If running is not your thing because of the feeling of fatigue, then walk, but it is not just walking, here we tell you what you should take into account for this practice.
In a simplified way, it is «walk mobilizing the arms, activating the abdomen and slightly raising the tip of the foot»explains Agustín Rubio, manager of Running Company Madrid. Only then will you be practicing power walking. Does it really provide the same benefits as running? Let’s see if this type of walk can become a complete and effective training.
gain health step by step
Choosing the sport that we like the most to get in shape and, above all, to be constant in the rhythm of training is an issue that is not always clear to us. Undoubtedly one of the most popular in recent years is running, which has encouraged thousands of men and women to go jogging in parks, streets and gyms for different purposes: burn fat, reach the ideal weight, gain in health, disconnect from everyday problems…
Convinced that running is the way to reach their goal, more and more people have signed up for fashionable sport and go out two or three days a week to sweat the shirt. But with the advent of power walking, many who were reluctant to run have turned to walking. This new sport has the advantage that it is much less demanding biomechanically speaking (not in terms of cardiovascular effort) and, however, it provides practically the same health benefits and some extra advantage.
If you have thought about taking your first steps of ‘power walking’, it will be very useful for you to know these five mistakes that, according to Soraya Casla, personal trainer at Running Company Madrid, it is easy to fall into. They are also very easy to solve.
1. Displace the hip. If you feel pressure in your lower back, correct it.
2. Turn off the abdomen. It is essential to feel that this is the center of the body, without leaving it behind, always keeping the hip on the support of the foot, neither in front nor behind.
3. Cross your arms in front of your body. We must always keep them in the direction of our walk.
4. Squeeze your hands and make too wide movements with your arms: the arm movement should not reach shoulder height.
5. Force the elevation of the tip of the foot. The tibialis are poorly trained muscles. We must listen to them: if they get tired, we must relax them and stretch them a little to avoid injuries.
Walking fast is the ideal option for those people who «want to play sports in a moderate way but are not in optimal physical condition or who are starting to run,» says Dr. Carlos J. Díez Sánchez, managing director of La Moraleja hospital (Madrid). . In addition, since there is no flight phase – one of the feet is always on the ground – there is no impact and the joints do not suffer as much as they do when we run. Thus, if you decide on power walking, it will not take long to see the healthy effects that it highlights Ten Sanchez: “Increases cardiorespiratory fitness, lowers blood pressure and the risk of coronary heart disease, delays osteoporosis, increases muscle mass and flexibility, reduces weight, strengthens joints, improves immune response, facilitates digestion, improves tolerance to glucose and helps lower cholesterol.
To feel better (also) inside
As if this catalog of benefits were not convincing enough, the doctor adds several psychological effects: “Power walking increases confidence and self-esteem, releases stress, decreases aggressiveness and anguish and prevents depression”. The psychologist and coach Eve Hidalgo explains: “The simple fact of practicing a sport favors the release of various hormones that, in combination with other neurotransmitters, have a positive effect on our body. Serotonin facilitates the regulation of sleep and moods, endorphins reduce stress and anxiety levels and dopamine causes an addictive effect to physical activity”. This hooking effect is what leads us to perseverance, something that «should never be missing in a good plan to lower the percentage of body fat,» concludes Díez.
If we want to increase the guarantees of continuity in our new sports hobby, a good way to do it is to go for a walk in a group, which helps to acquire the necessary commitment to turn this activity into a routine. However, the psychologist Eve Hidalgo Advises that “At least a couple of weekly sessions are done alone, since it is an ideal space and time to connect with ourselves and be attentive to our needs and emotions.”
Posture, duration and intensity
One of the most important aspects for the correct execution of a power walking session is posture. If we want to avoid long-term injuries, “The trunk must remain upright to maintain body balance. If we tilt it forward, the lumbar muscles end up fatigued. If, on the other hand, we walk backwards, it will be our hips that suffer. In addition, it is important to look forward to avoid overloading the neck, the chest up and the shoulders back and down. The abdomen must be contracted to protect the lower back”Explain Ten Sanchez. To keep the abdomen activated, «we must place the hips in a neutral position and avoid the turns caused by the energetic arm movement,» explains Agustín Rubio.
If you are going to start in this sport, «it is advisable to start with sessions of twenty minutes three times a week at a low intensity pace, if your physical condition is low», advises Toni Subiratpersonal trainer at the gym DiR Castillejos of Barcelona. And he adds: «Then you should increase the time and intensity to a pace where your maximum heart rate is between 60 and 70%». This percentage is the one that corresponds to a moderate intensity, which is identified with «the moment in which we sweat but we can hold a conversation with relative ease», clarifies Dr. Díez, who also proposes carrying a heart rate monitor to work on training at the adequate. The formula to calculate it is very simple: maximum heart rate = 220 – age.
Taken from El País