Walking for exercise is about making walking part of your lifestyle.

Walking for exercise to burn fat and lose weight is taking every opportunity in you day to walk. For instance...when you go shopping, park as far away from the entrance as possible.

When given a choice, take the stairs. Get a dog and take walks. Instead of a coffee break take a walking break. See where I'm going with this...

But first learn the proper walking technique. It's the key in reducing stress on your body and keeping you injury free.

Our ultimate goal is to get you on a walking plan where eventually you’re walking comfortably, constantly burning fat for at least 30 minutes to an hour a day.

This is the level of activity recommended to burn fat and help prevent all kinds of chronic diseases. --CLICK ON THE ORANGE RSS BUTTON (upper left) to subscribe to Gigi's FREE Weekly Tips and Recipe Ideas for: Breakfast - Lunch - Dinner & Snacks

Walking for exercise technique tips:

Look Ahead
When walking for exercise don't stare at the pavement or the sky. Be aware of your surrounding, especially what’s in front of you. Your eyes should be focused ahead of you about 10 to 20 feet. This will straighten your neck and back and bring them into alignment. Not only is this proper walking form, it's also a safer because you can see what's coming up in front of you. Like other people, baby strollers, bikers and cars. Speaking of cars, remember you may have the right of way, but that doesn’t help if you get hit. Always look before you cross a street, and when push comes to shove let the damn car go ahead of you.

Shoulders
Learn to walk with relaxed shoulders; they should be low and loose, not high and tight. If you feel them getting tight, shake them out to release the tension. Stay loose and relaxed. Your shoulders also need to remain level and shouldn't dip from side to side as you walk. Look in a window as you walk by to check yourself.

Arms
Arm motion can lend power to your walking for exercise, burning 5-10% more during a walk. Keep your hands in an unclenched fist, with your fingers lightly touching your palms. Learn how to walk with your arms swinging mostly forward and back, not across your body. Your elbows should be close to the body and bent at about a 90-degree angle. When you feel your fists clenching or your forearms tensing, drop your arms to your sides and shake them out for a few seconds to release the tension. Again, stay loose and relaxed.

Posture
When walking for exercise, keep your torso straight and erect. Your head should be up, your back straight, and shoulders level. Check your posture once in a while. When you're tired, it's common to slump over a little, which can lead to neck, shoulder, and lower-back pain. Not to mention restricting your lungs ability to breath easily. So walk tall, tuck in your behind and rotate your hip forward slightly. Besides making it easier to walk this will keep you from arching your back causing back pain.

Hips
With your torso and back comfortably upright and straight, your hips naturally fall into proper alignment, pointing you straight ahead. If you allow your torso to hunch over or lean too far forward during a walk, your pelvis will tilt forward as well, which can put pressure on your lower back and throw the rest of your lower body out of alignment. So learn how to walk tall and it’s all good.

Hands
Try to keep your hands at waist level, right about where they might lightly brush your hip. Keep your elbows close to your sides, don’t “chicken wing it.” As you run, keep your arms and hands as relaxed as possible. You can gently cup your hands, as if you are holding an egg and you don't want to break it. Don't clench your fists; doing that can raise your blood pressure and that’s not a good thing.

Feet
When walking for exercise, walk with a rolling motion where the heel strikes the ground first. Next you roll through the step from heel to toe, then finish by pushing off with your toe. Then you bring the back leg forward to strike again with the heel. Practice and develop a “heel to toe” rhythm that suits you.

If your feet are slapping down rather than rolling through, your shoes may be the problem. Proper walking shoes should fix it.

FYI: If you’re like most people, your shin muscles may tire and be sore when you first start walking for exercise. Don’t worry, it’s normal and will go away as they are strengthened.

AS YOU BECOME STRONGER AND WANT TO INCREASE YOUR SPEED; Learn how to walk without over striding. Taking longer steps to increase speed is potentially harmful and is inefficient. Instead take more, smaller steps. Use your back leg to drive you forward. Using the full power of the push from the back leg as it rolls from “heel to toe” is the key to efficient walking.

Okay, you got the "walking for exercise" basics. So what are you waiting for? Get out there and start burning fat.

Smiles…Gigi

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