Why Is Walking So Good For You? Here’s What Studies Show.

Research shows the more you walk, the more health benefits you’ll experience.

It can be a bit daunting trying to get in the recommended amount of exercise each week. “Everyone should do daily activity and exercise for at least 30 to 40 continuous minutes” to improve both physical and mental health, Dr. Jay Lee, an internal medicine physician with Kaiser Permanente.

Lee recommends walking for at least 30 to 40 minutes without interruption. He also suggests walking briskly enough to raise your heart rate and breathing rate. “If you want to raise your level of exertion, then you can walk for longer durations of time or you can specifically walk uphill or over rougher terrain,” he says. “You can also carry a weighted pack to add to the level of your exertion if you wish.”
While it may be ideal to take a long, intense walk every day, that’s not feasible for everyone. If you have to choose, Lee recommends taking shorter daily walks over longer, more intense walks a few times a week. “The regularity is more important than the intensity or duration,” he says. Although most people have heard that they should walk 10,000 steps a day, many experts don’t think it’s necessary to walk that much.

What do studies say about walking’s impact on health?

Walking may help you live longer. A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that older women taking about 4,400 steps per day had a 41% lower risk of mortality. Yet another study, this one published in Nature, found that walking briskly for as little as 10 minutes a day may lower your biological age by 16 years and help you live up to 20 years longer.

It can reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer. A published study in JAMA Internal Medicine showed that taking up to 10,000 steps a day may lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer.

It may help with high blood pressure. According to a study published in PeerJ, walking 300 minutes a week reduces high blood pressure.

Walking may help you sleep better. A study published in the Sleep Health Journal showed that taking an additional 2,000 steps a day can improve the duration and quality of sleep.

It can improve your mental health. Walking can reduce anxiety and depression, relieve stress and lessen negative emotions, according to another study.

It can help strengthen your bones. Taking a brisk walk for at least 30 minutes a day as little as three days a week can help improve bone density and prevent osteoporosis.

Walking can help lower type 2 diabetes risk. A study published by the American Diabetes Association found that the risk of developing type 2 diabetes went down with every additional 2,000 steps taken.

Taken together, studies show that “there is no magical number of steps that everyone should aim for. The benefits of walking are additive, so the more you walk, the more benefits you’ll experience.

While it may be ideal to take a long, intense walk every day, that’s not feasible for everyone. If you have to choose, Lee recommends taking shorter daily walks over longer, more intense walks a few times a week. “The regularity is more important than the intensity or duration,” he says.