If you think you need to lose weight, don’t worry, you’re not alone. In fact, most people don’t feel comfortable with their weight and feel the need to shed at least a few pounds. For this reason, you can find thousands of diets and weight-loss programs on the internet and elsewhere – but do they really work?
Most diets are fad diets because they either propose eating too few calories or they end up being very restrictive, causing binge-eating and ultimately leading to the famous yo-yo effect.
Luckily, there is a simple, healthy and cheap way to achieve your weight goal and it involves only walking.
Walking and Losing Weight
While regular exercise is always recommended, sometimes your day can be so packed and busy that all you can squeeze in your routine is a few extra steps. Don’t worry, walking counts as an exercise too.
Here is what you need to know about walking and losing weight: when walking with an average speed of 4 miles per hour for about 1 hour, you’re burning more than 400 calories. So, let’s say you want to burn 100 calories per day: all that you have to do is make 2,000 steps each day, which is about 1 mile of walking.
Bear in mind that in order to lose weight healthily and without the yo-yo effect, it’s best to lose no more than 1 pound a week.
Walk More
For those packed and busy days, here’s how you can walk more:
- Instead of driving your kids to school, walk them.
- Instead of driving to the store, walk to there.
- Wherever you’re going, park your car a bit farther from the destination so you can walk.
- Whenever possible, use the stairs instead of the elevator.
General Recommendations
If you’re leading a sedentary lifestyle and you want to start walking regularly, start slow. For the first 3 days, walk only 15 to 20 minutes. This is so you can mentally and physically prepare yourself and adjust to the new routine. After a while, gradually start increasing the walking time.
In general, it’s best to walk an hour every day.
