It’s easier and more convenient to make walking a daily regular routine than almost any other exercise.

Walking burns calories at any speed. Of course, brisker walking burns more, but if you can’t or don’t want to go faster, you can walk longer to make up the difference. For example, if you weigh 150 pounds and cover one mile in 15 minutes (that’s 4 mph), you burn about 110 calories. But walk at a slower pace (3 mph) and you get the same calorie burn in just a mile and one-tenth.

If you walk at an easy-to-moderate pace for 45 minutes, you would cover two and a quarter miles, at 100 calories per mile. So your total calorie burn for the walk will be 2.25 x 100 = 225 calories burned. Do that for 30 days and you’ve walked away 30 x 225 calories = 6,750 calories. Figuring that 3,500 calories equal 1 pound, you will have lost close to 2 pounds — which adds up to about 22 pounds less body fat after a year.

Not motivated, you say? Borrow your neighbor’s dog. One of the best aerobic exercises for any fitness level is plain old walking. (Note to self: Remember to bring the dog.)

Fitness Walking in Hot Weather

Be sure to drink 10 to 16 oz. of fluids at least 15 minutes BEFORE you start your walk. Then drink every 20-30 minutes along your walk.

You can tell if you end up dehydrated after your walk if your pulse rate remains high and your urine is dark yellow.

Thirst doesn’t tell the whole story, so be sure to drink during your walk whether or not you feel thirsty, and avoid drinks with a high sugar concentration. Water is the best choice though sports drinks (without the sugar) are worth a try.

Walking vacations

As you gathered from the figures, the benefits from walking are measured in months, not days. Don’t be discouraged. Tell yourself these facts, over and over again:

√ I’m better off losing weight slowly. The more gradual the weight loss, the more likely it is to be permanent.

√ Losing weight gradually gives my body and appetite the time to adjust to my new lower weight.

√ By losing gradually, I’m preventing the baggy skin that could result if I lost more rapidly.

√ This the healthiest way to trim down. I don’t have to cut back on good nutrition. I don’t need diet pills. (People who lose weight by dieting lose lots of muscle tissue, as well as fat.)

Keep your food intake constant and you will lose weight slowly. Walk 45 minutes a day, four times a week, and you could drop almost 18 pounds a year. If you combine a walking regime with a proper diet, snipping out a few hundred calories from your diet each day – the pounds will leave faster.

Walking is easy, free and will change your life. Start today and get fit!