Clever ways to make your daily walk even more interesting

It’s safe to say we’ve all been walking a lot more in the past year and a half, whether we wanted to or not!

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a daily walk was the only way we could get outdoors, away from our home offices and catch up with friends and family. The benefits of getting out in the fresh air are multiple.

Walking can help you get your daily dose of Vitamin D from the sun’s rays. It can help you stretch your legs, get your circulation working properly, give your immune system a boost and stop your muscles from feeling tired and achy. It can also help improve your mood and boost your mental health and emotional wellbeing. 
 
With COVID regulations starting to wind down, many of us have been keeping up with our daily walks during lunch breaks and to maintain our healthy lifestyle. Here are our top tips for making your daily stroll more enjoyable. 

SEVEN WAYS TO MAKE YOUR WALKS MORE FUN

Put a smile on someone’s face
Instead of a nod of the head or a simple ‘hello’ to passers-by, a compliment can go a long way. ‘I love your shoes’ or ‘your hair looks amazing’ is a sure way to put a smile on someone’s face and make their day that little bit better.

Invest in a fitness watch or app
We all own, or know someone who owns, a Smartwatch or fitness tracking app. Hitting 10,000 steps a day is a daily goal for many keen walkers. Those who track their steps or have some form of fitness tracker find they’re more motivated to get outdoors to achieve their daily goals. Additionally, some fitness watches allow you to link with other watch owners, so you can start your own mini competition between friends.

Change your walking routes
Your choice of location makes a big difference to your walk. By changing up your walk between a handful of locations, you’re less likely to get bored. If you’re limited to where you can go, if you’re walking during a lunch break for example, try starting your walk at a different point or going in an opposite direction to have just a little bit of change - you never know what new coffee shop you might come across.

Join local walking groups
The past 18 months posed a new threat of loneliness for many individuals, and walking groups became their saving grace. Joining a walking group will help you keep up with your fitness, as well as your social life.

Walking meditation
Combine walking with mindfulness with a traditional meditation practice. You can listen to a guided meditation through your headphones to get the most out of your walk.

Phone a friend
Walking alone for some fresh air is the perfect opportunity to catch up with that friend you haven’t seen in a year. Catching up with an old friend will not only make your longer walks fly by, but it’ll also increase your positive mood.

HOW A DAILY WALK IMPROVES YOUR HEALTH

Walking is a free, low maintenance, low impact form of exercise with a multitude of health benefits. Walking at a decent pace will not only raise your heart rate but also give you the opportunity to increase your walking distance over time and hit new goals week on week.

A 30-minute walk each day is a great way to improve your cardiovascular and lung health which keeps your blood pressure in check and reduces your risk of heart disease and stroke.

If you find you don’t have time for long walks or find staying motivated a difficult task, there’s no harm in starting smaller. Talking the stairs instead of the lift, getting off the bus a stop earlier to walk or offering to walk the neighbour’s dog are all great ways to get active.

To re-coin the well-known saying, a walk a day really does keep the doctor away. There are several ways to keep your daily walk exciting and refreshing with a few simple tweaks that will not only keep your fitness levels topped up but boost your mental health too. 

COMPLEMENT YOUR LIFESTYLE WITH NATURAL SUPPLEMENTS

Getting out for a stroll, spending time in the fresh air and reconnecting with nature is a great way of blowing away the cobwebs, loosening those muscles and clearing your mind after a hard day at work.

For an added lift, and to complement your healthy lifestyle, Lily & Loaf’s natural, nutritional adult supplements can provide a perfect way to enhance your diet to ensure you get the right amount of energy-boosting nutrients you need every day to recapture your vitality and zest for life.

Our supplements can be used as part of a healthy lifestyle plan to meet your everyday dietary requirements, support your wellness goals and help improve your overall general health.

We also offer a wide range of Lily & Loaf organic essential oils, which use the complex aromatic and health-boosting properties from some of the finest botanicals.

Whatever your wellbeing goals, Lily & Loaf’s supplements are designed to support a balanced lifestyle to help you feel happier and healthier.

Check out these links to find out more:

• Vitamin D3
• Nerves, stress, relax and sleep
• Adult Nutrition
• Essential Oils