{"id":547,"date":"2018-09-11T22:07:40","date_gmt":"2018-09-11T22:07:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/?p=547"},"modified":"2018-10-13T20:28:43","modified_gmt":"2018-10-13T20:28:43","slug":"why-walking-is-good-for-seniors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Walking Is Good For Seniors"},"content":{"rendered":"

As you get older, exercise and particularly walking becomes more difficult. You get tired more quickly and you can\u2019t walk as far.<\/p>\n

But you should still try to maintain a regular walking routine. Health experts say that walking is one of the best exercises for seniors.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not only good for your body; it\u2019s also good for your mental health.<\/p>\n

Here are the biggest benefits of walking for seniors plus some tips on how to start and maintain a walking routine.<\/p>\n

1. Weight management<\/h2>\n

Whether you are a spring chicken or in your senior years, walking will help you keep your weight in check.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a simple balance of burning more calories than you are taking in.<\/p>\n

For walking to be an effective form of weight management exercise, it essential that you also eat healthy.<\/p>\n

Complementing exercise with a healthy diet is especially important for seniors. Their metabolism is lower meaning they don\u2019t burn as many calories even with exercise.<\/p>\n

Staying within a healthy weight range is not just about looking and feeling great; it\u2019s also essential for your health. It lowers the risk of stroke, heart attack and diabetes.<\/p>\n

2. Fitness<\/h2>\n

Staying fit is extremely important as you age. With your body already loosing muscle mass and your joints getting stiffer, you need to make sure you are not accelerating these degenerative processes.<\/p>\n

Walking is a great way to stay fit. It keeps your leg and thigh muscles strong, which is important if you want to retain your mobility for as long as possible.<\/p>\n

It also strengthens your bones, which tend to get weaker with age, and makes joints more flexible.<\/p>\n

3. Pain management<\/h2>\n

If you already have arthritis, walking is one of the best things you can do.<\/p>\n

It may seem counterintuitive because you don\u2019t want to aggravate existing pain but researchers have found<\/a> that regular walking and exercise in general eases arthritic pain.<\/p>\n

The same applies if you have knee pain<\/a> or back pain. Walking will help reduce the pain and can even help rebuild damaged joints and weak muscles.<\/p>\n

4. Body balance and stability<\/h2>\n

To reduce the risk of falling, walk as often as you can. As your body gets used to the rhythm and your muscles build back up, you\u2019ll find that your sense of balance is improving.<\/p>\n

You can go up and down the stairs and walk on rough path without being afraid that you\u2019ll fall.<\/p>\n

If you feel a bit shaky at first, use a walking stick<\/a> or a walker<\/a> to give you more balance.<\/p>\n

5. Heart health<\/h2>\n

Walking is good for your heart.<\/p>\n

A regular walking routine, even if it involves just 10-20 minutes of walking daily, has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure and cardiac arrest.<\/p>\n

Combine that with a healthy natural diet and you are likely to keep your heart beating strongly for longer.<\/p>\n

6. Mental health<\/h2>\n

Walking makes for happier days.<\/p>\n

Just the act of flexing your legs and being outdoors is therapeutic. It lowers stress and anxiety and makes you more relaxed.<\/p>\n

You are also likely to meet friends and acquaintances along the way. These small interactions, meaningless as they might seem, are essential in keeping you feeling happy and warding off loneliness.<\/p>\n

When you are happier and less stressed, your overall health goes up. There is less risk of high blood pressure and it\u2019s even easier to maintain a healthy weight range.<\/p>\n

How to get started (and keep going)<\/h2>\n

Starting a walking routine doesn\u2019t require much planning or many resources. So don\u2019t say you\u2019ll start next week or next month.<\/p>\n

Start today or tomorrow.<\/em><\/p>\n

Just make sure you have a comfortable pair of sneakers or sports shoes and the right clothes for the weather. Then just go.<\/p>\n

You don\u2019t have to start with a gruelling walk. Even a 5-minute walk is enough. Just commit to doing it 3-5 times a week.<\/p>\n

With each walk try to walk further. You should aim to eventually take 20-30 minute walks.<\/p>\n

The walking pace should be moderate. Not too fast that you get quickly tired and struggle with breathing but fast enough that you can feel your heart beating fast.<\/p>\n

And when it starts to get boring change your walking path, listen to some music or an audio book while walking or get a friend to accompany you on your walks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As you get older, exercise and particularly walking becomes more difficult. You get tired more quickly and you can\u2019t walk as far. But you should still try to maintain a regular walking routine. Health experts say that walking is one of the best exercises for seniors. It\u2019s not only good for your body; it\u2019s also good for your mental health. Here are the biggest benefits of walking for seniors plus some tips on how to start and maintain a walking routine. 1. Weight management Whether you are a spring chicken or in your senior years, walking will help you keep <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":549,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhy Walking Is Good For Seniors<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Why walking is good for seniors? Here are the biggest benefits of walking for seniors plus some tips on how to start and maintain a walking routine.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why Walking Is Good For Seniors\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Why walking is good for seniors? Here are the biggest benefits of walking for seniors plus some tips on how to start and maintain a walking routine.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Active Seniors Club\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-09-11T22:07:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2018-10-13T20:28:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/bench-man-people-woman.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"667\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jack Bennett\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jack Bennett\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/\",\"name\":\"Why Walking Is Good For Seniors\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/bench-man-people-woman.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-09-11T22:07:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-10-13T20:28:43+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d45e5646a38ffd9d1bfff6c5f40b9701\"},\"description\":\"Why walking is good for seniors? Here are the biggest benefits of walking for seniors plus some tips on how to start and maintain a walking routine.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/bench-man-people-woman.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/bench-man-people-woman.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":667,\"caption\":\"why walking is good for seniors\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Why Walking Is Good For Seniors\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/\",\"name\":\"Active Seniors Club\",\"description\":\"Gadgets For Active Ageing\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d45e5646a38ffd9d1bfff6c5f40b9701\",\"name\":\"Jack Bennett\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d04b6919ccf16e437a09a57fc806139f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d04b6919ccf16e437a09a57fc806139f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Jack Bennett\"},\"description\":\"Jack studied psychology at the University of Westminster, London, and then spent 15 years in various roles in the Elderly & Senior Care industry. He's a self-confessed tea and coffee geek who spends his free time in the garden and with his horses.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/author\/jack\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Why Walking Is Good For Seniors","description":"Why walking is good for seniors? Here are the biggest benefits of walking for seniors plus some tips on how to start and maintain a walking routine.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Why Walking Is Good For Seniors","og_description":"Why walking is good for seniors? Here are the biggest benefits of walking for seniors plus some tips on how to start and maintain a walking routine.","og_url":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/","og_site_name":"Active Seniors Club","article_published_time":"2018-09-11T22:07:40+00:00","article_modified_time":"2018-10-13T20:28:43+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":667,"url":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/bench-man-people-woman.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Jack Bennett","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jack Bennett","Estimated reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/","url":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/","name":"Why Walking Is Good For Seniors","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/bench-man-people-woman.jpg","datePublished":"2018-09-11T22:07:40+00:00","dateModified":"2018-10-13T20:28:43+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d45e5646a38ffd9d1bfff6c5f40b9701"},"description":"Why walking is good for seniors? Here are the biggest benefits of walking for seniors plus some tips on how to start and maintain a walking routine.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/bench-man-people-woman.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/bench-man-people-woman.jpg","width":1000,"height":667,"caption":"why walking is good for seniors"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/why-walking-is-good-for-seniors\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Why Walking Is Good For Seniors"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/","name":"Active Seniors Club","description":"Gadgets For Active Ageing","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/d45e5646a38ffd9d1bfff6c5f40b9701","name":"Jack Bennett","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d04b6919ccf16e437a09a57fc806139f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d04b6919ccf16e437a09a57fc806139f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Jack Bennett"},"description":"Jack studied psychology at the University of Westminster, London, and then spent 15 years in various roles in the Elderly & Senior Care industry. He's a self-confessed tea and coffee geek who spends his free time in the garden and with his horses.","url":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/author\/jack\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=547"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":635,"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547\/revisions\/635"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/549"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/activeseniorsclub.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}