Why Walk? Benefits of Walking and the Wonder of Personal Rewards

You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You're on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go.
~~Dr. Seuss

Whether you go alone or with a friend, the benefits of walking are many and varied. According to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, a brisk walk increases oxygen intake and gets the heart pumping, which in turn can contribute to lower blood pressure. Other benefits of walking include stemming the onset of degenerative joint disease, helping to reduce stress, and aiding in getting a good night's sleep.

I often hear people say that they enjoy walking after they get out the door and on their way—but that they find it difficult to get started. Knowing the benefits of walking just aren’t enough. Knowing the many personal rewards that can come with walking, however, have helped many of my clients get out and get moving.

In order to find your motivation, choose from the categories below to identify your own personal rewards. Mix and match various types of walking in your schedule to prevent boredom and to reap the full myriad of benefits of walking.

Personal Reward: Spiritual/Mental Centering

In the book Walking in This World, author Julia Cameron says, “Most of us spend life on the run, too busy and too hurried to walk anywhere. Beset by problems and difficulties, we feel walking is a frivolous waste of time. ‘When will I do it?’ becomes one more problem . . . the truth is that walking holds our solutions.”

Susan Cosio, a chaplain who recorded her essay, “A Daily Walk Just to Listen,” for NPR’s This I Believe series, would agree. She says, “On my daily walks, I've recognized how to parent my children through difficult situations, been prompted to call a friend I hadn't heard from in a while and felt compelled to reach out to strangers who soon became my friends. I believe in a daily walk to listen because that is when I am close to God; that is when I find my way.”

The benefits of walking for these women went far beyond physical health and into the spiritual. This can be your personal reward for walking, as well. Focus on breathing, or end your walk with a labyrinth walk for additional centering.

Personal Reward: Multi-tasking

One of the many benefits of walking is that it requires no particular time commitment. Find times when you can sneak in short walks. One mother says, “My oldest one has cheerleading two times a week; while she does that I walk four times around the track with the baby in a stroller.”

Schedule the time to walk to appointments or classes. I try to always walk to the library and to my yoga class. 

Your personal reward might be walking on the treadmill so that you have time to read or watch TV while you walk. The benefits of walking, and in fact your personal reward, are twofold here—exercise and entertainment.

There are more than 80,000 regularly updated, free podcast (internet radio) programs now available for download onto iPods or other MP3 players. You can learn a language, get weight-loss tips, or listen to your favorite talk radio programs on your own schedule while you walk. Less tech-savvy folks can get a portable CD player and check out audio books from the library.

Personal Reward: Calorie Burning

Keep in mind that the number of calories burned while walking varies greatly according to your pace. A leisurely stroll burns about the same number of calories as activities such as putting away laundry and other housework—about 75 calories an hour; while race walking (at four mph) can burn up to 350 calories per hour for a 155 pound person. The more the that you weigh, the more calories you burn.

Have you seen people walking with trekking poles? This is known as Nordic walking. With the upper-body workout that ensues, you can stay at the same pace, yet burn 40% more calories. The benefits of walking in this fashion are clear, and your personal reward will be weight loss and a new level of fitness.

Personal Reward: Socializing

This personal reward could fall under multi-tasking because you get to bond with a friend or family member while enjoying other benefits of walking as well. Just keep in mind that your companion may have her own pace and attention span. It could be nothing but an exercise in patience if you’re trying to get a cardio workout and your friend is constantly getting the dog leash unwound from the baby stroller.
Still, many people find that the ability to socialize is one of the most fulfilling personal rewards and one of the greatest benefits of walking.

Personal Reward: Accomplishment

If you are the competitive type, then you’ll want to have a pedometer or track a specific goal. Even if you aren’t competitive by nature, marking your daily distance on a calendar, aiming to achieve 10,000 steps a day, or using a training schedule to walk a marathon may help to keep you moving. One of the greatest personal awards is a sense of achievement, and one of the greatest benefits of walking can be proving to yourself just how much you can achieve.