keeps you healthy physically and mentally. Many studies have been done and people with this habit explain the benefits.
Benefits of morning walk
We will throw some light on the benefits of a morning walk today.
- It keeps you mentally fit. Morning walk helps to reduce many mental illnesses like depression and anxiety. It prevents you from getting depression and anxiety.
- Morning walk helps you to stay stress free. Doing this activity in the fresh morning with some background music of birds chirping in the presence of greenery makes you forget your stress free.
- You feel more energetic after a morning walk. Those people who do this activity feel more energetic and fresher.
- Morning walk helps to reduce insomnia. We have a natural clock in the power system. This natural clock is controlled by various signals from the environment. Going in sunlight in the morning helps to establish this clock. It prevents insomnia and help to treat insomnia.
- It keeps you physically fit. While walking, multiple large muscles are active. Activity of these muscles is a great exercise.
- Morning walk helps to control blood pressure. It is proven that Daly brisk walk for half an hour prevents lifestyle diseases including hypertension.
- It helps you to better control your blood sugar. While walking your muscles consume glucose in blood without the help of insulin. So brisk walking activity reduces the need of insulin. Sugar is controlled and your diabetes comes under control. Activity of the muscle also increases capacity of muscles to respond to insulin doses. So with this activity muscles using an increased amount of blood sugar you need less amount of insulin.
- With your large muscles being active more energy is consumed. More amount of fat us burnt and it helps you to control weight gain and lose your belly fat.
- Morning walk helps you for better digestion and treat constipation. Those people who have problems with digestion and suffer from constipation feel better if they walk regularly. Activity life morning walk also helps to control the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome and in regular bowel habits.
- Morning walk increases your heart lung capacity. If you do brisk walking daily, your heart lung capacity is increased. Your heart and lungs become trained to handle more stress. With such a healthy heart and loving you don’t suffer conditions like heart attack. While walking your body needs more blood and oxygen. Your heart rate increases and your heart pumps more blood for meeting your body’s increased oxygen demand. This increased activity of the heart induces more vessel formation in the heart. Additional is this activity also increases the power of muscles of heart.
- It does not require much costly machines and gym. Morning walk can be done on the road near your house. It can be done in a park near your house. You don’t need to join costly jeans and don’t need costly machinery to do this activity.
- It prevents you from metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a lifestyle disease which is caused by increased blood sugar increase, cholesterol and increased blood pressure. This in turn is seen in the form of obesity and heart disease.
- Morning walk also helps to increase your basal metabolic rate. It improves your appetite. You can enjoy your food.
How long should you walk in the morning?
All the benefits of walking you should walk at least for half an hour each day 5 times a week. Initially you may find it difficult to walk for a longer time. You should start 10 to 15 minutes a day and gradually increase the duration and speed of your walking.
Considering normal human walking speed is 5 km per hour, within half an hour you can profile 2.5 km. Gradually you should increase your speed of walking and distance covered each day.
It is better to walk more than this recommendation.
Is it good to walk on an empty stomach in the morning?
Initially you may find it difficult to walk on an empty stomach in the morning. You should probably have a tea or a coffee before starting walking. If you are on sugar lowering drugs you may find your sugar getting lowered and you feeling dizzy while walking. You should keep candies or chocolates with you in case your sugar drops down rapidly. Within a few days of starting this activity you may need to adjust your sugar lowering drug dose.
Walking in the morning improves your basal metabolic rate. It helps to boost the utilisation of energy by your body. You should adopt healthy eating habits with morning walk to get its maximum benefit.
Is morning walk better than running?
Morning walk provides all the benefits of running. But morning walk is a more gentle activity. Those who don’t have a habit of physical activities may find it very stressful to run from the first day.
Running helps to burn belly fat more rapidly than walking. But if you don’t have a habit of physical activity, you should start walking. Gradually increase the speed and distance of your walking.
After developing adequate heart lung capacity and muscle strength within 4-8 weeks you may start running.
If you are overweight or obese, running may put additional pressure on your knee joints. You should consider the capacity of your joints and heart lung capacity. Better to start running after 6 to 8 weeks of brisk walking.
Does walking help to burn belly fat?
Definitely yes, while walking your large muscles in action. They carry the entire weight of your body till the distance you walk. And to do this it takes a lot of energy. After a certain time period when your glucose level and glycogen stores are depleted, your body can utilise your body fat for the activity.
This fact helps to reduce your body fat and also fat on your thighs and other body parts.
Can I drink water after a walk?
Water is essential to maintain the homeostasis of your body. It helps to maintain the body temperature. Also helps to remove the toxic substances from your body.
You should keep a water bottle with you while going for a walk. If you feel thirsty you should drink small sips. After walk you should drink water to maintain your hydration.
Is it good to drink cold drinks after a walk?
After a walk you may feel thirsty. You may naturally want to drink some water and you feel better if you get cold drinks.
Remember cold drinks contain a lot of salt and sugar. With this much amount of sugar it will neutralise the benefits of your walk. Large amounts of salts in those cold drinks can actually dehydrate you.
Rather you should prefer drinking water if you are thirsty. You may also eat fruits that contain large amounts of water like watermelon or oranges.
What should you eat after a walk?
It is natural to feel hungry after a walk. You should avoid those junk foods containing a lot of refined sugars.
Preferring a healthy snack containing watery food like watermelon and other foods like proteins and eggs is good.
Is it ok to take a nap after a walk?
You may feel tired and sleepy after a walk. A nap helps your body to recover and your muscles to rest. You may take a nap after the walk but it should be limited to less than 30 minutes. Sleeping more after a walk may affect your sleep-wake cycle.
Also first hydrate yourself by drinking adequate water before the nap.