What’s not to like about walking? It’s free. It’s easy to do. And there’s no question that it’s good for you.
Walking is an aerobic exercise. A University of Tennessee study found that women who walked had less body fat than those who didn’t. Walking also lowers the risk of blood clots. The calf acts as a venous pump, contracting and pumping blood from the feet and legs back to the heart, reducing the load on the heart.
Walking is good for you in other ways as well. It improves sleep, strengthens muscles, shores up your bones, lowers blood pressure and can lead to weight loss. It’s also great for your mental health, lightening your mood and slowing mental decline.
Experts recommend taking at least 10,000 steps a day. If your goal is to lose weight, walk 12,000 or more steps. One mile is between 2,000 and 2,500 steps, depending on your stride length.
To make walking even easier for you, we developed walking routes in the DMU neighborhood. These easy-to-follow maps are already measured out so you know how far you need to go to meet your steps goal. They were made in Google Maps, so you can follow along on your phone as you go.
Take the first steps toward better health and explore the beautiful sights around DMU!
