Starting From Simple, 21 Minutes Of Walking Helps Reduce The Risk Of Heart Disease

Illustration of walking for heart health (Freepik/Nensuria)

YOGYAKARTA – Physical health can be obtained when following good recommendations, one of which is walking for 21 minutes which can reduce the risk of heart disease by up to 30 percent. According to a 2017 study report in Harvard Health, walking is a simple, healthy activity.

A study report published by HuffPost, shows that walking is proven to reduce the risk of diabetes and cancer, lowers blood pressure and cholesterol, and keeps you mentally sharp. This means that walking is a free, simple and equipment-free exercise that is beneficial for overall health.

“Consistent walking is a great form of exercise to reduce deaths from cardiovascular disease… and is often correlated with other healthy habits and behaviors,” says Dr. Tamanna Singh, co-director of the sports cardiology center at the Cleveland Clinic.

Although walking doesn't use up energy, it has the same benefits as interval running. Walking can also be done by all ages with various medical background backgrounds to further improve their health.

Illustration of walking for heart health (Unsplash/Cole Keister)

This means that walking is beneficial for everyone. Including people who have cardiovascular risk or none at all. Meanwhile, those with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes or obesity can use walking to achieve health goals and prevent future strokes or heart attacks, Singh added.

Walk for about 21 minutes, is a good way. But walking with less time than that and done every day, will still be useful. Walking, even around the house, can cut your sitting time.

"It's not that chairs are bad, but sitting is really bad for you," says Harvard professor of evolutionary biology, Dan Lieberman.

Singh advises, if there is no motivation to walk. Try to go out with friends. That way, you can create accountability for you and your friends on foot. In addition, there are many ways to increase motivation to walk. If you like to walk alone or not with friends, it can be accompanied by podcasts, music, or audio books.

To start walking with the aim of heart health, start small. Assign yourself a minute's walk later in the afternoon. Or do a routine of walking for 10 minutes before entering the workspace. Once you feel ready, you can enter different walking intensities. Such as changes in speed and a more challenging track. Most importantly, says Singh, maintain good habits and habits in order to get huge benefits on your health.