Preparing For Your Walk
Make every walk a complete workout by including these elements and following the correct sequence. Neglecting to do so will make walking more difficult and increase the risk of injury.
Warm-up -Warming up is exercising at a lower intensity to get the blood circulating and let your body know that you are preparing for exercise.
Flexibility exercises - These exercises are part of your warmup and should be done after you have warmed up with 5 to 10 minutes of easy walking. The faster you plan to walk the more time you will need to dedicate to flexibility exercises. There are many different exercises in this group.
Here a few to try:Toe Points - Stand on one leg and lift the other foot off the floor. Gently point your toe and hold for a few seconds. Next flex your foot pointing your toes up. Do these five or ten times on each foot.
Ankle Circles -While standing on one leg lift the other foot off the floor. Gently point your toe and rotate your ankle. Do about ten circles in each direction. This exercise can be performed while standing, sitting or lying on your back with your leg raised.
Overhead Reach - Stand with your feet hip-distance apart. Reach up with one arm and then reach over your head and to the opposite side. Keep your hips steady and your shoulders straight. Relax and repeat with the other side.
The Twist - Stand with your feet shoulder width apart and your arms straight out parallel to the ground. Keep your lower body stationary while swinging your arms from side to side. Do this several times to loosen up your waist, back and shoulders.
Arm Circles -Hold your arms straight out to your side parallel to the ground. Make small circles going backward, gradually getting larger and larger. Rest for a second and do the same thing in the forward direction.
Walk
Cool Down
Stretch