Is walking great exercise or just okay?

les20makeup

I happen to only be able to "walk" as a routine for exercising. I was leading a sedentary lifestyle. This is because I have one lung and it only works at 60% capacity. Allergens and ozone challenge my lung. When I've considered other exercise options, I didn't fare well and landed myself in the hospital having oxygen treatments. I guess slow & steady will help me to reach my weight loss goals. I purchased a pedometer and wear it daily and try to do at least 10,000 steps a day. Doesn't sound like much, but it's been working for me. I've started here 50 days ago and only track my meals and make sure to walk daily. So far I've lost 12 pounds and that I attribute to the low pact walking & menu planning. Walking's okay in my book.

shor0814

Cherimoose wrote: »

spartan_d wrote: »

I would strongly encourage people to walk more, but to call it "excellent exercise" is an overstatement.

I'll play the semantics game. What do you think is excellent? And why?

I would like to hear what defines effective as well. Effective at what? Comparatively ineffective compared to what? And why?

opiebean

Love walking, enjoy movement. We do what we can in the moment. In days past it would take myself 30 min to cover 100 yds. Great starting point for some of us. Over time built endurance and clock out 21 min 3 miles 4 to 5 times a week. I've done this for 2 decades or more. Pick your poison and go for it. Get yourself in the Do Better Club and just move. Great starting point.

JeromeBarry1

Any movement is good movement when it comes to people exercising. We humans have gotten pretty good at efficient bipedal locomotion. We're not so efficient at swimming. Walking for 30 minutes burns some calories. Swimming for 30 minutes burns a lot more calories. Whatever you do, just move.

Redwineandmuscles

The terms "excellent" and "good" are subjective. Walking is excellent exercise for me personally, for various reasons. Hockey is excellent exercise for one of my friends because it makes him super happy and keeps him fit. Jogging is not good exercise for someone who has just had a hip replacement, but it's "awesome" for my girlfriend whose blood pressure and cholesterol levels have improved since she started jogging. I would not criticize someone who believes that any exercise is "good" or "bad", it's subjective and personal.

Redwineandmuscles

BillMcKay1 wrote: »

It's all relative and I guess it all depends on what you are looking to get out of it. If a person is very obese and hasn't moved beyond the couch to fridge to car for some numbers of years, a 30min walk is huge and probably pretty great exercise for them.

I'm Currently doing SL 5x5 and squatting heavy 3x a week. If I want my legs to recover I can't incorporate HIIT or distance running on off days. I've done it in the past and it hampered my lifting progress. So, I get in a 30min walk every day with a pretty good 10-12min hill climb. Try and maintain a 3.5-4mph pace. Gives me some extra calories to eat and stretches out my legs without over taxing them and hampering recovery. For that I think it's beneficial for sure.

^better said!

brower47

spartan_d wrote: »

RoxieDawn wrote: »

And his opinion is subjective and not based on facts from the general population out there that do walk or not walk, are too heavy to walk, have medical conditions, are elderly, and some that simply just do not want to walk or exercise at all (there is still nothing wrong with hating cardio by the way)..

Again, absolutely not. As I said, those are special circumstances. As a general rule, walking is good but comparatively ineffective. This does not, as I acknowledged and emphasized, preclude specific circumstances in which it may be one of the few (or even the only) reasonable option available.

It does boil down to the fact you really do not have to exercise if you do not want to. What about those that DO NOTHING??

Walking is most certainly better than doing nothing. Did I deny that? Not at all. In fact, I took pains to emphasize that it is worthwhile.

As I said in the OP, some people get riled up if you say that walking is anything less than absolutely fantastic. They equate that to saying that you may as well do nothing, even though that is not the logical implication at all.

I find it amusing that you think it's saying that walking isn't fantastic that gets people riled up. What gets peopled riled up is when someone makes a post stating their trivial opinion as though it is fact and then expect their opinion to become the default opinion of every reader of the thread. People tend to not like being told what to think, especially over nit noid trivialities like this one.

AndyJBacon

It isn't the only thing we should be doing, but it is pretty great on its own.
http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2013/04/10/an-amazing-new-prescription-medication/
(yes, the link is about walking)

brower47

Oh, you've made threads like this before? Well then. I now understand why you made this one and that reason has nothing to do with walking.

mom22dogs

I haven't read the entire thread, but just have to say, it depends on the person. I'm disabled and walk on crutches, so walking for me is at least twice as hard as for a normal person. I'm lifting my entire body weight with every step I take. If I walk for distance - I currently walk 1/2 mile every other day - I get a hard work out. I'm out of breath and have to stop 2-3 times to catch my breath and let my upper arms/shoulders rest for about 30 seconds. My endurance goes up every few weeks and I can walk farther without having to stop as time goes on. So, walking is a great exercise for me. I lost about 50 lbs about 8 years ago just walking. I'm trying to now lose the last 20-30 lbs.

Walking is also great to build muscle in my arms. I have really strong arms, shoulders and wrists. My grip is stronger than some men. I also weight lift at a gym as well, to help work my legs more, and my core. It all helps.