How Walking Affects Your Body

…and do you really need to take 10,000 steps per day?

A step in the right direction

There are many benefits of walking, including:

• Immediate mental health benefits: a single walk can improve your mood, reduce anxiety, and ease symptoms of depression, partly through increased endorphin release and reduced cortisol levels.
• Cardiovascular adaptations: within weeks of walking more, your muscles develop a better blood supply, your heart pumps blood more efficiently, and your body becomes better at delivering oxygen where it is needed.
• Heart health improvements: after several months, regular walking can lower blood pressure and thus reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.
• Long-term disease prevention: consistent walking supports weight management and is associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, several cancers, and dementia.

As for that about 10,00 steps? Although 10,000 steps per day is a popular target*, research shows that for most people, health benefits occur with any increase in daily steps, and after 8,000 steps per day, there are diminishing marginal returns on additional steps after that.

^{*Which was not for any scientific reason, but rather because it was popularized by a Japanese initiative, and the Japanese kanji for “10,000” looks a bit like a person walking, which is why that number was chosen: 万}

A big factor (and especially a big problem in the US) is whether or not neighborhoods are walkable. It’s well-established that living in areas where destinations can be reached on foot encourages more activity, reduces dependence on cars, improves air quality, and lowers greenhouse gas emissions. Indeed, a study in Hong Kong found that older adults living in more walkable neighborhoods reported less loneliness and greater life satisfaction than those in less walkable neighborhoods.

For more on all of this, enjoy:

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Walking… Better.

Take care!