Walking

How walking reduces stress?

When you're in a tense or anger-inducing situation, taking a walk can calm your mind - because it calms your body. Walking reduces stress in the body in several ways:

• It helps to eliminate stress hormones (such as adrenaline) from your body.
• It reduces tension in several large muscle groups - the glutes (buttocks), the quads (front of thighs) and hamstrings (back of thighs).
• It increases the production of beta-endorphins, which are thought to calm the body and promote restful sleep.

Use your arms to advantage:

If you want to add power and speed to your walking workouts, be sure you're using your arms to advantage. By keeping your arms bent at the elbow at 90-degree angles, you're creating a "pump" that helps propel you forward. Your arms should swing alongside the body in a back-and-forth motion (not side-to-side across your torso).

Improper arm position can hinder your walking performance. For example, walking with your arms straight rather than bent can actually slow you down. And walking without swinging your arms at all is not only difficult; it can make your hands swell and cause you discomfort.