Build strength for walking with these 6 PT-approved exercises
Walking is one of the easiest forms of exercise you can do. Low impact, free and convenient, it can be adapted to any fitness level and intensity. You can also practise it outside, at the gym, or – as we've recently found out – indoors, in the comfort of your own home.
An exercise involving mainly cardiovascular endurance, it does, however, require a certain amount of basic muscle strength, primarily in the legs and core, to provide stability, plus a degree of balance and co-ordination.
To help you put your best foot forward, Stephanie Mansour, PT and fitness contributor on Today, shares five best lower-body and core moves to strengthen your walking workout.
Once you've mastered these, you'll be well on your way to reaping the benefits of walking, from lowering your risk of various conditions, such as heart disease and high blood pressure, reducing mortality risk and boosting your mood and mental health.
Muscles worked during walking
According to Physiopedia, the primary muscles that support and progress the walking movement are:
calves
hip adductors
abs
6 moves to build strength for walking
Mansour says these moves will build muscle and decrease your risk of injury. While they are bodyweight, you can add weights if you want. Do three sets of 8-12 reps of each. Repeat three times.
1. Squat
Muscles worked: glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps
a) Standing with feet hip-width apart, with a weight in front of your chest or pair of dumbbells resting on your shoulders, hinge at the knees to come into a squat position. Reach full depth, so your hips are below your knees, and don't worry if your knees move past your toes. Mansour reminds you to brace your core.
b) With the weight in your heels push back up to standing, squeezing your glutes at the top. Repeat.
2. Marching bridge
Muscles worked: hamstrings, glutes
a) Lie down on your back and come into a bridge position. With your feet close to your hands, slowly lift your hips and mid back up, making sure to pull your navel towards your spine to protect your lower back. Rest a weight on your hips if you want.
b) Lift each foot alternating off the floor, as if you're marching. You only have to lift about an inch or two, or, if you're more advanced, lift them higher. Keep your hips high, level and steady rather than letting them tilt side to side.
3. Plank into downward dog
Muscles worked: core, shoulders, back, glutes
a) Start on the floor on your hands and knees. Get onto your elbows and stack them directly under your shoulders. Step your feet back, one at a time. For more stability, bring your feet wider than hip-distance apart, and bring them closer for more of a challenge.
b) Maintain a straight line from heels through the top of your head, looking down at the floor, with gaze slightly in front of your face. Now, tighten your abs, quads, glutes, and hold.
Muscles worked: core, upper back, shoulders, biceps, triceps, glutes, hamstrings, calves and builds flexibility in the back
a) In the plank, move from your elbows onto your hands, with your wrist under your shoulders. Spread your fingers wide and press firmly through your palms.
b) Exhale as you tuck your toes and lift your knees off the floor. Reach your pelvis up toward the ceiling and straighten your legs as much as you can, but don’t lock your knees. Mansour reminds you to externally rotate your shoulders and reach your heels towards the ground. Hold.
4. Seated oblique twist
Muscles worked: internal and external obliques, which help stabilise and control the torso's rotation when your arms and legs move in different directions during walking
a) Sit on the floor, with your knees bent, and the soles of your feet flat on the ground. Lean yourself back until you feel that you need to brace your abdominals to stop yourself falling backwards, your upper body should be at around 45 degrees to the floor.
b) Once your upper body position is set and abdominal wall is still braced, lift your feet off the floor. You can leave your knees bent, and at this point your body will be forming a V-like shape. Link your hands together in front of your chest or hold a weight.
c) Keeping your legs relatively still, rotate your arms all the way over to one side, return to centre and then twist to the other side. Continually twist from one side to the other, maintaining a straight spine as best you can. Squeeze your inner thighs together to work your entire core.
5. Knee raise into backwards leg lift
Muscles worked: hip flexor (mobility) if you're looking to take longer strides or walk faster, quads, core
This demo shows a side knee raise, but you should lift your leg in front of your body.
a) Start in a standing position, with feet wider than hip-width apart.
b) Bend arms, placing hands behind head. Lift one leg up in front of you, bending the knee as you do, at about a 90-degree angle.
Muscles worked: glutes, hamstrings
a) Slowly shift your weight forward, bending at the waist.
b) Extend your leg back into a backwards leg lift. Your working leg should have a soft bend in the knee. Keep your hands on your hips.
6. Calf raises
Muscles worked: calves
a) Stand on a flat surface with your toes pointed straight ahead. If you're using them, hold dumbbells by your sides in either hand.
b) Lift your heels off the floor to stand on your toes and flex your calf muscle.
c) Pause for a moment, then slowly return to the floor. That’s 1 rep.
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