for eMaxHealth(NC)-You've heard it before: regular exercise is good for you and key to living a healthy life. But for many people, finding the time to fit exercise into their busy lives can seem next to impossible. Don't get overwhelmed by the thought that you have to spend hours in the gym - the easiest way to increase your daily activity is to start walking.
Studies show that you only need to walk 15 to 20 minutes per day to maintain your weight. It doesn't matter when you do it or how fast you go, just as long as you walk. A great way to get motivated is to start a walking group with a couple of friends. Set aside a regular time each morning or evening to take a walk. By adding a social component to your walk, you won't even notice the time go by.
You can also increase your motivation even further by using a step counter throughout the day, like the ones currently found in specially marked boxes of Kellogg's Special K cererals and Vector meal replacement (while quantities last), to keep track of the amount of walking you're doing. Put it on when you get up in the morning and wear it until you go to bed, making sure you reset it to zero every morning after recording the day's total. You can track your steps online at Canada on the Move (www.canadaonthemove.ca), a national research project by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to study the effectiveness of step counters in increasing physical activity.
By wearing a step counter and donating your steps, you can contribute to valuable research while being active and spending some quality time with your friends. Who knew walking could be so good?
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