Walking offers tremendous health benefits to people of all ages and fitness levels. It’s a free and easy fitness activity that can be easy to fit into your individual personal routine. Read more below to find out how the health benefits of walking can help you.

 

6 Significant Health Benefits of Walking

 

Improves Immune Function – The simple act of walking can help protect you during cold and flu season. A study quoted by Harvard Health Publishing reported 43 percent less sick days taken by a group that walked at least 20 minutes per day.

 

Improves Mood – It turns out that walking is also good for your mental health, according to studies. It can boost self-esteem and curb feelings of social isolation. A simple 30 minute walk can have a tremendous impact on brighten your day.

 

Sparks Creativity – It turns out that walking can help spark new and exciting ideas. The effects of outdoor walking were the strongest on creativity, when it came to this study. This is good information for anyone who might need to set up a walking meeting for work, or just figure out a way to introduce new and impactful ideas in their life.

 

Increase Longevity – Walking on a regular basis can also extend your life. This study evaluated what walking does for cancer and cardiovascular disease mortality. It turns out that regular walking at a brisk pace of over four miles an hour can reduce the overall risk of death by up to 24 percent.

 

Improves Cardiovascular Health – Walking 30 minutes a day can significantly reduce the rate of coronary heart disease by about 19 percent.

 

Reduces Joint Pain – The simple act of walking can reduce joint pain by providing more lubrication to the joints. This is also true if that joint pain is arthritic in nature, and it can also help prevent arthritis from forming in the first place.