THE MIRACLE OF THE MAGIC MILE - THE POWER OF A BRISK WALK
Okay, this title of miracles and magic is perhaps heavy on the hyperbole. But the health benefits of a brisk walk can hardly be overrated. Would it be beneficial to have a weight lifting routine, a high intensity workout, a run, and plank routine? Well sure, of course. But how many of us have the time, energy, or motivation to do the perfect exercise routine after a busy day of working, making food, paying the bills, fixing the furnace, and taking care of kids?
So don’t let perfect become the enemy of good.
If you are looking to improve your health (and especially if you’re not) how about starting with a 10-minute brisk walk every day? Over time increase that to 30 minutes and stick with it. How about taking the 30 minutes you spend mindlessly scrolling (if you’re like me) through news or other useless social media and allot that time to the brisk walk?
Broken record alert: There are no magic bullets. But. According to research the brisk walk comes close, from the perspective of overall health and wellness. According to the recent book Outlive – The Science and Art of Longevity by Dr. Peter Attia, exercise is the most important intervention a person can do in terms of overall health. In almost all the studies this was a common conclusion: When you boil down the data, exercise comes out on top.
Dr. Attia says that even a small amount of exercise can improve cognition and delay, or even prevent, dementia. In a recent podcast, he goes on to say that studies have shown that going from zero to three hours of exercise a week reduces all-cause mortality by 50% at any given moment. Practically speaking, this means that you can cut your chance of dying this year by 50% by incorporating three hours of exercise into your weekly regimen, just one 30-minute walk every day—that even gives you Sundays off.
Exercise reduces inflammation throughout the body. Basically, exercise is a drug for neurons, the cellular units that make up the brain. And speaking of brains: MRI brain scans of people who do develop dementia and also exercise show less damage and less brain volume loss.
If you’re looking to make the smallest possible change to receive the greatest possible benefit in health and wellness, a brisk daily walk is your answer.
One further thought: I have been told that there is no way to outrun a bad diet. That is probably true. How do we reconcile that statement with what I’ve written here regarding exercise? Good question.
It seems that if someone becomes interested in their health and is motivated to start walking, they also don’t usually want to “waste” that walk with continuing to eat a diet of junk food. Most often, in my experience, if someone is taking the time to exercise, they are also mindful of what they are eating. I wonder if those studies have taken this into account?
Whatever the case, all the data and research I’ve ever read or heard points to exercise as a huge health benefit.
Final question. What is the best way to exercise when you are starting at zero? It is better to do 30 minutes 6 times a week than 3 hours one day. Those 30 minutes should be at a rate that makes it difficult to carry on a conversation but easy enough that you can still talk if you need to. This is low intensity cardio and usually requires a brisk walk.