Walking helped me keep myself away from Lockdown stress .
As the COVID19 pandemic gripped the world , the country was locked down running up to 5 phases . Though the number of cases in the initial period were less but still the fear was huge . Everyone was locked in his home , curfew in cities , challans for breaking curfew rules and many battles fought by the warriors of Corona virus .
Well I am not here today to discuss the virus and its effects , rather I am here to share my walking story during Lockdown and the benefits I achieved .
During the first 50 days of lockdown I was completely locked inside my home , trying to keep myself creatively busy in one or the other ways – cleaning my home , reorganizing my wardrobes , trying some new recipes , reading , Netflix , spending time with my daughter playing some games or story-telling . I also kept myself busy in self publishing my eBook – a self-love book for women. (I am giving link to my book at the end of this post.
Being all the time sitting , eating , sleeping – I put on few kilograms excess weight in those two months . My old t-shirts started making a fuss and my own body felt quite heavy to myself . Apart from physical changes in my body , Lockdown had started disturbing me on emotional level too . I started experiencing headache daily in the evening .
I wanted a quick break-up from the stress which was building up . Also I was motivating my mind to work towards the fat which had started bulging out from my waist. But our mind acts lazy most of the times . It has to be shaken up you know.
My Walking Story
The day came when I finally jerked myself up one morning. I woke up at 5 am , brushed my teeth and got ready by wearing a mask and tightening up my sports shoes . As I stepped out of my home at 5:20am , there started my walking story .
I live in a crowded place but the early mornings can be so deserted I had almost forgotten. I walked wherever my feet took me . There are two small villages adjoining each other few kilometers away from the society where I live. That first day of walk was so relaxing – I could witness the rising sun and many farms full of fresh veggies – cucumber , bottle guard , lady finger and pumpkin. Farmers were plucking their vegetables and I asked them if I could buy from them . They said YES but I was not carrying any money in my pocket that day.
After crossing through the twists and turns of two small villages and enjoying nature I returned back home . The first day of walking was so refreshing- my mind felt very calm but my legs felt a tinkling sensation as I sat on the sofa . Well it was something normal as might be due to increased blood flow .
The calmness and peace the first walk gave me was a motivator enough for me to jump daily out of my bed for a morning walk.
After 4-5 days when I shared it with my friends and many had already seen my whatsapp status , one of them got ready to join me for the walk and the next day onward we both became morning walk buddies .
Having a buddy in any activity you do is a real blessing . You become a motivation factor for each other . Our walking became more fun now – we together walked , entered in the vegetable farms , purchased some veggies now and then , clicked selfies with the rising sun and shared many laughs . We are still doing the same on daily basis !
We are loving our Brisk Walk more and more with every passing day .
My morning walk view
Benefits of Walking
Now let’s turn to the benefits of walking – in general and the ones which I personally achieved .
It relaxes your mind
The daily life stress or the lockdown fears – Walking is a very good therapy for your mind . Happy hormones are released and you feel so light . Walking is a great exercise for your emotional well-being . In my case , within 3-4 days my daily headache problem was just gone away . I felt happier .
Improves sleep
When you exercise – be it in any form , your body gets tired and it automatically goes in a rest mode and hence improving sleep pattern and timings . Research also indicates that people who walk daily can easily fight insomnia .
Weight Loss
Brisk walking is a great fitness regime for weightloss . The only thing to be focused upon is consistency , no excuses and don’t look for immediate results atleast not in the initial 20 days .
In my case , I have not checked on scale but I feel lighter now and the way my old t-shirts are slowly showing approval , I feel I have lost 2-3 kilo in one month time . But remember – Brisk and Consistent ! No Sundays or cheat days !
Good for Joints and Back
Walking helps lubricate the joints and also helps if you have early morning stiffness in your back . I myself suffer from a backache problem and I daily have that stiffness in the mornings . I can’t say I have been able to eliminate it with my walking routine but it has certainly diminished to a great extent .
Take care of your Heart
Walking atleast 30 minutes daily five days a week can reduce any kind of risk to your heart . More you walk , better your heart feels and beats !
Strengthens you up
Walking can strengthen muscles in your legs . Prefer brisk walking than just leisure walking . In our case , I and my buddy compete for number of steps covered , miles and our average speed . There are so many apps available today you can make use of . In addition to walking , you should include climbing stairs in your daily routine wherever possible . That would be even better strength for your legs . Your stamina would also boost up quickly.
There are many many benefits of walking – but the point is that you just START walking .
How to make a walking routine ?
Start walking
Don’t just keep procrastinating . Morning or evening , just start . You can start with as little as 20 minutes daily and then steadily increase the duration to 30 minutes and then further to 45 minutes .
No need to go shopping first
I have seen people buying expensive shoes and fitness clothes to look trendy . Start with whatever you have – a casual tshirt , a comfortable lowerpant and a good pair of sports shoes . The brand or the design of your clothes won’t benefit you . It’s the amount of sweat you notice in your clothes after the walk .
Look for a friend who can be your walking buddy .
Motivate each other and it also becomes difficult to give excuses when you are accountable to your buddy .
If it’s not possible for you to go for morning walk , plan out for an evening walk – walk with your friend , your child , your spouse or alone . But Walk !
Fix a time
It’s better if you could fix a time for your walk .As soon as the clock ticks that time ,leave all other work aside and get ready to Walk . All other work can be done later . Your health , your fitness matters most .
Pamper your mind
Give your mind a temptation or some kind of boost – like when I found it difficult to wake up in early mornings ( I loved the charm of morning sleep you know ) I used to pamper my mind for a refreshing chilled lemon Mojito drink on coming back after my walk . The motivation actually worked though I never gave myself a Mojito but always a hot lemon-honey drink .
In a nutshell
Walking has immense benefits for people of all age groups – So Start walking ! No one else would walk for you . It’s your health and you have to work for it yourself .
An early morning walk can prove to be a blessing for the whole day !
Read Make walking part of your daily life
Below is the link to my eBook : a self-love book for Women
https://www.theblogchatter.com/download/the-silver-lined-mommy-by-monika-davessar/
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