Walking is a free and simple way to lose weight - all you need to do is build walking into your everyday life. Here are some tips and ideas to get you going

Goals

Set yourself a realistic goal.

Give yourself a goal that is possible to achieve - you will only be discouraged if you set yourself too hard a goal. Something simple like - I am going to walk for 15 minutes at least 3 times a day - is a good goal to begin with. Don't get despondent if your weight stays the same after just a few days of walking. It will get less if you keep on with your walking.
See my Step One plan if you are very overweight.

Any new change in your daily life can take up to six months to get into as a habit, so be patient and try not to jump on the scales after every walk, (weigh yourself weekly if you must!).
It is important to remember that you need to combine walking with a healthy eating lifestyle to achieve the maximum benefit.

When to walk
This depends on you so find a time when to walk that suits your lifestyle and commitments

• Try first thing in the morning if you are a morning person.
• How about walking during your lunchtimes or after work
• Walk in the afternoon - this is a good time if you have young children
• Walk in the evening - it will help to relax your mind after a hard day at work whether in the office or at home.

Find the time that best suits you and stick to it.

Starting to Walk

If you are unfit and very overweight then start slowly.

Week One
Walk for 5 minutes each day in the first week
Week Two
Walk for 8 mins each day.
Week Three
Walk for 10 minutes on four days
Week Four
Walk for 15 minutes - four times in the week.
Week Five
Walk for 20 minutes on four days of the week
Week Six
Continue as week five but try to increase your walking pace.This means you might walk the same distance but cover the distance in a slightly quicker time. A pedometer or step counter is a useful aid to help you record your walking

If you are reasonably active
Start with 15 mins walking, every other day.
Build up to walking for 30 minutes at least three times a week.
Remember to walk with your chin up and your shoulders slightly back and swing your arms as you walk. Click here for more tips.

Develop your own program
If you don’t enjoy your walks you won’t stay on your program so it is very important that you really Enjoy your walking – do what suits you – look at nature, think, daydream, or listen to audio books, walk a dog, walk with a friend, join a walking group or walk on a treadmill etc.

Get into the habit of walking.
Make it a normal part of your day and when you are not walking think about how much you will enjoy yourself on your next walk.
It is important to stop any negative thoughts by immediately replacing them with thoughts of your pleasantest walk.

Ideally you should walk for 30 minutes (but you can break this up into two fifteen minutes walks if it suits you better) -three times a week.
The British Heart Foundation recommends walking for 30 mins at least 5 times per week.

.Brisk walking at a moderate pace for 30 minutes burns up stored fat instead of sugars. This helps to build muscle to speed up your metabolism and to maintain a healthy weight level.

Keep a diary of your walks – where you went, how long you walked for and/or how many steps.See Walking logs.

Benefits of Walking

• It helps you control your weight
• It gives you more energy
• It makes you feel good (try it and see for yourself)
• It helps you to destress
• It helps you to sleep better
• It exercises your heart and lungs.
• It helps you live longer and is anti-ageing

Try these pages for ideas on ways to walk more at work or ways to walk more at home - they will get you started and you can add your own

Enjoy your walking and why not drop into the forum and let us know how you are doing.