Two prominent characteristics of the healthcare industry are the long hours and the shift work involved. In fact, this arrangement makes it difficult for healthcare professionals to set aside time to exercise, despite the recommendation of fitness gurus who recommend setting aside time every day to exercise in order to reap the full benefits. If this is also your woe, how about considering adding walking as an exercise into your daily routine? What are the benefits of walking? Studies on healthcare professionals conducted by Harvard researchers found that walking for at least 30 minutes a day was linked to an 18% lower risk of coronary artery disease while walking for at least three hours a week was linked to a 35% lower risk of heart attack, and a 34% lower risk of stroke. Walking is considered to be a moderate exercise (as opposed to running, which is considered to be intense aerobic exercise). However, it is still very beneficial. Walking has been found to strengthen the heart, as it lowers the levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol while increasing the levels HDL (good) cholesterol. Walking is also known to protect against dementia, diabetes, stroke and even depression. Here are three ways how you can incorporate walking into your daily routine: 1. Incorporate it as part of your transport routine If you happen to take the bus to work, one way you can go about incorporating walking into your daily routine is to get down the bus a stop or two earlier before reaching your destination and walk the remaining part of the journey. Depending on your pace, this will likely set you back by about 10 to 15 minutes. Do the same on your route home, and you would have clocked about 30 minutes of exercise! Those who take the train to work can consider taking the stairs instead. The flight of long stairs may seem a bit daunting for the total beginner. Just take it slow at first, and climb the stairs at a pace that you can manage. Climbing the stairs can also be an activity to engage in after lunch. Take note however, to climb at a leisurely pace so as to not risk getting a side stitch. 2. Incorporate it into your workplace culture Walking as an exercise will be more fun if you have a group of colleagues engaging in the same activity, especially if you do not like to take solitary walks. You could gather colleagues on the same shift to walk after knocking off from work. Not only does this help you to keep fit, it also helps to promote camaraderie in the team. 3. Infuse it into your way of life All goals will be sustainable if you start to make changes to your lifestyle to align with it. You can consider starting with an achievable goal to begin with, such as taking a 10-minute walk after taking your lunch, and endeavour to do this every day. To do this, you may want to explore the eateries that are located slightly further, and walk your way there and back. Consider also to walk whenever you can. Need to buy a load of bread downstairs? Take the stairs down, and climb up when you are done! Encourage your family members to wake up half an hour earlier and take a walk together before heading to the hawker centre for breakfast. Source
