Your Best Foot Forward

But why? Why, after having celebrated the invention of the wheel and its subse-quent improvisations with such unbridled enthusiasm, should one get down to a pedestrian activity like walking? The answer could fill up a book. But for the sake of brevity, may we just say: for weight loss, fit-ness and toning, diabetes control, a health-ier heart, to relieve depression, alleviate arthritis, increase mental agility, tone mus-cles, improve blood circulation, prevent cancer, cope with stress, live longer and feel closer to nature and our own selves.

Abhimanyu Sable, who runs Abs, a lead-ing health club in Pune, has no profession-als qualms recommending walking as the first thing to anybody seeking fitness. 8220;It doesn8217;t require any investment, company or membership and anyone can do it. All you need to do is put on your shoes and start. In today8217;s sedentary lifestyles, the only thing that can combat obesity in the long run is walking. Gyms are more for those who re-quire supervised exercising or specific weight loss and toning programmes. Even when our members take a break or go out of town and can8217;t attend gym, our only plea to them is: walk an hour every day and you won8217;t lose out on anything,8221; says Sable.

The logic is simple: 10,000 to 12,500 steps a day is quite the perfect way to lose weight and tone your body. Thanks to modern-day conveniences8212;cordless phone, car, escalator, elevator et al8212;the average human being takes just about 5,000 steps, or half the daily requirement. And hence these familiar re-frains: 8216;take the steps instead of the elevator8217;, 8216;walk to the store instead of driving to it8217;8230; But what precisely does walking do for your body? It8217;s an aerobic exercise, or in simple terms, a routine that oxygenates your lungs. Walking enables your lungs to take in more air and fill it with oxygen.

This increase in oxygen intake provides the extra fuel to burn up food and release energy, which in turn results in a marked improve-ment in the vital efficiency of the lungs and the entire cardiovascular system. Heart, muscles, joints strengthen with the in-creased flow of blood. Stored body fat is bro-ken down causing weight reduction. With all bodily functions8212;cell growth, digestion, blood circulation8212;happening more effi-ciently, the net result is an increase in your BMR basal metabolic rate. A higher BMR means you burn up calories faster. That all of us understand in this weight-obsessed time of ours. So, all of you working at slicing off inches from your thighs, hips and waist, remember this: the great thing about walk-ing is that once you lose those inches, you don8217;t ever put them back on.

Fortunately, walking is habit forming. Ask Dr K.B. Grant, cardiologist and grand old man of the Ruby Hall Clinic in Pune, and he8217;ll tell you what his 45-year-old habit of walking back home from hospital every day, a distance of 7 km, has done for him. 8220;It8217;s the best thing I8217;ve done for myself,8221; the 86-year-old says simply. Says Dr R.B. Gulati, cardiolo-gist: 8220;Walking not only increases blood cir-culation to the muscles, it tones up the heart and brain. Most importantly, walking acts as an anti-depressant. Regular brisk walks release stimulants called endorphins in the brain, which lifts your mood and ups your energy levels.8221; This is why people tend to get addicted to exercise and why it makes them feel good. 8220;We recommend walking to patients within a week of angioplasty, and within three weeks after a bypass. It8217;s also the most recommended exercise for blood pressure problems,8221; details Gulati.

So, if walking is great for arthritis pa-tients, as it builds up the surrounding mus- cles and thereby relieves pres-sure on the joints, according to orthopaedic Dr Kiran Kharat, it8217;s also a top-ranked exercise for diabetics, says endocrinologist Dr Mohan Magdum, as it decreases the blood sugar level. Another little known fact is that regular walking even reduces cancer risks by as much as 20 per cent. 8220;Four hours of brisk walking a week is one of the best ways to prevent cancer,8221; says Dr C.B. Kop-pikar, a leading oncologist, adding that since walking can effectively counter de-pression, it is a panacea for half the ailments in the world.

Sable says it more lyrically: 8220;The magic of an early morning walk through lush green gardens, with the dewdrops still on the leaves and the glow of the rising sun in your face, can change the way you think about life8212;at least for those few moments.8221; A thought corroborated by the Zen notion of Inner Walking8212;the time when you are with yourself, free of all thoughts and worries. Thinkers, writers, philosophers, musicians, dancers have all extolled the virtues of the 8216;inner walk8217;, that mind-less state that leads you to greater clarity, a better understand-ing of your problems, and epiphanic bursts of creativity. There are variations on the theme: one school of thought talks about 8216;taking your problems with you for a walk8217; and allowing the body and mind to solve it for you as you stride ahead.

So get up, step out and walk that extra mile to better health today. Ask the thou-sands who8217;ve been thronging Pune8217;s MG Road every weekend, in the evenings for the past two months, when the city8217;s bustling commercial main road is transformed into a walking plaza, about the rediscovered pure joy of this exercise8212;and you8217;ll know that whoever said the best things in life are free was not a fool after all.

WHEN Early morning walks are the most refreshing. The UV rays of the early morning sun are replete with Vitamin D

WHERE Green areas. You8217;re inhaling lots more oxygen

HOW LONG Start with 2-3 km and work up to 5 km a day

HOW OFTEN Six days a week. And walk briskly, don8217;t stroll.

HOW TO FIT IT IN Park your car at a distance from the office and walk; walk to the water cooler/coffee machine yourself; use the lunch hour for a short walk; take the stairs instead of the lift

HOW TO LIVEN IT UP Change your route frequently; join a walking club; walk your dog A new study in Australia says if all the dog owners walked their canine compan-ions, the health benefits would be comparable to giving up smoking; carry a Walkman or an iPod.

WALKING FOR DUMMIES CLOTHES Light layers that breathe well are best.Layers, because if it gets too warm, you can peel off one.

PEDOMETER 038; WALKMAN The first counts the steps you8217;ve taken, dis-tance you8217;ve walked, calories you8217;ve burnt. The second, its users tell us, is essential parphernalia. 8220;Keeps me in good humour8221;; 8220;is cool8221;; 8220;is meditative8221; are just some things we heard said of this magic device.

SHOES The best ones will support the base and the arch of your feet well. Choose speciality brands. They are expensive, but it8217;ll be money well spent.