The Benefits of Walking

If you have been a human on earth for any period of time, you have probably been told that walking is good for you and for a lot of people being told it is good for you is enough. But if you are a science minded person like me you want to know why. Let me help you understand WHY walking is good for you!  

Olafsdottir et al, looked into the effects of walking in nature vs walking in a gym setting, investigating the mood and psychological response to stress. They proved that all types of interventions including the act of walking walking resulted in lower cortisol levels (stress hormone), walking in nature resulting in the most significant decrease (Olafsdottir et al., 2018).  

All this to say that walking has GREAT effects on your mental health. If you are feeling stressed because of work, exams, children, or life try going for a walk. Choose to walk outside and you get more psychological benefits, as well as the beautiful scenery!  

Other effects that walking may have are (2015):  

• Lowering blood pressure  
  
• Managing diabetes and\or preventing the onset 
  
• Reducing risk of cardiac events (myocardial infarctions – heart attacks) 
  

The MayoClinic also provides a 12-week walking program, the link is in the work cited below!  

Olafsdottir, G., Cloke, P., Schulz, A., Dyck, Z., Eysteinsson, T., Thorleifsdottir, B., & Vögele, C. (2018, September 28). Health Benefits of Walking in Nature: A Randomized Controlled Study Under Conditions of Real-Life Stress - Gunnthora Olafsdottir, 

Paul Cloke, André Schulz, Zoé van Dyck, Thor Eysteinsson, Björg Thorleifsdottir, Claus Vögele, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2020, from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0013916518800798 

Walking for fitness. (2015, January 27). Retrieved May 24, 2020, from https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/walking-for-fitness 

Yours truly, 

Meg