Live it: Get moving
What’s a seemingly magic health booster, with benefits ranging from improved mood to lower blood pressure and reduced risk for cardiovascular disease? Exercise! And you don’t need to join a CrossFit gym or run a marathon to experience benefits. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate, heart-rate-elevating aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity per week, along with strength-training exercises at least two times weekly. Walking is a stellar activity regardless of your age. It’s free, and it is proven to lower the risk of hypertension and diabetes.
Need help getting started? According to GirlTrek, an organization that encourages women to use walking as a practical first step to inspire healthy living, families and communities, committing to walk one day per week—try Saturday morning—is a great first step (get it?).
Power up an engaging podcast or audiobook to listen to, or invite a friend, your partner, your parent or your kids to join you. Walking is transformative in more ways than one. “Something happened when I started to walk,” GirlTrek cofounder Morgan Dixon explains on the GirlTrek website. “The pace of the world slowed down. I started to heal. I became more aware of my body, more aware of the world around me. When I walked, I felt transported.”
