Walking for weight loss? Turns out, you have been doing it all WRONG, and here's WHY

First things first. Walking is great for you. It pumps in more oxygen to your lungs, tones your legs, keeps your heart healthy, can bring down blood pressure, and can help relieve stomach issues like constipation and acidity. However, is walking a great form of exercise? Turns out, not quite.

According to leading nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar, walking is an activity, not exercise, but it's still beneficial for overall health. She emphasizes that a well-rounded exercise program requires addressing strength, stamina, stability, and stretching, which she calls the "4S principle". While walking can improve circulation and mood, it may not be sufficient for significant improvements in strength and fitness. The nutritionist also adds that your exercise regime should make you comfortably uncomfortable. This means that your heart rate should go up while exercising, but at the same time, you should not be gasping for breath, and should be comfortable.

How does walking help?
Rujuta categorizes walking as an activity that helps prevent a sedentary lifestyle, rather than a form of exercise. This, in essence means that while walking will help you with issues like joint pain, BP etc, it will not help you lose weight, or strength train your muscles.

What is the 4S Principle?
According to Rujuta, the importance of a well-rounded workout is the one that addresses the four essential areas: strength, stamina, stability, and stretching, something that walking might not be able to achieve.


Does walking have limitations?
While there are no negative effects to walking, there are some limitations to it. According to Rujuta, relying solely on walking may not be sufficient for building strength or significantly enhancing overall fitness.

What can one do instead?
Any exercise that makes you muscles used to it, will eventually stop yielding results. Hence it is important to mix up your exercise regime. While continuing to walk, you should incorporate activities like running, stair climbing, Surya Namaskar, or stretching, to create a more complete exercise routine.

How much should you walk?
While walking might not be perfect for overall strength, it is still a great tool to get out of your sedentary lifestyle. For this, one must keep the following things in mind:

Walk for at least 30 minutes at a go: Even if you are strapped for time, a minimum of 30 minutes is what you need to reap some benefits of walking. You can break it up into 15 minutes slots every morning and evening, but make sure you walk this much.

Make it brisk: While one must take into account their age and chronic conditions, this apart, one should always do brisk walking. This means that while not touching cardio levels, your heart rate should go up by 20-50 beats while walking, to make sure that your heart is working a little extra hard.


Hydrate: It is a myth that one should not have water when exercising. If you don't, you might collapse from dehydration. The trick is to keep sipping some water after every 15 minutes. However, don't gulp it down.

Stretch: A post walk stretch is imperative for your muscles, and should not be ignored at any cost.