Health Benefits of Walking

The weather has been beautiful lately and now is a better time then ever to get in a daily walking routine. Walking provides a long list of benefits that have been supported by research.  Studies have shown that walking can decrease rates of chronic disease, musculoskeletal pain, low back pain, cortisol levels, stress, osteoporosis, and also increase immune function. Also, walking is super accessible to most people and there are very little walk related injuries.

In 1996, the US Surgeon General did a report on negative effects that lack of physical exercise can result in, and they were as follows; an increase in pre-mature mortality, cardiovascular disease (CVD), stroke, hypertension, Type 2 Diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity, colon cancer, breast cancer, anxiety, and depression. Deductively you could gather that by doing physical actives, such as walking, would decrease these negative effects

In a randomized controlled study done in 2018 by the University of Luxembourg, the University of Iceland, Reykjavik, and the University of Exeter, UK, the mood and psychological responses were assessed in university students by measuring their cortisol levels before and after certain stressors.  Cortisol is known as the stress hormone because of its role in the body’s stress response. For example, if you are under stress, the body will release more cortisol to manage bodily functions that are not a priority during stressful situations. It was found that walking provided restorative effects on cortisol, decreasing the levels. It also found that walking in nature provided even more of a decrease in cortisol levels, so it might be a good idea to find that park, beach, or trail that puts you in a more natural setting. 

In 2015 Queens University in Belfast did a study accessing chronic musculoskeletal pain and walking. Walkers reported a decrease of pain and an increase in overall function. 

In a 2006 study from the International Journal of Sports & Health Science, it supported that 3 months of walking 30-45 minutes, 5 days a week, at a moderate pace increased immune function due to the measurement of salivary immunoglobulin A (SIga). SIga prevents pathogenic viruses from intruding into the nasal canal and buccal cavities. This study supports that walking increases immune function. 

A 1999 study done in Honolulu with elderly men supported that walking 1.5 miles or more ,5 days a week decreased their risk of Coronary Heart Disease. 

There is plenty of research to find, and also plenty more needed, but in my experience of dealing with hip and low back pain personally, and also in the management and healing of it with my patients, I often recommended walking, and it is often reported to help. 

Back in the day while I was in chiropractic school, I went from leading a very active lifestyle to sitting most of the day in class and then to study. I was dealing with lots of back and neck pain, and tightness  I was given a Fitbit as a fun gift and it changed my whole perspective on my physical activity. I didn’t realize that I was only getting 1,000 or so steps a day and on days I went to the gym for 30 - 60 minutes, I still only got about 3,000-5,000 steps. The Fitbit helped me track my steps and it gave me a goal to aim for everyday. Just by reaching 10,000 steps a day, a lot of aches, pains, and health issues were alleviated. 

Patients that have an acute back injury, usually want to heal and get back to their normal lifestyle as soon as possible. Sitting and being sedentary doesn’t help the issue, but nor does heavy lifting and high intensity workouts. I often recommend walking after icing the injured area to help warm the area and skin back up, while continuing to move the joints and “pump” the swelling out of the joints. Once someone heals, then walking is a great way to maintain health in the entire body too.

On top of all of the mechanical reasons to walk, just by going outside even for 10 minutes a day, allows your skin to absorb vitamin d. The purpose and necessities of vitamin d is a whole different blog, but there are a lot!

So we went over just a few of the benefits of walking, but I’m sure there are even more that haven’t even been researched yet. Just remember that if you don’t currently walk or exercise, then start slow and be patient with yourself. I would try to walk just a little bit everyday until you build the confidence and strength to go further and longer. Also, good habits take time to create but you have to start somewhere. It goes along with the sayings, “if you don’t use it, you lose it,” or “motion is lotion,’ so walking will help you keep it and be smooth. 

Thanks for reading the Cypress Chiropractic & Wellness Health Blog. Until next time, get those steps in!