The Most Underrated Exercise in the World
"The best exercise isn't the most impressive one. It's the one you'll still be doing in ten years."
If walking came in a bottle, it would be the best-selling supplement on the market. It costs nothing, requires no equipment, needs no instruction, and there's barely a system in the body it doesn't improve.
And yet it gets dismissed constantly. It's only walking. I'd like to make the case that it's one of the most valuable things you'll do this week.
What it does for you
Your heart. Brisk walking is genuine cardiovascular exercise — it lowers blood pressure, improves cholesterol and reduces heart disease risk. You don't need to run to look after your heart.
Your joints. This surprises people, but movement is what keeps joints healthy. Cartilage has no blood supply of its own and relies on motion to move nutrients through it. Sitting still is far harder on a sore knee than a gentle walk.
Your blood sugar. A ten-minute walk after a meal makes a measurable difference to how your body handles that meal. If you change one thing after reading this, make it that.
Your head. Walking is one of the most reliable mood interventions we have. It lowers stress hormones, sorts out sleep, and there's good evidence for brain health as we age. Most people find their thinking gets clearer somewhere around the ten-minute mark.
"The best exercise isn't the most impressive one. It's the one you'll still be doing in ten years."
About the ten thousand steps
That number came from a marketing campaign, not a laboratory. The research points to real benefits appearing at far lower counts — somewhere around seven thousand steps a day looks to be where most of the gain sits, with additional benefit tapering off after that. If you're currently on three thousand, going to five is a genuine win. Don't let a round number put you off starting.
How to make it count
Walk at a pace where you could talk but wouldn't want to sing. Attach it to something you already do — after breakfast, after dinner, before your session. Add a small hill once a week; that's where the leg strength comes from. And walk with someone if you can, because the walks you keep doing are almost always the social ones.
We're spoiled for choice here, of course. The path around Runaway Bay Marina is flat, sheltered and about as pleasant a place to put in twenty minutes as you'll find on the Gold Coast. Several of our clients now walk it before their session and call it the best part of their morning. I'm inclined to agree with them.