| One of the best ways of keeping fit is simply going for | | | | additional steps per day. This will allow you to burn |
| a walk. It is the easiest of all exercises, and far less | | | | more or less 200 calories a day. The exact amount |
| prone to giving you strain and injury, especially at the | | | | you will lose also depends on what your current |
| joints, which makes it safer than running. Walking is | | | | weight is and how fast you walk. |
| also good as an exercise for burning off fat. A study | | | | Of course, losing 200 calories every day may not |
| made at the University of Tennessee in 2004 showed | | | | seem like very much, but believe me, it will add up. This |
| that among women aged 40 to 66, those who spent | | | | is what you should do: follow a seven-day walking |
| more time walking had a lower percentage of body | | | | plan. On every weekday, complete around 5000 steps |
| fat and a smaller waist and hips than those who did | | | | (equivalent to about 2.5 miles). On weekends, go for |
| not walk as much. | | | | around 10,000 steps (equivalent to about 5 miles) each |
| If you are going to walk for fitness or more specifically, | | | | day. That is about 45,000 steps per week. If you keep |
| to burn fat from your body, then you will find it more | | | | up this routine for a month, you should be able to trim |
| efficient to take a scientific approach. What I'm | | | | yourself of at least 2 pounds. |
| basically saying is that you will need to keep track of | | | | You will lose weight even if you spend most of your |
| the steps you take in walking. In fact, it is probably a | | | | walking time at a strolling pace, although your weight |
| good idea to buy yourself a pedometer, as it will come | | | | loss will be more gradual. To get quicker results, try to |
| in very handy if you are going to take walking for | | | | perform at least a third of the day's step quota at a |
| fitness seriously, as you should. | | | | brisk walking pace, about 135 steps per minute. But |
| So back to counting steps... you have surely heard the | | | | don't try to do the entire step quota at such a pace, as |
| saying that a journey of a thousand miles begins with | | | | that would be very exhausting. In fact, when you are |
| a single step. Well, so does the journey to a slimmer, | | | | just starting out, feel free to complete your step |
| fitter you. It starts with one step. Then another. Then | | | | quotas at any pace you are comfortable with. Once |
| another and another and another, and so on. To begin | | | | you are used to the amount of walking you have to |
| with, you should set yourself the goal of taking 5000 | | | | do, you can step things up to get better results. |