SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT EXERCISING YOUR IMMUNE

The Walking President

President Harry Truman had a regimen of brisk walking. He walked at the Army pace: 110 steps per minute. Reporters would often follow, throwing questions at him as they huffed and puffed along. They used to complain that he was walking too fast for them, even though they were younger than he was. When he came back to Washington for a visit he was in his 70′s: the reporters who were following him on his walk still had difficulty keeping up with him.

The Formula for Success

Twenty five minutes of nonstop, brisk walking, four days a week, will boost your immune system, strengthen your heart and lungs, lower cholesterol levels, raise your HDL (good) cholesterol, tone your leg muscles, help control your weight and fight high blood pressure.

But 25 minutes a day, four days a week, isn’t enough brisk walking to burn 2,000 calories a week. That’s why it’s very important to combine your regular brisk-walking sessions with lots of spontaneous brisk walks to the store, around the neighborhood, up and down stairs, visiting your nearby friends and so on. Look for ways to add steps each day.

Walking Relieves Back Pain

Walking is actually good for your lower back. Standing up or walking is easier on your back than sitting down; the mechanical load is less. Most of my patients with lower-back pain report that regular walking helps relieve the pain. Furthermore, it helps reduce the distress and frustration that is caused by the pain.

Sometimes I have my lower-back-problem patients begin by walking slowly and gently, or walking only on soft, grassy surfaces. But soon, most of them are able and eager to walk briskly and get all the other benefits of this simple but very effective aerobic exercise.

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