Get started, take a walk

Among the best ways to keep yourself fit is by doing the most natural of exercises — walking. To begin, you need a pair of comfortable shoes, a set of warm clothes preferably made out of natural fibre.

The moment the weather changes, people start spending more time outdoors. Suddenly, parks have more visitors, morning walks become all day walks and fitness enthusiasts start taking their exercise routines outside.

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Following this trend, over the next few weeks, we will show you how to get yourself in great shape without spending on equipment or gym memberships.

Among the best ways to keep yourself fit is by doing the most natural of exercises — walking. To begin, you need a pair of comfortable shoes, a set of warm clothes preferably made out of natural fibre, or ‘clime smart’ fabrics that keep you warm and allow your body to ‘breathe’ at the same time. Be sure to drink plenty of water before, during and after walking. Remember to incorporate routines of warming up, cooling down and stretches.

Walk whenever you can. A minimum of five days a week is a good goal. Warm up at a slow pace for about 10 to 15 minutes. Stop and do a few warm up or flexibility drills. This increases the circulation in your body and then you can begin brisk walking or jogging. End with a slower pace to cool down and finish with a couple of stretches to assist in injury prevention.

Watch your posture. Walk tall. Think of elongating your body. Hold your head up and eyes forward. Relax your shoulders Tighten your abdominal muscles and buttocks and fall into a natural stride.You should walk fast enough to reach your target heart rate, but not be gasping for air.

Most people think that if they walk for 45 minutes at leisure, it’s enough to lose weight or stay fit. Research shows that one needs to walk approximately 10,000 steps per day for fitness and weight loss. An easy way to track how many steps you take is with a pedometer which will calculate your footsteps as well as how many calories you burn.

Each 2,000-2,500 steps is about 2.2 km or 100 calories for a 150-pound person. If you’ve started logging 10,000 steps a day but are still not losing weight, add another 2,000 steps a day (and/or eat fewer calories). If that still doesn’t work after a couple of weeks, add more steps or eat less.

Fall into a habit. It’s tough, but it’ll show you results.