WALKING YOUR WAY TO GOOD HEALTH

The correct way to do brisk walking. 

When I sold my Chrysler Alpine in 1998, I did not know at the time that it would be the last car I owned. I have not driven since, and have been depending largely on public transport and my own very reliable two feet to take me to my destinations. Together with rides from my friends, I can say it's definitely possible to survive in Kuala Lumpur without a car. I know many of my friends will disagree with me.

It's not that difficult to chalk up 10,000
steps a day on the pedometer.

Not having wheels means I walk a lot. Almost every day I walk to the nearest bus-stop to catch the bus to KLCC. From there I either take the LRT, RapidKL bus or Go-KL shuttle bus to my destinations, which can be anywhere in the Klang Valley.

I look at walking as good exercise. I walk to my neighbourhood supermarket to get my groceries, to the bank to do my financial transactions and to the post office to pay my bills. Sure, I can do most of these chores online, but that would reduce my daily dose of walking. If I do my errands early around 9 am or 10 am, I get the warm morning sunlight on my skin. That's free vitamin D.

Walking for hours in a shopping mall does not count as exercise as it is not continuous. To derive any health benefits from walking, it has to be brisk walking for at least 30 minutes and done on a regular basis.

I can't think of a better exercise for seniors than brisk walking. It is not as taxing on our knees as jogging or aerobics at the gym. It is free, apart from a small investment in a good pair of walking shoes. You can do it practically anywhere, alone or with friends or neighbours in your housing area. Back in the 1980s when I was a gym enthusiast, I did power walking either with light weight dumb-bells or ankle weights to strengthen my arm and leg muscles. But I wouldn't recommend this to anyone above 50.

Nordic Walking session led by Mrs Jagjeet Singh

There's also Nordic Walking, that is walking with a pair of sticks or poles to give the body a total workout. My good friend, Mrs Jagjeet Singh is the only certified instructor for Nordic walking in Malaysia. If you are interested to learn more, you can email her at mrsjagjeetmrsj@gmail.com

Getting ready to brisk walk for charity

To add variety to your walking regime, participate in walking events that are open to the public. It is a pity the Malay Mail has stopped organizing the popular Big Walk. The inaugural Big Walk was held in 1960. I believe the last one in 2007 attracted more than 10,000 participants. It was one of my favourite sports events. These days there are so many charity walks that you can sign up for, and help a good cause as well. I took part in the Love PJ Run on 6 July. I chose to walk not run, and finished the 3 km route in a decent 20 minutes. My next one is the annual Terry Fox Run which raises funds for cancer research.

Walking the dog gets you walking too

Here's what Mayo Clinic has to say about the health benefits of walking:

Physical activity doesn't need to be complicated. Something as simple as a daily brisk walk can help you live a healthier life.

For example, regular brisk walking can help you:

• Maintain a healthy weight
• Prevent or manage various conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes
• Strengthen your bones
• Lift your mood
• Improve your balance and coordination
• The faster, farther and more frequently you walk, the greater the benefits.

If you can't do brisk walking, even a leisurely stroll after an evening meal can do wonders for your health. Work those leg muscles. Remember if you don't use them, you lose them. When that happens, you lose your mobility and independence. If your housing area is not conducive for walks or strolls, go to the nearest park. The popular ones are Bukit Kiara and Taman Jaya. In Kuala Lumpur you have Taman Titiwangsa and KLCC Park. There are many more, I am sure.

For the elderly, a leisurely stroll in the park can be invigorating

Even a few slow steps daily with a walking
aid can improve blood circulation and
strengthen leg muscles

Happy Walking!

WALKING TO BETTER HEALTH AND LONGEVITY

It's been a while since I last stepped on the scales. So it came as a shock to me the other day when I decided to weigh myself. 57 kg! I had vowed never to exceed my ideal weight of 52 kg. What happened? How did I pile on the extra kilos?

I don't drive, so of course I walk - A LOT. I am very active - my calendar is chock-full of events and appointments. Ah, I know the culprit. It must be the hours I spend at my computer handling emails, doing research and writing articles. I have also been slack about exercising. I used to do road running, yoga, and aerobics quite religiously. After my second major operation in 2008, my exercise regime has dwindled to just weekly dance class. I definitely need to step up and shape up.

My work station. Walking the talk, and staying committed to exercising for good health.

Immediate Solution: I've put up reminders in front of my desk-top computer to get moving after an hour. To make sure I do just that, I've placed a clock right at my keyboard, and set the alarm to ring at hourly intervals. I vow to restart my daily 30-minute stretching and strength-training exercise. I shall continue to do this till I regain my ideal weight of 52 kg by my birthday in June.

When you are retired, it's easy to spend the days doing nothing except eat, sleep, and watch TV. Even if you don't watch TV, but spend hours reading or at the computer, it's still pretty much a sedentary lifestyle for many retirees. This is especially so for men. While the wives utilize the free time to sign up for classes, go on group tours or take up voluntary work, the husbands prefer to stay at home. Guys, is this true?



Research has shown that being physically active can add years to your life while a sedentary lifestyle actually speeds up the ageing process, and contributes to a host of health problems like obesity, heart diseases and diabetes.

The choice is ours to make. Walking is free and easy, and flexible too in terms of when and where you want to it, and with whom. Just 30 minutes will do.

So invest in a comfortable pair of walking shoes and start walking round the block or in the neighbourhood park. I'll be doing so this very evening.

WHEN THE SCALES RING A WARNING BELL.....

This could easily be me struggling to zip up my jeans.

The other day I dug up my favourite pair of jeans from the cupboard. It has been months since I last wore them. To my horror, I had to struggle to zip up. What used to be a snug fit was now a tight fit. I knew I was in trouble when the bathroom scales read 56.4 kg.

My ideal weight is 52 kg. Anything beyond that means I haven't been physically active enough. If your daily routine is anything like mine, we sit too much. We may not realize it, but many of our daily activities involve sitting down, often for hours on end: working at the pc, reading, watching TV, listening to music, attending meetings /seminars, marking assignments, chatting with friends over tea, taking meals, driving, waiting... Before we know it, we are several kilos heavier than we would like to be.

Thanks to years of going to the gym, road running and qigong exercises back in the 1980s and 90s, I've managed to keep obesity at bay. But since a major operation two years ago, I've slacked off on my exercises. The kilos have started to pile up, and I can see unwanted flab here and there.

As of 3.18pm today, I've walked 6057 steps. Still half the day left to get the numbers up to 10,000.

Nothing like brisk walking at our age to shed off those extra kilos, and give the heart a good workout at the same time. I've bought a pedometer to keep track of the number of steps I take a day. The good doctor says we should aim for 10,000 steps. Some days I fall short. But I tell myself a few thousand steps is better than a few hundred.

 Source: The Sunday Star 26 Sept 2010. Click on image to enlarge.

The Sunday Star carried an excellent article "A Physical Reminder" about what we can do to keep our weight down. Exercising is one way to beat chronic diseases like diabetes, heart diseases and cancers that plague older people. The others are adopting healthy eating habits and an active lifestyle.

It's a constant struggle to maintain good health. But we owe it to ourselves and our families to take responsibility for our health. I am sure none of us want to spend our retirement years struggling with pain and hefty medical bills.