Make Your Walking Program A Real Fat-Burner
by Greg Landry, M.S.
Copyright 2000, all rights reserved
A good walking program is the basis for
successful weight loss for many people - and
it can be for you too. Here are a few steps
you can take (no pun intended) to develop
your own fat-burning walking program;
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1. Find ways to make your walking enjoyable,
by listening to music, books on tape, or
teaching tapes. Or, some people prefer to
just enjoy nature and life around them, and
the time to think, pray, or just let their
mind wander. The more you enjoy your walks,
the more likely you are to walk consistently.
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2. Make it a DAILY habit - just like brushing
your teeth. Walking daily makes you a much
better "fat-burner" than if you are walking
two to three days a week. And, most people
that make the switch will tell you that it's
easier to walk every day. You don't have to
think about whether it's a walk day or not
and get geared up for it - you just do it
every day and your body gets used to it. It
soon becomes a normal part of your day and
you begin to look forward to it.
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3. Incorporate "intervals" into three or
four of your walks each week. Intervals are
brief periods (about one minute) of more
intense exercise mixed into your walking
sessions. For example, you would do a one
minute interval of faster walking about
every five minutes throughout your exercise
session.
Here's how it will look; you'll start with
your normal three to five minute warm-up and
then five minutes into your walk you do
your first interval, one minute of faster
walking (or perhaps jogging). At the end of
that minute you should be "winded" and ready
to slow down. You'll slow down to your normal
walking speed for the next four minutes
and then your fifth minute is another one
minute interval. This pattern continues
throughout your exercise session.
Intervals increase your aerobic fitness
level by "pushing the envelope." While doing
your interval you cross the anaerobic
threshold into anaerobic metabolism, forcing
your body to become conditioned to more
intense exercise and making it a better
fat burner.
Intervals increase your basal metabolic
rate (BMR), causing you to burn more calories
24 hours-a-day, and intervals can make your
exercise less monotonous and help the time
pass more quickly.
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4. Train for a 5K or 10K walk in your area.
Training for an event like this is very
motivating and gives you a tremendous sense
of accomplishment.
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5. If you're not weight training, walk with
light (one to two pound) hand weights two
to three days per week. Swing your arms and
also use a variety of arm movements while
walking to tone your upper body muscles and
further increase your basal metabolic rate.
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6. If at all possible, do your walking first
thing in the morning. Over 90% of people who
walk *consistently*, walk first thing in the
morning. If YOU want to walk consistently, odds
are in your favor if you hop to it early.
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7. If you're really in a hurry to get the
fat-burning machine cranked-up, add a short,
leisurely walk to your regimen a few evenings
each week. Many people like to take a
conversational walk with a spouse, friend,
or child after dinner.
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8. Look for situations throughout your day
when you can do a little more walking.
Welcome the opportunity to walk a little
extra during your daily activities. For
example, when safe to do so, park way out
in the parking lot of Wal Mart or your
grocery store and hike to the store.
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9. Make one day a week your "easy day."
Make this a very leisurely walk. Enjoy the
sights and sounds around you and appreciate
how good your walks are starting to feel
as you lose weight and tone your muscles.
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10. Keep a record of your walking. There's
something very motivating about seeing your
walking accomplishments and paper. Record
the date and time-of-day of your walk, and
the distance and/or time you walked. Keep
a running total of the miles or minutes
you've walked. Also, record your thoughts
or feelings for that particular walk.
By taking these steps you're making this
time each day a special time to take care
of yourself. Make that a priority in your
life and don't let anyone or anything
keep you from that time. Walking every day
will have a positive impact on all aspects
of your life, including your weight and
fitness level!
Author and
exercise physiologist, Greg Landry, M.S.,
publishes a FREE email newsletter,
"Fitness,
Health, & Weight Loss"!
To start
your free subscription....
mailto:Fitness-on@mail-list.com or
http://www.Landry.com
Copyright
2000 by Greg Landry, M.S.
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