Walking for Health? A Faster Pace Boosts Benefits

Want to cut your odds of an early death by almost 20%?  Take just 15 minutes out of your day for a brisk walk, researchers advise.

While it’s known that regular walking is healthy, the new study suggests maintaining a peppy pace is key.

“Individuals should strive to incorporate more intense physical activity into their routines, such as brisk walking or other forms of aerobic exercise,” concludes study lead author Lili Liu of the Vanderbilt Epidemiology Center at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.

Recommendations for brisk walking aren’t new. The U.S. government’s Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans says: “To attain the most health benefits from physical activity, adults need at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, like brisk walking or fast dancing, each week.”

Just how might a brisk daily walk boost your health?

According to the researchers, aerobic exercise like this improves the heart’s efficiency, including its overall output, oxygen delivery and pumping action. At the same, regular brisk walks help ward off obesity, high cholesterol and high blood pressure, the researchers said.