The Senior Walking Fitness Blog

Hello Everybody, 

We set goals every day.  We set a goal to catch a bus at 10.30 am. The bus driver sets a goal to arrive there on time. Probably.

It is the same with your fitness walking program. You may have several goals. Lose 12 pounds by Easter is your long term goal. Walk a mile in 20 minutes is your short term goal. To improve your diet over time you will need to start by cutting out a trip to Starbucks today. That’s both long and short term.

So goals are necessary. But don’t let them take over. Spring is nearly here. If you take half an hour to walk a mile because you have been admiring the snowdrops, that’s fine. You are improving your quality of life, not training for the 2012 Olympics.

It is the excuse that is the real problem. The little voice that says it’s too wet/cold/hot/windy to go out. The voice that says you deserve a trip to Starbucks because you have just spent a morning gardening or ironing shirts. Shame on you, this really won’t do. Stay with your fitness walking program and soon you will be fit and healthy. Your want that, don’t you.? It’s easy, just set yourself goals. 

Do you believe extravagant claims?   I hope not. We have all seen advertisements for secret herbal remedies passed down by Inca priests. Stolen by Spanish seafarers and used for generations. Now available on the internet for 27 dollars plus postage and packing. There is no mention that Inca priests had a life expectancy of 35 years and you are unlikely to suffer the infirmities of Spanish seafarers. We hope.

So when I find yet another report of the benefits of fitness walking I am a little suspicious. All I claim is that it is good for you, makes you more healthy and probably lengthens your life. However we are now told that exercise, and particularly walking, can cut the risk of colon cancer by 25 per cent. The British Journal of Cancer Study combined results of research covering many kinds of exercise including fitness walking. They looked at 52 studies from the past 25 years and found a dramatic drop in the incidence of colon cancer in those taking regular exercise. The benefit was the same for men and women.

This is not an extravagant claim, it is based on sound research. It is good news and once again reinforces the need for all of us to keep fitness walking whatever our age

 See you soon,

Peter Stockwell

Technorati Tags: fitness tips, fitness walking, heart health, over fifties, senior walking, walk fit, walking exercise, walking fitness, weightloss

Hello Everybody,

A while ago I posted a piece on Nordic Walking. At the time I thought it was a little high powered for Seniors and less dedicated walkers. I was wrong. To my surprise it was one of my most popular articles. So here are a few more tips on an excellent form of exercise.

Walking poles should be the correct length. They should put the walker’s elbow at 90 degrees when standing tall. If they are longer or shorter this will put un-necessary strains on your muscles and make Nordic Walking tiring and less enjoyable.

Make sure you have the right tips on your poles. These should be metal for general walking but for pavements and other hard surfaces removable rubber.

Do not buy special walking shoes. Your ordinary shoes will be good enough while you decide whether of not to take up Nordic Walking. I would never advise beginners to spend money on equipment until they really know what they need.

You really will find it beneficial. You use many more muscles than with normal walking and burn 20 per cent more calories while walking at the same speed.

If you decide to try Nordic Walking do join a group, who will show you how to use your poles properly. It is easy enough when you know how.

Should you not have a group in your area David Downer, an ace Nordic walker, has written an excellent book, ‘Nordic Walking Step by Step,’ which  has 125 pages and can be downloaded as an e-book. This will teach you the fundamentals and much more.

To give you an idea of how comprehensive David’s book is he offers you the first four chapters free of charge, which can also be downloaded from his website.

Just download your FOUR FREE CHAPTERS HERE  and you’ll be well on your way to Nordic walking.

See you soon,

Technorati Tags: fitness tips, fitness walking, heart health, nordic walking, over fifties, pole walking, senior fitness, Senior walking fitness, walk fit, walking, walking exercise, walking fitness, walking for fitness

Hello Everybody,

 I came across this article by Jean Carrick in which she describes a diet for permanent weightloss. Something we are all looking for. There are a lot of diets out there and the answer to losing weight is to find one you like and stick with it. There are only a few I would recommend. This is one of them.

Weightloss Plus Nutrition by Jean Carrick.

 Almost everyone is carrying more weight than they either want or need. It is the problem of getting rid of this excess weight that is such a problem to solve.

There are so many diets and fads around, supplements for this, pills for that, low carb, high carb, low or high protein, on and on and on!

Which do you choose? How on earth are you to decide which will give you the results that you want and need. The marketplace is chock full of different products promising you the earth but not fulfilling those promises.

Companies who make their money hand over first promoting diet pills, anti cholesterol drugs, fat reducing products. So much bad advice, it is small wonder that so many people never get the weight off and remain unhealthy because of it.

Truths versus untruths about what you should eat or not eat. It can be so confusing, you may think you are doing the right by yourself and in reality you are doing nothing of the sort. You may even be doing yourself harm.

Nutrition is the name of the game, you should be considering what is the nature of true nutrition.

There is no gain in starving yourself, or upsetting your whole metabolism by not eating certain foods because you have been led to believe they are bad for you.

There really is no substitute for a balanced diet. You need to know which foods will help you lose the weight and keep it OFF and which foods will instantly make your body put ON weight.

There is a product which is the work of a young woman who struggled to lose 30 lbs. of excess weight and she also struggled with a skin condition which made her life miserable. She decided one day that enough was enough and set out to discover why all the diets did not work, or if they did, they didn’t keep ON working.

You may lose some weight short time but it comes right back on again the minute you stop starving yourself, so that’s no good. Some diets put you on a food regime which just makes you feel so drained and miserable, now what’s the good of that? On top of all that you don’t lose weight!

Surprisingly the author discovered that you have to be in control of your body insulin before you can ever think about losing weight. Have you ever been told that before? NO, I didn’t think so. Plus some of her findings are life saving for diabetics, her own Mother being one of them.

Taking the insulin theory into consideration you will lose weight and bring down the need for insulin [if you are a diabetic]. The author has taken 15 years doing research to come up with this book, filled with the most important food facts that you will ever need to know.

It was found that low calorie diets don’t work - they just damage your metabolism. Low fat diets don’t work - they make more people put on weight than ever before, you need to eat the right kind of fat to make your body actually burn fat. Low carb diets don’t work - they just give you headaches, muscle aches and awful constipation.

Supplements don’t work - most of these are completely useless and are nothing but a scam. Medications don’t work - they just have awful side effects, they can damage your body and actually cause WEIGHT GAIN.

The Diet Solution contains the absolute best of information to give you weightloss plus nutrition. Even doctors are now realizing that you must follow a good nutritional diet to not only lose weight, but to avoid heart disease, diabetes and high cholesterol problems.

Why do you think there is so much conflicting advice out there? I believe it is all a scam to keep everyone off balance and a way of getting them to think that the next best thing is just around the corner. As long as there are many programs available, people who desperately want to lose weight will buy them.

STOP ALL THAT! There is no need to buy anything other than this program. You will learn how to eat healthily and enjoy what you are eating. You will see the weight come off easily and you will end up so energized and raring to go each day, you will wonder why it has taken you so long to realize that Nutrition is where it’s at.

As well as the actual book, The Diet Solution Program, you are going to receive 6 bonuses including recipes, workouts, truths about nutrition etc. all of these added together have a value of $209.93!

The best deal ever though is that the product costs only $39.97 BUT you only need to pay the $4.97 up front [Yes, that's what I said] and you have 21 days to decide whether to cancel or whether to pay the remaining $35. Of course you can pay the whole up front, that’s totally up to you, but what a great incentive to try the product.

AND - on top of all that great value, you get a 60-day Money Back guarantee. I honestly don’t think that you will need to avail yourself of that guarantee, nor will you not want to pay the remaining $35, thousands of the author’s clients have proved it works, so I am convinced it will work for you.

Give it a try, where in this deal can you lose anything but weight and possible ill health?

Jean is committed to finding a product to match up with people’s needs and this means the best product for the job, for more information on this product CLICK HERE.

So it is worth looking at this diet, but don’t forget to keep up your walking. If you just sit at home checking the scales you will never lose weight and never achieve lifetime fitness.

See you soon,

Technorati Tags: fitness tips, fitness walking, heart health, lifetime fitness, over fifties, walking, walking fitness, weightloss

Hello Everybody,

 I have been reading an article in Woman’s Own magazine which gives some useful walking and diet tips.

For diet it suggests that you.

Eat five times a day.

Allow two hours minimum between meals.

Eat a starchy meal every evening. Eating carbohydrates in the evening does not make you fat, it just keeps your energy steady throughout the night so that you wake up ready to go in the morning.

For walkers, Woman’s Own magazine guides you on how fit you are following your walking fitness program. The figures apply to women only.

Ages 55-64.

1 mile in 12 mins. Very fit.

1 mile in 15 mins. Very fit.

1 mile in 17 mins. Very fit.

1 mile in over 20 mins. Fit.

1 mile in over 25 mins. Unfit.

Ages 65-74

1 mile in 12 mins. Amazing.

1 mile in 15 mins. Very fit.

1 mile in 17 mins. Very fit.

1 mile in over 20 mins. Fit.

1 mile in over 25 minutes. Just fit.

So now you know what you have to aim at.

As ever, diet should form part of your walking fitness program. The Mediterranean diet is excellent as is Jo Benson’s free 10 Day Weightloss Program. Jo knows all about losing weight as he has been overweight and unfit himself. He fixed it and in his 10 Day Weightloss Program he shares his secrets with you. It’s really worth a look.

Just CLICK HERE now to access Jo Benson’s free program.

 See you soon,

Technorati Tags: fitness tips, fitness walking, heart health, lifetime fitness, over fifties, walking, walking fitness, weightloss

Hello Everybody,   

In my last post I wrote of the hazards of coastal walking. Now let us look at hill walking. The difference is that on the coast you normally know where you are. In the hills this is not always the case.

Let me explain. It is a beautiful April day, a family - let us say Mother, Father, two children and Grandmother, stop off in a car park at the edge of the moors. They decide to walk a mile or so cross country to a hill in the distance. There is a breeze, a few clouds in the sky, all is well. They take jumpers to keep warm and are wearing jeans and trainers. It is a nice walk, but as they reach the hill the weather changes. A wind gets up and the sun vanishes behind grey cloud. Within a few minutes they are in drizzle and then sleet. Visibility is poor, they are not sure where the car park is and they are getting cold and wet. Now, rather quickly, they find themselves in a Hill Rescue situation and it is hoped they have mobile phones to call for help.

So what did they do wrong? Rather a lot of things. They didn’t consider the speed with which weather changes in open country. They had no weather forecast for the area. They wore the wrong clothes for hill walking.

It all comes down to one thing. Respect. This applies to the coast as well as the hills, Neither environment is out to kill you, just understand that you need to take care of yourself and others when you are there. It doesn’t take much to get it right.

So if you are walking in the hills do these simple things.

Check the weather forecast.

Wear good walking shoes.

Buy a rain proof anorak and wear it over a jumper or jacket.

Keep a hat in a pocket.

Take a light rucksack with in it, a map of the area, a compass, a can of drink, a couple of bars of chocolate and a mobile phone.

Now that’s not much. You are not walking across the Hindu Kush and in the summer, of course, the clothing should be modified. But even then, in cooler climates, jeans, T-shirts and trainers are not a good idea.

So, once again, it all comes down to one thing. Respect. With respect you will be able to walk the hills in safety. They are there to enjoy.

As I said before fitness walking is a vast subject and if you mean to take it seriously there is one book which tells you all you need to know. Fitness Walking for Dummies by Suzanne Schlosberg. One of the famous For Dummies series. It will help you enormously and be your favourite book of reference for evermore. Do read it.

Just CLICK HERE now to go to Amazon where you will find full details.

See you soon,

Peter Stockwell

Technorati Tags: fitness tips, fitness walking, heart health, over fifties, walking, walking fitness, weightloss

Hello Everybody,

 Walking is, by its nature, a safe activity. For most of us, the only dangers are motorists, big dogs and drunks on a Saturday night. But if you walk in the country you need to be aware that there are dangers out there. In this article I shall deal with coastal walking and in the next hill walking. On the coast the real dangers are falling over cliffs and being trapped by the tide. Should you fall over a cliff and then find yourself trapped by the tide you are naturally accident prone and should probably have stayed at home anyway. However most walking accidents can be avoided.

Falling off cliffs only happens to the more adventurous and the answer is to stay away from the edge. Be aware that shale cliffs and to a lesser extent chalk cliffs are eroding away all the time and this can make the edges dangerous. But the sea is the biggest danger. When walking on the beach or the mudflats you must always check behind you as well as admiring the sea in front in front of you. In a bay with cliffs take note of where the path you took to the beach is situated. If you walk round a headland when the tide is low check if there is another path to safety. If not make sure you can get back again when the tide turns. Give yourself plenty of time, the tide can move quickly. All this is fairly obvious and not many people get into trouble around headlands and bays.

The real danger is walking on the sand and mudflats of estuaries. The sea goes out a long way, nearly a mile perhaps, and when the tide turns it can move at walking pace. But at low tide an estuary is a beautiful place with miles of sand and mudflats where your dog can chase seagulls and you can walk in the sunshine all the way to the sea. You splash across a few shallow streams and head out to meet the tide, it’s lovely in the warm breeze. Then, after a while you notice the water is moving inshore rather fast. No matter, it’s only a few inches deep - plenty of time to walk back to shore. You reach the stream you splashed across on your way out. It is now deep, very deep and very wide and you are in big trouble. With any luck you will be able to wade or swim across. But you will need luck and luck should never be relied upon.

So always, always look behind you when you are on the coast. It is a wonderful place to walk, but every year people die for want of simple safety precautions. Be prepared and walk safe.

Fitness walking is a vast subject and if you mean to take it seriously there is one book which tells you all you need to know. Fitness Walking for Dummies by Liz Neporent is one of the famous For Dummies series. It will help you enormously and be your favourite book of reference for evermore. Do read it.

Just CLICK HERE now to go to Amazon where you will find full details.

See you soon,

Peter Stockwell  

Technorati Tags: fitness tips, fitness walking, lifetime fitness, walk fit, walking, walking fitness program

Hello Everybody,

Walking is the easiest and best way of keeping fit. Fitness enthusiasts will want more, and the gym is a great way to work out But for the rest of us walking can make a real difference to our fitness and way of life. Do it right and you can lose up to five pounds in a week and have fun along the way. So here are five tips to start you off.

Start Slow.   Don’t rush out and walk five miles when previously you’ve only been walking a few yards to the bus stop. You’ll get blisters, feel terrible and give up. Begin by walking briskly round the block for a few days. Then when you’re happy with that make it half a mile. Do a mile after a week or so. That’s only half a mile there and half a mile back - you can do it easily.

Wear the Right Clothes.   At first you may wear anything you like, but as you walk further you need to be more prepared. Buy a pair of comfortable walking boots. If your climate is temperate get yourself a rainproof anorak with a hood. You will also need a light rucksack to carry a drink and some sticking plaster in case of blisters. That’s about it. Don’t carry too much, a large heavy backpack can be misery if you are not used to it.

Find a Buddy.   A walking buddy helps enormously. Fix a time to walk together and do it every day. You will not notice the distance and you will both benefit from the exercise. If you can’t find a buddy to join you don’t despair, heed the words of the immortal Gordon Gecko ‘If you want a friend get a dog’

Set Targets.   It is essential to set targets. Aim to be walking two miles by the end of the week. Or to lose five pounds in seven days, or whatever you feel comfortable with. If you achieve your aim celebrate, if not just make it more realistic next time. Should you have increased your walking and your weight remains the same look at your diet. You are probably not burning off enough calories. That can be fixed with a more healthy diet. But most of all you must not give up.

Enjoy Walking.   There is no point in walking if you hate every minute of it. But I hope you will enjoy your walking. There is so much to see every week as the seasons change. So now you have your buddy or your dog, the sun’s shining, it’s a lovely day. Off you go.

See you soon,

Peter Stockwell   

Technorati Tags: fitness tips, fitness walking, lifetime fitness, walk fit, walking, walking fitness program

Hello Everybody,

Some of you may be reading this Blog for the first time, so it seemed a good idea to go back to basics to let you know just why I think walking is the best exercise of all.  So here goes.

Humans are bipedal creatures. We are designed to walk on two legs. Just look at the pleasure on a toddler’s face as he takes his first steps – pleasure that only increases as he learns to use his legs to run, jump, skip and so on.

Fitness walking programs were unheard of in “Clan of the Cave Bear” days. With just two legs and arms and his wits to keep himself fed, watered and sheltered, prehistoric man was either fit – or dead.

However, modern ways of living (probably from as far back as the invention of the wheel) and eating (obtaining food from the refrigerator rather than the tree) mean that we need to build ‘fitness’ in as a lifestyle option rather than taking it for granted. Enter fitness walking and fitness walking programs – walking regularly in a structured manner that leads to greater physical fitness for the walker.

Defined as “America’s latest fitness craze” and catching on rapidly elsewhere, so many benefits accrue to walking for fitness that it’s hard to list them. Strengthened lungs and heart get on with doing the jobs for which they were made, sending oxygenated blood around your body and getting rid of wastes, including carbon dioxide. More oxygen to the cells burns fat and you lose weight. Fitness walking has been shown to lessen the risk of heart disease and stroke, arthritis and osteoporosis. As well, muscles and bones work better after regular, low-impact exercise so you have more energy than before, which in turn leads to greater self-esteem and reduced stress as you cope with life differently. All this for doing something that is free and enjoyable and doesn’t even need a gym membership – walking.

People slot into walking for fitness programs at their own level, aiming to increase their stamina, the distance they walk and, possibly, their speed, as time goes by. The aim is to be comfortable while fitness walking, but not so comfortable that you can carry out a full conversation at the same time. You should be breathing hard enough that a few sentences have to suffice. Working towards a fast (but not too fast) pulse rate at a pace that makes you perspire just a little, is the way to go.

Various accessories, and of course, walking with others, turn fitness walking into a sport. Use a pedometer to count steps (10,000 a day for optimum fitness – a couch potato will walk about 3000 steps in an average day). Check out walking clothing – there are some wonderfully well-designed shoes – and walking poles; join an outdoor walking group in your area, or, if outdoors is impossible in winter, save up to put a treadmill in your basement.

It’s said that Charles Dickens went for a 20-mile country walk after he finished writing each day. Actress Suzanne Somers likes to walk “straight up mountains” to keep in shape. John Glenn, famous astronaut, took up fitness walking when the impact of running became too hard on his knees. We walkers are in great company.

See you soon,

Peter Stockwell

Technorati Tags: fitness programs, fitness walking programs, senior fitness, senior walking programs, walking, walking for fitness programs

Hello Everybody,

 This article by Lee Saunders is very close to my philosophy of Walking Fitness and has plenty of useful tips to help you on your way. Do read it.

 ‘One of the greatest exercises we have is walking. The best part is that it’s free. So why an article on walking? Other than a pair of running shoes you do not need any special equipment. You already know how to do it and no personal trainer is needed!

This article will give you some ideas on how to spice up your walking program to fight boredom and accelerate the weight loss benefits.

Fight Boredom

The key to success with any exercise program is to keep doing it on a consistent basis. Make exercise a habit. But sometimes the same routine can lead to boredom. Once in a while it is good to spice up your walking workouts.

Get Different Walking Partners - Maybe you prefer to walk alone and meditate or mentally go over your to-do list for the day, but many people enjoy the social interaction of walking with someone else.

Even having a friend or neighbour or even your husband or wife walk with you during the week. Try walking with someone else on the weekend. Make it fun! Instead of meeting for coffee or going out to eat, call up a friend and suggest a walk in a nearby park or mall.

Change Your Location - Unfortunately in the winter it may be too cold to walk outdoors so walking on a treadmill or in a mall may be best. But as the temperature warms up, it’s a perfect time to get out and enjoy a nice walk in the warm breeze. Enjoy the outdoors, pick places where you can enjoy the beauty of the natural surroundings.

Listen To Inspiring Music - If you prefer to walk alone do you listen to music? Buy some new CD’s or put some new music into your mp3 player. Do you listen to books on CD? It’s easy to pick up digital books from the internet or your local library. Downloading pod casts from I Tunes is easy and they have a huge selection to choose from. Most of them are free.

Burn More Calories

Maybe you’d like to make your walks more challenging. Here are some ways to get your heart pumping a little faster.

Put on a backpack - An easy way to add more weight and make it comfortable is to add books, water bottles, or even rocks into a backpack and walk with it. It’s best to start light and gradually work your way to heavier weights.

Got a Stroller? - If you’re a Mom or Dad you might already be walking with your kids in a stroller. But if you haven’t been doing it consistently, it can be a great way to get your kids some fresh air while you burn some calories. Find out if there are any other parents who walk or join walking groups and take the kids walking with you. You can check places like Craigslist for walking buddies.

Find Some Hills - Mountains or hills are a great way to burn extra fat and calories and works different muscles than just walking on the flat ground.

Stair Climbing - Climbing stairs is an exciting way to burn fat and is an invigorating alternative to walking. You can even take the elevator down to avoid stress on your joints. Climbing stairs in your hotel is also a good workout when your travelling.

Take It Up A Notch - If you are the competitive type, time your walks and keep a log. On certain days make a conscious effort to push yourself and beat your best time. Another invigorating workout is interval training. Challenge yourself to walk fast for one block, slower for the next and repeat.

Be sure to be walking on a consistent basis as you are taking necessary steps to better health. Remember, change your routine and make things fun and always challenge yourself to better fitness.

CLICK HERE to burn off those ugly pounds quickly using our Accelerated Fat Burning Program.

 About the Author

Lee Saunders writes regularly about health related topics. I hope you enjoy this article.’

 I enjoyed it and I hope you did as well. If you have any comments on this, or anything else posted on my Blog I would be delighted to hear from you. Just click on Contact at the head of this page and scroll down.

See you soon, 

Peter Stockwell

Technorati Tags: fitness walking, online fitness walking programs, walking

Hello Everybody,

 Once you have done some walking and felt the benefits you may like to get serious. Nordic Walking makes ordinary walking more effective. It evolved in Scandinavia from an off season ski training activity and became a year round form of exercise. It uses poles. You may think this will make you look rather silly, but read on there is a reason.

The poles mean that you are using your upper body muscles as well as your legs. Also the poles help to propel you along, so that although you are using more energy and walking quicker it seems easy.

The results can be very impressive. You will achieve:

Significantly more overall strength and endurance.

An increase in your heart rate at a given pace.

Burn more calories than in normal walking.

Better balance and stability.

So it is worth looking rather silly for these results, and all you need are two poles.

You must learn to do Nordic Walking properly. Just putting a pair of poles down in front of you as you walk won’t help very much. So you need some training.

If you can’t spend a day or so with a qualified instructor there is an excellent book available from David Downer. David is a qualified INWA (International Nordic Walking Association) instructor and knows his stuff. His book Nordic Walking-Step by Step teaches you all you need to know in ten easy lessons.

Just CLICK HERE now to find out all about Nordic Walking

 See you soon,

Technorati Tags: fitness walking, nordic walking, walking fitness, walking for health