Walking To Lose Weight

Walking to Lose Weight Walks Away Cares

I know that walking for weight loss works. Basically for overweight, inactive people with no other major health or lifestyle issues, it can be simpler than other options although it is not necessarily simple in all situations. My reasons for starting this walk and weight loss blog have been covered in a previous walking to lose weight post.

Even with a lifetime’s understanding of how to put one foot in front of the other, western society does not embrace walking. After all we’ve focused much of our technological advances on getting rid of the need to walk except for the minimum necessary to move around. Now we are using technology to encourage exercise- and this is a great way to keep motivated, but walking itself is not considered cool.

For many other people walking is the first choice when trying to lose weight. Surprisingly then the number one comment on weight loss forums about walking is along the lines of I’ve been starving and walking every day and I haven’t lost any weight.

My response is to ask 3 questions: 1. How active were you before and what walking are you doing now? 2. How quickly and what type of results are you looking for? 3. What have you done about adjusting food intake?

1. Just any walking won’t do.

Generally an inactive person who adds in any extra walking on a daily basis will lose weight. For many reasons the amount of walking then needs to be adjusted continually to keep weight loss happening. Don’t think that walking once around the block for 3 months will be enough. As you improve in fitness but still want continued weight loss, additional exertion is required. Find other ways of increasing your activity daily.

A person who is already reasonably active cannot just add in a light 15 minute walk and expect lots of weight loss. The time spent, distance covered, difficulty level needs to be increased to keep the body slimming.

So it depends on where you start, how much you need to lose, and how much overall activity you are adding in to your life. For instance adding one hour daily but going to bed an hour earlier and getting up an hour later in the morning is not going to have as much effect as if the hour it totally additional.

For practical purposes it is best to walk enough to notice the difference-not a stroll but a stretch to do and you notice that you are better at normal activity which used to tire you. Sleep at night is easy but you can still get up in the morning. Using a walking for weight loss dvd which has this incorporated already can be helpful.

2. How are you measuring results?

Losing weight is often the perceived goal. This term can be used generically when losing inches may be the desired result. As muscle weighs more than fat tissue, a build up of muscle through exercise, affects the weight measurement one way and inches another as it is more compact.

It is well known that weight fluctuates – hourly. Many people limit weighing to set times say weekly or even monthly or sometimes prefer to use other methods to measure results. This can be body measurements, which are notoriously hard to do accurately on yourself. The one I prefer is to choose a piece of clothing which is familiar, whether is doesn’t fit at first or is too tight. The aim may be to fit into it or for it to be too large. A good guide to use is a belt. This could be for the waist or hips, or both.

Weight loss, trimming down, fitness all come in time with walking. Some other specific requirements such as tummy reduction or flabby arms will need other exercise besides walking e.g. crunches and weights. It is best to avoid fast weight loss through walking unless you have the time to totally commit 24 hours a day to walking and resting.

Don’t let your mind play tricks where you can’t see what is really happening and decide that it is not working when in fact it is. Often we can’t see the result, particularly at first when the changes are small. However it is just as likely to happen when substantial change is happening. I’ve noticed that in The Biggest Loser, over time I get used to seeing a contestant and decide that they haven’t lost much only to have the ‘before’ shot come up on the screen and to my amazement I can see the significant result they have achieved. What happens first is the overall reduction on the body fat generally and specific areas such as the abdomen may still seems pudgy. It takes a foundation loss of excess weight before the figure enhancements most of us want can be noticed.

3. How are you handling hunger?

Doing this right means getting hungry at times. This can be a good sign. Increased exercise levels on a daily basis are ramping up your metabolism and burning calories. Controlled eating means eating enough to keep your body functioning well without compensating for the additional exercise with reward eating. Thirst is unnecessary- satisfy it with water. Any light headed reaction during exercise which is all right normally, may mean extra nutrition is required.

Don’t allow yourself to get very hungry and then overeat. Eating enough but not too much, is the key. Any extra food and treats must be reasonable and take into account the calorie output of your day.

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