Energetic stride, long breath: our health, physical and mental, starts with just how many steps we take each day.
Getting away from the office chair or the armchair at home and welcoming the invitation of the road, a path in the park or a climb in the mountains is good and right. Walking is good for you, trite to say but worth remembering.
Five thousand steps a day, (about 3 kilometers) is enough to feel better and ensure a longer, healthier life, says the World Health Organization, which has confirmed that a sedentary lifestyle is one of the leading causes of mortality and disability worldwide.
What are you waiting for?
Get up and walk.
A natural, ecological gesture.
Walking for at least 30 minutes triggers an important virtuous circuit.
Dr. Gianfranco Beltrami, medical director of Terme di Monticelli, Cardiologist, Sports Physician, Physiatrist and Nutritionist, explains.
“In those 30 minutes, metabolites are set in motion in the blood, molecules that affect heartbeat, breathing in the lungs, and neurons in the brain.
Also, when we walk, oxygen flows in abundance, which has a positive effect on vital organs, memory, creativity,mood and thinking ability,” he explains.
In addition to feeling good you are more creative and productive at work.
Weight also goes down: “Calories consumed in walking vary according to weight and subject, technique and speed. For example, a 70 kg man walking 6 km in an hour consumes about 380 calories,” the specialist continues.
The important thing is to do it regularly.
Tips for effective training.
How often is it good to exercise?
“The general indication is medium-intensity walking for 30 minutes a day without interruption,” clarifies Dr. Beltrami.
“Depending on age and special physical needs, short breaks every 10 minutes can be introduced.”
Alternatively, 3 days a week at higher intensity for 40 minutes can be provided.
In all cases, it is helpful to do some initial warm-up breathing and hip mobilization.
Walking with the right posture
Once you slip on suitable shoes that have good arch support and are not flat, it is important to maintain good posture, also activating the abdominals to keep straight.
The exercise works even better if you also grip sticks, which allow you to involve your upper body in the exercise.
The benefits of walking: how quickly are they noticed?
” Good results are immediately around the corner.
They can be seen even after thirty days of constant exercise.
As long as walking is accompanied by a proper lifestyle and a balanced diet.”
Walking in the green: the Monticelli Spa Park
You can walk in the city when the sun is warm or in winter with the right clothing.
Alone or in company, in silence or listening to music.
Certainly, the best habit is to do it in the green: “Outdoor activity and in nature also has positive effects on psychological well-being: it stimulates the release of endorphins, which in turn facilitate relaxation and improve mood and sleep.
At Terme di Monticelli we have a centuries-old park of 24 hectares that is among the largest green lungs in and around Parma, a place open to everyone to walk and breathe along its paths.”
Also within walking distance is the Oratory of St. Julius, built in 1950 in neo-Gothic style, and the sulfur water fountain where you can stop to drink this water with ancient properties.
A sip of health.