In previous episodes of SteemFit, I introduced you to different parts of a healthy lifestyle, here is a quick recap:1. Introducing SteemFit // 2. Yoga - Sun Salutation // 3. Nutrition - Healthy Breakfast // 4. 20 min. Workout Routine // 5. Nutrition - Healthy Snacks // 6. SteemFit - Nutrition #2 // 7. Steemfit - Brain Training #1 // 8. SteemFit - Cardio Partner Workout! // 9.SteemFit - Tennis Time! // 10. SteemFit - Intense Workout Routine // 11.SteemFit - Full Body Partner Workout // 12. SteemFit - Travel Edition: Hotel Gym & Pool
STEEMFIT
Optimum health requires the mind, physical body and spirit to be in balance. SteemFit is focused on taking care of your health, your well-being and a concept for busy people with limited time. SteemFit stands for a balanced health and work life.
Today I went on walk around the Alster, the famous lake in Hamburg and it was absolutely beautiful. If you saw my last post, I mentioned that at the moment I'm on my laptop practically 24/7 and it was time to get outside for me. At first I wanted to go to the gym, but I felt the need to go outside. At the same time my mother asked me, what year she could schedule a meeting with me. She was joking (kind of), since I really had been absent a lot lately, so I decided to go on a walk with her. We were lucky! The weather was in our favor, which is quite unusual for this city. Anyway, here are five reasons why walking is one of the best ways you can spend your time, and how it can help you think better, be more productive, relax better, and live longer.
1. ENERGY
Going for a walk increases your energy & happiness! That's not an assumption, it's a scientifically proven fact. Just like our body language and posture are directly connected to how we feel, moving our body is as well. If you're feeling depressed, sad, or unmotivated going for a walk forces your brain to feel happier, because your brain enjoys when you move your muscles. It boosts circulation and increases oxygen supply to every cell in your body, which helps you to feel more alert and alive.
2. HEALTH
You already know how much I stress the importance of taking care of your body. I personally know how difficult it can feel some days to squeeze in a workout, and some days you might feel drained, tired and unmotivated to go hard at the gym. On those days especially, going for a simple walk is a great way to still get active. Also when you go for a walk before going to bed you are likely to improve your sleep (which helped me personally a lot) and wake up more refreshed and clear-headed than ever the next day.
Just 30 minutes of walking each day is enough to dramatically reduce your risk of heart disease, colon cancer, breast cancer and dementia.
3. PRODUCTIVITY & CREATIVITY
I love to go on a walk when I need to find a solution to a problem. I love to take a notebook with me, write down what I have to figure out, carry it with me and let my subconscious do the rest. Sometimes I feel like a simple walk is like the most magical problem-solving solution. I can concentrate well, because of the fresh oxygen around me and stimuli around me, such as the smell of fresh grass and other people actively jogging around. When I'm in an environment with living beings, plants, animals and people my brain automatically wants to be active as well and I can structure my thoughts much clearer.
For some reason whenever I go on a long walk, I feel like the right side of my brain gets stimulated maybe from the fresh air or just by being in nature, but I always come up with new ideas and strategies. Especially when I have to prepare for something like a speech, presentation or get any other creative work done, going for walk can be more inspiring than you think and trigger your creative mechanism!
It resets your brain and restarts you creative machinery.
4. COMMUNICATION
Whether you go on a walk-and-talk meeting like Steve Jobs is known for, or you go with your mom for bonding time like I did today. Fact is that when you are actively going on a walk, instead of sitting in your office, or at the dinner table, the conversations you have automatically become more natural and also experiences are much more memorable than conversations. You are more likely to remember "that time" when you were somewhere with somebody and how you felt, rather than what the exact conversation was about. So going for a walk means creating memories.
The naturalness of two people walking along in deep discussion and thought is definitely why these walking meetings are catching on.
5. RELAXATION
We all need some kind of balance in our lives and especially on really busy days, going for walks in-between meetings is a great way to calm down in the middle of the day. It's an immediate way to escape stress and achieve instant grounding. When you go on a walk you can train to get in an active state of meditation, simply by being present and observing what's around you.
You can walk and concentrate on your breathing, stop and watch a bird for as long as you can, smell flowers and feel the air you're breathing. This is also a huge health benefit, if you turn airplane-mode while walking into a habit. We live in an era where we're constantly connected to technology, looking at screens. When you go on a nature walk make sure to use it wisely and connect it to your "off-time" where you disconnect from all your devices and re-connect with the planet, nature and yourself.
Remember:
Try aiming at a 30 minute walk each day. If you do not have time then you can consider breaking it down. 10 minutes in the morning, noon, and in the evening each will add up. Take care of your heart, brain and body and business all at once. It's possible!
Question OTD: Do you like to go on walks? If so, what do you enjoy most about it?