It can be hard to start doing exercise if you’ve not done any for a while. The thought of going for a run or to a gym can feel daunting. If this is you then I suggest you start with walking, after all, it is something that we do every day and you don’t need to buy anything new to do it.
I think everyone is aware of the 10,000 steps a day target; we probably all know someone who’s told us how many steps they’ve done during the day! But did you know that this target originated in Japan in the 1960’s? It was part of a marketing campaign for a pedometer, the manpo-kei, which means “10,000 steps meter” – now you know some Japanese! You can arigatō me later!
10,000 was chosen as it was thought to be challenging yet achievable. As it turns out, they were about right. If you have a way of measuring steps then aiming for this is a good first step,pun fully intended! The downside of just aiming for 10,000 is that not all steps are equal and you could end up doing most, or all, of these steps at an amble which doesn’t raise your heart rate much, and this is what we want. Also, you could focus only on the number and at the end of the day swing your arm whilst sitting on the sofa just to hit your target. My mum was delighted when she found out that grating cheese added a few hundred steps to her day!
To get more benefit, do shorter and brisker walks, at a pace that feels like it is a bit of an effort. If you did three brisk ten minute walks a day you will get more benefit than doing 10,000 steps at an amble.
If you are walking the dog – give it some gusto, fido will love it too.
Walking to/from work – up the pace a bit.
Lunch time walk – go with a friend/colleague, make it sociable.
If you make it more interesting then you are more likely to stick with it. There’s a lovely route in the middle of Taunton where you can walk along the Tone and then back from Bathpool along the canal.
As your fitness improves then you can increase it a bit; go for a walk on the Quantocks, the hills there will raise your heart rate and you get the benefit of some fantastic views too.
No need to listen to the Proclaimers advice and walk 500 miles, but do get out for a few brisk walks a day!