everyone knows that walking is "the best exercise in the world." however, some people often cannot persevere. for a simple exercise like walking, if we can persist for 100 days, what changes will happen to our bodies?

what changes will happen to your body if you keep walking for 100 days?

in 2021, an article published in capital public health by staff from the xicheng district center for disease control and prevention in beijing showed:walking for 100 days will improve the body's blood pressure, weight, hip circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, visceral fat and other indicators。

the study selected 610 people to participate in a 100-day walking activity, including 316 men and 294 women. all participants will be physically tested by a unified professional physician before walking and after 100 days of walking.

according to the requirements, participants wear special pedometers to record the number of daily walking steps, walking intensity and time.

during the activity, walk at least 10,000 steps every day, and complete "morning three" or "evening four" (walk enough 3,000 steps in the morning or walk enough 4,000 steps in the evening) and three exercise prescriptions (complete 10 minutes, 10 minutes and 15 minutes respectively) walk briskly, at a pace of 100 to 150 steps/minute). and physical indicators were measured before and after the activity. the results show:

（1）after 100 days of vigorous walking, physical health indicators including: weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, bmi, visceral fat, body fat rate, and blood pressure were reduced to varying degrees.；

（2）increase your step rate to achieve greater health benefits. people with a high 10,000-step rate have greater decreases in weight, waist circumference, bmi, systolic blood pressure, visceral fat, and body fat percentage than those with a lower 10,000-step rate. this shows that the level of the 10,000-step rate affects brisk walking. a factor in the effect.

the study concluded that after 100 days of walking, the participants’ waist circumference, hip circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, body fat rate and visceral fat decreased, indicating that brisk walking, as a medium- to low-intensity aerobic exercise, not only reduces weight, but also promotes improves fat metabolism and brings about good changes in the body.

walking is the best daily exercise

life lies in movement, and exercising more is one of the most important behaviors to improve and maintain our physical health. numerous studies have shown that any form of regular exercise is much better than sitting for long periods of time and can provide us with substantial health benefits, including reducing the risk of high blood pressure and diseases such as cancer.

1. walking is the “longevity recipe”

2023,huazhong university of science and technology tongji medical collegea prospective cohort study published in the journal of the american association of medical directors demonstrated:walking can extend your life! compared with the non-walking group, walking 90 to 720 minutes per week can reduce the risk of death by 27% to 31% and extend life expectancy by approximately 6 years.

2. walking is a “fat-lowering formula”

moderate exercise is good for blood pressure, blood lipids, and blood sugar. an article on the research progress on exercise and blood lipids published in the "journal of beijing sport university" in 2004 mentioned:aerobic exercise can reduce plasma triglyceride and total cholesterol levels, increase good cholesterol, reduce bad cholesterol, and improve blood lipids。

3. walking is a “way to lower blood pressure”

in august 2021, a study from peking university third hospital published in the journal of clinical hypertension found thatafter 3 months of brisk walking, most people’s blood pressure drops by about 2 to 3 mmhg.. researchers say that for patients with high blood pressure, walking briskly 4,000 to 8,000 steps a day can achieve the desired effect in reducing high blood pressure.

4. walking is an “anti-cancer remedy”

too many studies have proven that exercise can reduce people’s chances of getting cancer. therefore, the 2018 "scientific report" released by the u.s. physical activity guidelines advisory committee stated,exercise helps reducebladder cancer、breast cancer, endometrial cancer, esophageal cancer,kidney cancer、stomach cancerandlung cancerthe incidence of. and for patients with breast cancer, colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, etc., exercise can also reduce the risk of death.

5. walking is a “way to lose weight”

do you always feel fat even if you drink water? do you think you have an "obesity gene" that cannot be changed? those are all excuses. a study involving more than 18,000 people published in "plos genet" in 2019 found that,people who exercise regularly will have a lower body mass index (bmi) than people who don't exercise, even those with the "obesity gene"。

6. walking is an “anti-anxiety remedy”

an important study published in "molecular psychiatry" in 2022 found:a one-hour walk in a park or urban green space can reduce activation of the amygdala, a stress-related brain area, and can prevent mental illnesses such as anxiety and depression.。

7. walking is a “bone-building prescription”

walking is essential for bone and muscle health.proper walking can increase bone density, reduce the risk of osteoporosis, and increase muscle strength and flexibility. if you walk during the day, basking in the sun can promote the production of vitamin d and further strengthen your bones.

ignoring 2 points is "ineffective walking"

walking has so many benefits, what are you waiting for! however, if you ignore these two points, you may be "walking ineffectively"!

1. control the number of steps

liu danni, an assistant researcher at the shanghai center for disease control and prevention, published an article on the shanghai cdc wechat official account in 2022, pointing out that walking is indeed beneficial to health, but the more steps the better. multiple studies have shown that as the number of steps per day increases, the risk of death gradually decreases, but when the number of steps per day reaches a certain number, the risk of death does not decrease further.

therefore,for adults aged 60 and under, it is recommended to walk 8,000 to 10,000 steps a day; for seniors aged 60 and above, it is recommended to walk 6,000 to 8,000 steps a day.。

2. achieve intensity

liu danni emphasized that if you want to keep fit by walking, in addition to the number of steps, you must also look at the intensity. in lifeyouzaiyouzai pours a glass of water and throws away the trash. this category belongs to the "invalid steps", the speed is not up to standard and the posture is not correct. even if you walk 10,000 steps, you will not achieve a good fat burning effect.

moreover, if you walk too much and too fast, coupled with incorrect posture, exceeding the body's own endurance range, it will easily cause pain and damage to the knee joints, ankle joints, hip joints and waist.

"walking efficiently", remember these 4 points

how to achieve "effective walking", the official website of the state sports general administration gives 4 tips.

1. maintain moderate intensity

count how many steps you take in 1 minute of walking. a cadence of 110 to 130 steps per minute is a more appropriate medium-intensity range.

2. walk alternately between fast and slow steps

walk as fast as you can for 1 to 3 minutes. during this period, your heart rate can quickly rise to the fat-burning range. then walk at a normal speed for 1 minute to give your body a balance period. cycle fast and slow walking for about 15 minutes each morning and evening. , can achieve significant fitness effects.

3. keep a constant speed

keep a constant speed while walking, and the stride length should not be too large. raise your head and chest, look forward, put your heels on the ground first, and swing your hands naturally.

4. stay regular

make sure to do at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise 5 days a week. in the later stage, as your physical fitness becomes stronger, you can slowly increase exercise time and intensity to achieve better physical activity effects.