Walking

Research, of the Cancer Prevention Study-3 for the American Cancer Society (ACS), focuses on the most common and accessible form of physical activity: walking.

Almost 27 percent of people aged 65 to 74 and over a quarter of the population aged 50 to 64 said that they are inactive, according to a survey recently carried out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC.)

 Regular physical activity is essential for healthy aging. Adults ages 65 years and older gain substantial health benefits from regular physical activity, and these benefits continue to occur throughout their lives.

Promoting physical activity for older adults is especially important because this population is the least physically active of any age group.

Some physical activity is better than none, and a new study further strengthens this message. The study found that even levels of walking that do not meet the national recommendations still lower the risk of premature death by a considerable amount.

In another study, 140,000 people took part in the Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort. Of the participants, 6–7 percent said that they did not take part in any moderate or vigorous physical activity at the beginning of the study.

As many as 95 percent of the remaining participants said that they did some walking, and for almost half of them, walking was the only type of moderate to vigorous physical activity they engaged in.

The team adjusted for other risk factors that might have influenced the results, such as obesity, smoking, and chronic illnesses.

The study revealed that, compared with no physical activity at all, as little as under 2 weekly hours of walking correlated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality.

Additionally, meeting or exceeding the national guidelines, which is 30 minutes a day for physical activity by twofold through walking alone was linked with a 20 percent decrease in mortality risk.

Walking seemed to do the most good for preventing respiratory disease-related mortality. More specifically, more than 6 hours of weekly walking was associated with a 35 percent lower risk in this type of mortality, compared with those who were the least physically active. Other findings were:

·        Regular physical activity reduces the risk of many adverse health outcomes.

·        Some physical activity is better than none.

·        For most health outcomes, additional benefits occur as the amount of physical activity increases through higher intensity, greater frequency, and/or longer duration.

·        Most health benefits occur with at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity physical activity, such as brisk walking. Additional benefits occur with more physical activity.

·        Both aerobic (endurance) and muscle-strengthening (resistance) physical activity are beneficial.

·        Health benefits occur for children and adolescents, young and middle-aged adults, older adults, and those in every studied racial and ethnic group.

·        The health benefits of physical activity occur for people with disabilities.

·        The benefits of physical activity far outweigh the possibility of adverse outcomes.

Cardiovascular mortality was also lower among those whose only form of physical activity was walking. These people were 20 percent less likely to die from a cardiovascular illness and 9 percent less likely to die of cancer.

Walking has been described as the 'perfect exercise' because it is simple, free, convenient, doesn't require any special equipment or training, and can be done at any age. If you are going to begin a fitness program always check with your doctor. Here are some guidelines to help you

Avoid Inactivity
Some physical activity is better than none — and any amount has health benefits.

Do Aerobic Activity
For substantial health benefits, do one of the following:

•    150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) each week of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity (such as brisk walking or gardening)
•     75 minutes (1 hour and 15 minutes) each week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity (such as jogging or swimming laps)
•     An equivalent combination of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity
•     Do the aerobic physical activity in episodes of at least 10 minutes and, if possible, spread it out through the week.

For even greater health benefits, do one of the following:

•     Increase moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity to 300 minutes (5 hours) each week
•     Increase vigorous-intensity aerobic activity for 150 minutes (2 hours and 30 minutes) each week
•     Doing more will lead to even greater health benefits.

• When older adults cannot do 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity a week because of chronic conditions, they should be as physically active as their abilities and conditions allow
• Older adults should do exercises that maintain or improve balance if they are at risk of falling
• Older adults should determine their level of effort for physical activity relative to their level of fitness
• Older adults with chronic conditions should understand whether and how their conditions affect their ability to do regular physical activity safely

Strengthen Muscles

Do muscle-strengthening activities (such as lifting weights or using resistance bands) that are moderate or high intensity and involve all major muscle groups on 2 or more days a week