Walking Is The Best Exercise
Q: I've been accused of being a couch potato. I suppose it's true but
I'm just not the natural Joe Athlete type. I have no fundamental interest
in playing tennis or jogging. But I still want to look good and feel good
when I reach (shudder) middle age. Any recommendations?
A: Juneau is famous for its 101 walks. Call Parks and Recreation. Seriously, walking is wonderful exercise, especially when you also move your arms around,
and therapeutic in many ways. Dr. Dean Ornish, a well known cardiologist,
once quipped "you should walk your dog daily, whether you have one
or not." To maintain fitness, the average person needs to walk 3 miles
in 45 minutes, 5 times weekly. If you're just starting up after a period
of convalescence or inactivity, begin with 1 mile (in about 15 minutes)
5 times weekly. Then work up to three miles 5 times weekly within 10 to
12 weeks, and maintain this level. This schedule applies to you at age
20 or at age 70 and above. Don't increase your walking more than 10% a
week. The objective is to enhance your total fitness, not to transform
you into Joe Athlete.
Total fitness means having a body free from disease
with muscles, heart and lungs developed to enhance strength, agility, and
endurance so that the days' tasks may be performed easily and well. Total
fitness also means having an alert mind free from undue worry, fear or anger.
Ideally your mind will be fit and relaxed enough to engage readily with
the challenge, opportunity or surprise that the moment presents. Total
fitness also means having a free, strong, flexible and relaxed spirit that
feels itself unselfishly a part of the grand adventure of life on earth.
So, back to earth, and to walking. Why not jog, you might wonder? Jogging
is great for some people, but for many can create knee and ankle problems,
urinary problems, headaches and in women menstrual problems. In fact, jogging
is usually not the best choice in exercise for women. However, it is generally
non-competitive, readily available and inexpensive. Your choice. Walkers
and joggers both should invest in good shoes and wear 2 pairs of athletic
socks or cushion your walking shoes with some kind of Dr. Scholl's or other
thin spongy pad. The next trick is to figure out the best time of day for
your walking constitutional. This should be tailored to your schedule needs,
remembering that a brisk walk will keep you revved up for up to 5 hours.
If you need to be alert and articulate at 9:00 AM on a regular basis, then
yes indeed 7:00 AM is absolutely the best time for your brisk daily walk.
By warming up your body, morning walks also warm up your mind. CAUTION:
make sure to leave enough time for a pre-walk stretch (at least 10 minutes)
and cool-down (at least 5 minutes). If you make your own schedule, the
best time for fast-paced striding is late afternoon, when your body is well
warmed, so you can stretch more fluidly, and simultaneously avert nervous
tension at a time of day when anxiety tends to peak.
Here are some tips to enhance your workout, and boost your spirits. Don't
be concerned if you attract a few stares. Be proud.
- Heel walks to strengthen the muscles in front of your shins and help stretch your hamstrings.
Walk on your heels for about 50 yards.
- Crossing. To get more mobility in your hips, overextend your foot placement so that your feet are crossing over one another.
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A graduate of Bastyr University in Seattle, she completed both the Naturopathic and Acupuncture/Oriental Medicine programs. Her preceptor work (similar to residencies) took place in Seattle, West Virginia and China, 
