Revamping Your Brisk Walking Routine: Unleash the powerful healing potential of walking

Are you ready to take your brisk walking to the next level? Don't just walk, strut with confidence! Mastering the art of perfect posture can make all the difference. So, let's dive into some essential cues that will revolutionize your walking game:

  1. Lift your head high and feel the tension melt away. Straightening your spine not only boosts your poise but also relieves any neural tension, making it a lifesaver for sciatica sufferers.

  2. Before you hit your stride, warm up like a champ. Picture yourself marching on the spot, but with a twist! Lift those knees a tad higher than your regular walking stance. It's a power-packed warm-up that sets the tone for an exhilarating walk.

  3. Embrace the rhythm of freedom. Let your arms hang loose, and allow them to gracefully swing across your body from the shoulders. Feel the momentum as you sway to the beat of your brisk steps.

  4. Start small, conquer big. Begin your journey with shorter steps and a brisker pace. Gradually, with each stride, let your legs stretch further, propelling you towards your walking goals. Progress is the name of the game!

  5. Walk like you mean business. Picture yourself rushing to an important meeting. Emulate that pace as you stride forward. It's all about that sense of urgency that gets a sweat going.

  6. Listen to what your body is saying. Begin with a solid foundation of 15-20 minutes of brisk walking on a flat surface. Use a stopwatch to time yourself. When discomfort creeps in, mark the time as your benchmark for a pain-free period. Let this guide your journey, gradually extending your walking time. For example, if pain sets in at 18 minutes, make that your endpoint for the week. Next week, push it to 25 minutes, building up to 45 minutes of discomfort-free walking.

  7. Witness the transformation. Consistency is key. As you diligently follow this path, both your physical and mental well-being will undergo remarkable changes. Feel the energy surge through your body and the positive mindset take root.

  8. Elevate your routine with a holistic approach. Pair your daily walking practice with regular checkups with your local chiropractor. Their expertise will be your secret weapon against acute and long-standing back pain. Embrace the power of movement and professional guidance to reach new heights.

In the words of the philosopher Solvitur Ambulando: “There is nothing a good walk can’t solve!”.


4 simple things to think about to improve your running, prevent injury and staying pain free:

1) Happy Feet.

Making it a daily practice, whether standing, walking or running to be in a position whereby your feet are not flared out like a duck or turned inward (pigeon-toed). It may seem unrelated to think of your foot positioning as an indicator to potential injury but if for example your feet are splayed outward. What this does is puts the joints above the feet into bad positions and can slowly damage the soft tissues supporting and surrounding them eventually leading to pain and swelling (think MCL/Meniscus injuries at the knees).

2) Awesome Ankles

Range of motion at the ankles is fundamental to happy running. Limited range of motion is a big indicator of poor running form. Limited movement at the ankle is a big causative agent in 3 of the most well-known running complaints namely

- Plantar fasciitis

- Achilles problems

- Shin splints.

So what can be done to maintain supple ankles?

A biggie is keeping the tissue above the ankle supple, by creating slack in the tissue it provides additional slack around which the joint can move. There are a few ways this can be achieved:

A) Using a self massage tool such as a trigger ball/ foam roller, by using it as a tacking mechanism and flossing the underlying tissue between the respective ball and the weight of the leg. Achieve the flossing mechanism by finding a sore/tight spot, placing the foam roller/trigger ball on it and moving the whole foot such that the toes point up and down. This intern mobilizes the soft tissue around the ankle and buys some mobility in the ankle. It can be done at both the calves and the front of the shin.

B) Another nifty trick is to use an old hockey/cricket ball and gently roll the arches of the feet, this builds some flexibility back into the arches of the feet.

3) Warming up and cooling down

The warm is very important in that it gets the nervous system ready for action ahead as well as warming the muscle and connective tissue and getting the joints lubricated. It allows the lymphatic and circulatory systems to serve their function. Runners that train and then don’t cool down are essentially shutting down their lymphatic system which in essence removes all the nasty by products of running and sets the stage for poor recovery and increased risk of future injury.

A great tool for warming up and cooling down can be achieved with a skipping rope as the skipping action closely mimics a running action.

4) Hydration:

Everybody harps on about how important hydration is but no one really seems to take it seriously.  Considering that 80 percent of our bodies are made up of water and most of our most important body functions depend on water it makes sense that adequate hydration is very important.

Structurally water is a huge component of the fluids that bathe our joint surfaces which provide shock absorption and allow for smooth sliding of different muscular layers against one another. Thus if inadequately supplied it will cause a lack of shock absorption capability (think about sore knees post run) and the lack of sliding between muscular layers can setup adhesive bands (think hot spots in the muscles) and that achy and stiff feeling the morning after a long run. Aim for roughly 500ml and hour during the run and consider supplementing with an electrolyte drink.