Five Reasons Why Walking Is Great For Your Mental Health | The Optimal Daily Step Count

All of us find that low-intensity, low-energy activities are quite beneficial. Walking is a moderately intense, low-impact activity that offers a host of health advantages. Walking is an excellent way to improve one’s physical and mental health at the same time. Walking may be one of the greatest forms of exercise and your health’s best friend, with benefits ranging from lowering stress and elevating mood to boosting blood sugar and enhancing brain clarity. These amazing mental health advantages of walking make it an excellent complement to your exercise regimen.

Walking Benefits For Mental Health

1. Boost Mood

Walking has been shown to considerably improve mood and raise feel-good chemicals in the body. It is a fantastic blood flow-boosting activity. It has a favorable effect on your central neurological response system, or hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, according to WebMD. This is advantageous as your stress response is controlled by the HPA axis. Walking is a great way to exercise since it helps to relax your nervous system and reduce tension.

2. Calorie Burn

Walking helps you lose weight and burn more calories, which is one of its biggest benefits. Obesity causes poor self-esteem and feelings of shame in many individuals. To reduce excess weight and boost self-esteem, include walking into your daily routine.

3. Heart Health

One of the best exercises for heart health is walking. Walking for 30 minutes or more each day may dramatically lower the risk of coronary heart disease. It is the perfect kind of exercise since it reduces blood sugar and decreases cholesterol.

4. Boost Energy

Walking as exercise has been shown to be a very effective way to increase the body’s energy levels. It raises cortisol levels, boosts energy levels, and improves blood and oxygen flow to various body areas.

Ideal Daily Step Count for Walking
Walking for at least 30 minutes a day, most days of the week, is a wonderful method to maintain or enhance your general health, according to the Better Health Channel. If 30 minutes a day is out of your reach, keep in mind that even short walks more often might be helpful. Increased cardiovascular fitness, stronger bones, less extra body fat, and increased muscular power and endurance may all be achieved with only 30 minutes a day.

The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans state that an individual must engage in moderately vigorous physical activity for at least 150 minutes per week. This amount of time may be achieved by brisk walking for 30 minutes five days a week.