If you can do more easily, should you? (assuming you have time/energy)

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sugarfreesquirrel
sugarfreesquirrel Posts: 268 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've posted on WW forums (have been a member) about my long walks and people are saying I'm doing too much. They seem to think because of my obesity level that I should only do like 5,000 steps a day. On my best day, I've done 35,000 steps. Maybe not quickly, but it was easy enough. I've been thinking maybe I try to overdo it, because I tend to be all or nothing, and maybe I should restrict my exercise to one hour a day? Like, instead of walking slowly for two hours, walk fast for thirty minutes? I would like to increase my fitness, and I don't know if my walks are actually doing that. I hate being uncomfortable, sweaty, etc.

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  • herringboxes
    herringboxes Posts: 259 Member
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    It’s absolutely fine to walk a lot.

    Are your walks enjoyable to you and do they fit into the balance of your life? Or are they taking up too much of your focus and taking away from other responsibilities, or enjoyment? That is the question.

    As for whether to increase your speed, I think it would boost your cardiovascular health if you would like to do it. And I think it’s fine if you want to just keep it slow and steady.

    Are you feeling the urge to take things to another level? Keep walking if you enjoy that. Or you can add strength, resistance, balance, and/or stretching type activity.
  • williamsonmj1
    williamsonmj1 Posts: 85 Member
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    Do more if you want to and can.

    5,000 steps is not meant to be a maximum exercise level. It's meant to be a minimum level of activity. It's partly intended to make sure that you keep moving when you are dieting, and don't offset your calorie deficit by not expending any energy in the rest of the day.
  • tara84664
    tara84664 Posts: 3 Member
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    I agree that it’s not too much. It’s good to get out and move! How are you feeling? Do you have energy? Are you getting worn out? Make sure you are getting adequate rest at night. And I would suggest a rest day in there. Where you do only a few steps. Or take the day off. Let your body recover from all the movement. I think you’re doing great!
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,389 Member
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    As long as you still have a balanced life (i.e. you don't feel more exercise time is crowding out other things you want or need to do) and you're not getting too many aches and painsn it's absolutely fine.

    Endurance can be a good thing, but if you want to increase your fitness level I would also encourage you to increase the intensity of your walks occasionally: incline, higher speed,... You can absolutely do it gradually, to avoid getting too sweaty :smile: With increased fitness, a slightly higher speed will end up feeling as easy as the slower speed from before.
    I'm a runner and while I do tend to focus on longer/slower runs, I occasionally do more intense runs too, just to vary how I challenge my body (one risk factor for overtraining is monotony, although I'm not sure that also applies to walking).

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