Walking: 11 Reasons To Use Vitamin W TODAY!

Are You Using the Power of Vitamin W?

By Luke Coutinho Lifestyle 10000 steps, benefits of walking, gut, heart health, skin health, tips on walking, Vitamin W, walking 0 Comments

Everyone is looking for vitamins to boost their health. I often get asked, “Luke, is there a vitamin for strong hair, or one that can boost my kidney or heart, or cleanse my liver? Do I need a vitamin to lose weight?” Today I want to introduce a very interesting vitamin to you. You won’t find it in any food or pill. Vitamin W. Many of you may be thinking Vitamin W must be water. And while water is living-giving and life-saving, Vitamin W stands for the power of walking.

If you’ve got two legs that work, use them. It is the most inexpensive and easy lifestyle change you can adopt, no matter where you are.

I had a client who flew into Siberia a couple of days ago. It was -45 degrees. No way anyone could go out for a walk in that extreme weather. But he found a way to meet his step goal. He had a small hotel room and sent me a video of him walking up and down the hotel room. No excuses.

vitamin w walking benefits — Representational image only. Photo Credits: Freepik/Katemangostar

People ask me, “Luke, is walking a good exercise?” Absolutely YES. People have been doing it for decades. There is medical science throwing super facts about how walking can benefit you. Why don’t we do it with consistency? Because the human mind has been conditioned to look for complication, intensity, and extremes over simplicity, consistency, and discipline.

Why is walking so good for you?

It is inexpensive. It costs you ZERO money. It is FREE. All you need is a pair of working legs.
You can do it anytime and anywhere (of course subject to weather conditions).
You do not need a gym or trainer to walk.
Walking can benefit you regardless of whether you are healthy or ailing with conditions ranging from cancer, heart disease, kidney issues, obesity, hormonal imbalances, gut issues, and so on (provided you are physically able to walk).
Besides yoga, walking is the one drug that all of us can add to our lifestyles. Whether you are in your 30s, 40s, 50s, or even 80s, you can do it. You may not be able to deadlift, bench-press or do CrossFit, but you can walk and do yoga.

What does science say about walking?

Walking for 30 minutes a day can reduce your risk of heart attacks and cardiovascular diseases by almost 19%.
It is powerful not only for your heart health but also for fat loss, strong hair, and naturally glowing skin too.
A light and gentle 10 to 15-minute walk after your meal, (it doesn’t have to be a brisk walk!) has a direct correlation to improved sugar levels in our diabetic patients. Yes, walking after your meals can bring your spiked blood sugar levels down.
People who walked at a moderate pace for about 30 to 45 minutes a day had 43% fewer sick days and fewer upper respiratory problems which is a big problem due to pollution, poor air quality, and lack of activity.
For every 1,000 steps you take daily, people with high blood pressure can lower their systolic pressure by 0.45 which is huge. Yes, take your medications if you must, but also make this lifestyle change. It will help your doctor reduce your dosage or even wean you off safely over time. Very few patients who have high blood pressure because of chronic kidney disease or vice versa may have a problem getting off medication. But for everyone else where your high blood pressure is caused because of a poor lifestyle, the solution is not a pill, but a lifestyle change. You do not want silent spikes of high blood pressure creating heart, brain, or kidney issues or worsening your diabetes.
Walking up to 5 to 6 miles a week can also help you prevent arthritis.
Taking 8,600 steps a day can prevent weight gain in adults and people who are already overweight by being consistent with walking can also start to burn fat and maintain a healthy weight.
Walking 10,000 steps a day lowered the risk of dementia by 50% and increased by 25% when you decreased your walking. Of course, you need to ensure your sleep is good, you have the right saturated fats, have adequate movement, and have good emotional health too.
New research shows that the more you walk, the more activity you have, and the lesser your chances of prostate cancer. Even if you have prostate cancer, keeping exercise consistent can help you manage it better.
Dealing with anxiety and depression? Walking just 10 minutes a day can lift your spirits. The next time you feel low or depressed, get off social media and take a walk. Most people with anxiety and depression don’t breathe the right way. They either exhibit short breathing patterns or are hyperventilating. This means less oxygen going in and more carbon dioxide storage, which can make you feel dizzy and nauseous, or trigger an anxiety attack and pass out. So, when you walk or exercise, you automatically start regulating your breathing. The more oxygen you inhale, the more balanced are your cortisol levels. When you start walking, you distract your mind from the problem. This can be very useful.
A 10-minute walk is a great mood changer. It helps your body produce endorphins. If you find yourself angry, depressed, or have any negative emotions, step away from the situation and get on a walk. When you distance yourself from the trigger (whether it’s a person or an event), you calm down. Come back to it later when you feel level-headed and rational because we can’t run from all our problems.

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Is 10,000 steps a magic number?

Science has that answer for you. People who walk 4 miles a day (~ 8,200 steps) were less likely to become obese or suffer from sleep apnea, acid reflux, and major depressive disorders.

It could be 10,000 steps, 12,000 steps, or even 8,200 steps. Do what suits you. The point is to start walking, have a personal goal, and slowly increase that over time.

I remember I had a client a couple of months ago who could do only 2,000 steps daily. We broke down his goal into small wins. He moved from 2,000 to 2,500, and 3,000, and is now hitting 14,000 steps daily. His creatinine levels have come down from 9 to 1.3. Several lifestyle changes contributed to it, but walking also played a role.

The human body is not designed to sit as much as we do. More walking means more blood circulation and this can benefit every organ in your body. So many people live sedentary lifestyles and have sedentary jobs today. And even if you do a one-hour workout but are chained to the desk for the remainder of the day, you are not active. You are what we call “sedentary active.”

How to incorporate walking into your lifestyle?

There are so many ways that we coach our clients to do this. I am going to share some of these tips with you.

Have a target or benchmark. If you don’t have a vision, you do not know where you’re going. Measure what you do. Once you have hit your goal, try to do better the next day.
Always wear a smartwatch. Track your goals with the step tracker feature in it. I usually like to have a target of 10,000 to 12,000 and sometimes 15,000 steps depending on what my workout schedule is and for how long I sit in a day.
If you have a sitting job, it is all the more a reason for you to start getting more steps. I was speaking to a pilot the other day. He said, “Luke, I wish I could get more steps but I’m a pilot and I sit for long hours.” But he slowly moved from hitting 5,000 steps to now 12,000 steps and he loves it! Today, it has become a part of his lifestyle and that’s impressive.
You could be in the office, at an airport, in a hotel, or even at home. Just take 10-minute walks after each of your meals.
I teach my clients to plan a call. Whether you have a work call or want to chat with your parents, partners, siblings, or friends, plan it after a meal. This will help you get the walk done while calling. Walk and talk. You will easily hit 8,000 or even 10,000 steps if that’s your goal.
If you have access to nature, walking in nature is one of the most calming things. When you walk, your creative juices also flow. Most people get their ideas when they are walking.
If you can get a morning walk in the sun when it is right for you (not too harsh or burning your skin). You can get an evening walk at sunset. You will not only get Vitamin D but infrared light which is highly anti-inflammatory for your body.
If you cannot get a 1-hour walk. Try 10 minutes after every meal and get 30 minutes easily. You could also try breaking it down into 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening.

What if I have been advised by my doctor to walk less?

If you have poor knee health or tight hamstrings, your doctor may advise you to walk less. Keep them in the loop about how much you walk. We have also seen cases where people with knee pain and tight calf muscles, hamstrings, and quadriceps benefit from walking.

Your knee is between your quadriceps, hamstring, and your calf. If these muscles are tight, they pull on your knee and you experience pain. When these cases come to us, we just get them to start opening up their calf muscles through stretching and yoga to loosen their hamstrings and quads. As those muscles get more flexible, the knee pain reduces.

Young people have bone density issues, and back and knee pains due to poor posture and sedentary lifestyles. Weight-bearing exercises can help. Weight-bearing doesn’t mean one has to lift weights. Walking is also a weight-bearing exercise. So are climbing steps, jogging, and mountain climbing because you are using your body weight for these.

Your knees become weak because the cartilage and muscles around them aren’t strong enough. Walking is the least you can do to strengthen them. It may be painful in the beginning, but you can start slowly and gradually build up.

Walking also strengthens your muscles and core. If you have been going to a gym, you would know how sore muscles are for the first few days. This is because exercises break down your muscle fibers, but at the same time when those muscle fibers repair, they become stronger.

The case with your knees is similar. The more you walk, the more you will be able to prevent the onset of diseases and there is a great possibility that your doctor will reduce your medication.

Remember that activity can only be bad for you if you have been in an accident, got a severe injury, and are prescribed rest as medicine. For everyone else, please understand that exercise is going to make your pain better. You’ve got to look at flexibility. Start slow if you must. Even 10 minutes of walking can be a good start and slowly progress from there.

The problem today is that everyone wants fast results. There are no shortcuts in life. Everything takes its time if you want to do it the right way, get the right results, and more importantly keep these results sustainable.

How do I get walking to be more progressive?

Try walking uphill, up the steps. Whenever there’s an incline it’s great for cardiovascular health as well. There’s so much you can do. Use your legs. Remember in life what you do not use you lose. If you have muscle and you don’t constantly train that muscle you will lose that muscle. The same thing with the brain. It’s as simple as that.

Make Vitamin W a small win every day. It’s not too late. Wherever you are right now if you’ve not got your steps, walk start right now. That’s the power of small simple wins. Remember simplicity is a new luxury, and common sense is a superpower.

If you get walking into your lifestyle, you are going to notice a change in every aspect of your health. Figure out your own goal, don’t base it on what people around you talk or say. Once you have set your goal, aim to reach it every day. Keep winning!

WATCH THIS: Why Should You Add Walking To Your Activity In 2023

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