The Truly Amazing Health Benefits of Walking

Sometimes it's easy to think that the process of becoming healthier is necessarily going to be unpleasant, or at least not very enjoyable. For example, we sometimes make the mistake of thinking that to get any real benefit from exercise, we'll have to exert ourselves to the point of misery or exhaustion. It should come as a welcome relief, then, that something as easy, natural, and enjoyable as a daily walk is one of the healthiest things you can do for your body, mind, and soul. Walking delivers a host of powerful benefits that impact everything from your body image to your personal relationships, your cognitive performance to your creativity, your stress, and energy levels to your sense of self-empowerment, and much more. (Pretty amazing, right?) Ready to go on a "walk" together to explore these truly amazing benefits? Let's go!

Walking can help you be happier with your body

In a study titled, Improving Body Image One Step at a Time: Greater Pedometer Step Counts Produce Greater Body Image Improvements, it was discovered that women's satisfaction with both their physical function and personal appearance increased with the number of daily steps they took. This study has since been replicated multiple times, and the same benefits have been found to apply to men.

Walking can improve your relationships

Studies have repeatedly demonstrated that the movements of people who walk together naturally sync up and that this physical synchrony leads to greater emotional synchrony. Christine Webb, Ph.D., a postdoc fellow in psychology at Emory University who has devoted much of her career to studying the relational and conflict-solving benefits of walking, explains, "When you're walking with someone, your forward momentum is not purely physical, but also psychological. You begin to feel more connected to the other person."

Walking can enhance your cognitive performance

Neuroscientist Shane O'Mara, Professor of Experimental Brain Research at Trinity College Dublin, asserts that walking unleashes the cognitive powers of the brain like nothing else. "[When] you're walking," he says, "there are all sorts of rhythms happening in the brain as a result of engaging in that kind of activity, and they're absent when you're sitting. One of the great overlooked superpowers we have is that, when we get up and walk, our senses are sharpened. Rhythms that would previously be quiet suddenly come to life, and the way our brain interacts with our body changes."

Walking can fuel your creativity

A Stanford University study found that walking skyrockets creative capacity. In the study, 176 adults were asked to tackle a variety of tasks that required "divergent thinking" — a mindset shown to be central to the creative process in which challenges can be approached in unusual, "outside-the-box" ways -- to generate innovative solutions. When research participants were reassessed on these tasks after taking a short walk, their divergent thinking scores shot up a whopping 60%.

Walking can reduce your stress levels

Walking in an environment that provides a sense of contact with the natural world (even if this is only through a wooded city park) will significantly reduce your stress hormone levels. That's the conclusion of researchers who conducted a study published in Frontiers of Psychology that revealed that a twenty-minute nature walk caused cortisol levels to plummet. And because chronically elevated cortisol levels have been implicated in excessive abdominal fat storage as well as fat-loss resistance, daily walks — despite burning relatively few calories — may help you slim down.

Walking can elevate your energy levels

If you're feeling tired or sluggish, a walk may be more effective at putting some pep back in your step than a nap. Research shows that walking can elevate energy levels even among people with chronic medical conditions. "A lot of times when people are fatigued, the last thing they want to do is exercise," says researcher Patrick O'Connor, Ph.D., co-director of the University of Georgia exercise psychology laboratory in Athens, Ga. "But if you're physically inactive and fatigued," continues O'Connor, "being just a bit more active will help."

Walking can enhance your sense of self-empowerment

Many studies show that the simple act of rising from a passive, seated position to an active, standing position instantly increases feelings of self-empowerment. Researchers speculate that the physical expression of standing communicates the emotional message to the brain, "I can stand on my own two feet."
But walking takes this intriguing finding even further. Walking communicates the emotional message to the brain that we can literally "take a step" to get where we want to go. Walking somehow seems to send emotional messages to the brain that we have choices available to us that aren't within reach while sitting (or just standing). This further enhances the feeling of personal empowerment by giving us a sense of expanded options and possibilities and the confidence that we can literally "move forward" to successfully reach them.

Step up your walking game!

Hopefully, by this point in our "walk," there's no question about the amazing health benefits of this activity! But you can make your walks even more awesome with the right gear. Here are a few ideas for taking your walking game to the next level!

• Comfy walking shoes. It all starts here! NEX carries a huge selection of walking shoes in every style designed for helping you comfortably "hit the road" (even if it's not of the paved variety)! From athletic walking shoes from brands like Nike, Asics, Adidas, and more, to everyday-casual styles from brands like Sketchers and Easy Spirit, you'll find your perfect pair at NEX.
• Water bottle. Even if you're headed out for only a short walk, it's still nice to know you have hydration on hand. And for longer walks, a water bottle is essential, even if you decide you'd rather fill it with your favorite refreshing beverage!
• Wireless earbuds. Invest in a pair of wireless earbuds so you can make your walks that much more enriching and enjoyable with your favorite music, podcasts, audiobooks, or TED Talks. Once you find the right wireless set (there's one for every budget), you'll never go back to the hassle of corded versions.
• Pedometer. Your smartphone can easily double as your pedometer, but sometimes it can feel freeing to "unplug" and leave your mobile device at home. A more traditional pedometer is an inexpensive way to track your steps without being tethered to your tech.
• A sunhat or sunscreen. Shielding your skin from UV rays is important all year long, but as the days grow longer, you'll want to be extra vigilant about using sun protection during your daily walk.

And there you have it! Thanks for joining us on this walking adventure! From all of us at NEX, we wish you happy trails, tracks, sidewalks, treadmills, and more!