Walking as a method of disconnection to relieve the mental load of everyday life

Spain has one of the longest working hours among advanced European countries, and although teleworking has allowed certain sectors to improve their professional and personal balance, it is still difficult to enjoy quality free hours when work ends. workday.

Because shopping, taking the children swimming or picking up the suit that has been waiting for weeks at the dry cleaners is another form of work, that dedicated to the home.

To relieve the mental load of everyday life, it is essential to disconnect, and in that sense, physical activity has always been an effective escape route.

Outside of sports disciplines aimed at getting toned, more and more people opt for walking, not as an activity with which to gain muscle mass or reduce weight, but as a method of disconnection.

So much so, that some gyms offer walking clubs, spaces designed for walking in groups.

One of them is the so-called Walking Club

of Club Metropolitan, a modality that seeks, as explained by Mauro Carné, head of the events department of this chain of Madrid gyms, “to offer a group

fitness

experience and take advantage of the benefits of joint training, in this case hiking or walking through urban media”.

This last nuance is key, since the city is drawn as the new scenario accessible to everyone in which to get lost while walking.

The walk offered by the sports center "has sessions of 45-60 minutes with low intensity, and is one of the best preventive therapies, with which to work on different rhythms, slopes and descents, so that cardiovascular activity is worked on." ", they point out.

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According to the

Sports Habits Survey

for the year 2022, “72.1% of the population usually performs this activity [in reference to walking]”, a figure slightly lower than that of 2020, but higher than the pre-covid era, when It was around 70.6%.

A growing interest that coincides with what is perceived in the Metropolitan Club, where they assure that "in recent years the interest in this activity has taken on greater importance and awareness among the general population."

The same study provides other data, such as that walking is a more frequent sports practice among women than men (75.9% compared to 68.2%) and is more popular after the age of 24, although the sports center specifies that in his case the club “is focused on all types of clients, that is, it is suitable for all ages and levels.”

Technique, benefits and routine

Although it is a low-intensity activity, it provides notable physical benefits, as long as its practice is continuous and not anecdotal.

“If you walk regularly and efficiently, you soon improve the fitness of healthy adults by 10 to 30% compared to the starting level.

Those who moved little before starting to walk regularly will achieve better results in improving their physical condition,” explains Javier de Simón Brezmes, from the ReAdapta Fisioterapia clinic.

What's more, in addition to helping us stay active, a walking routine can minimize certain muscle problems: “It helps improve physical condition, there is an improvement at the respiratory and cardiopulmonary level and it improves the use of energy by our muscles, so It is useful to combat a sedentary lifestyle,” they list from this Burgos clinic.

We all walk automatically, but contrary to what it may seem, just like doing squats or push-ups, walking also requires following a technique.

From ReAdapta Fisioterapia they point out that this consists of walking with the “head in a neutral position, relaxed shoulders, elevated and open chest and gentle tension of the glutes to facilitate lumbopelvic stabilization.”

Lack of free time is the first barrier among those who seek to play sports, but walking is an easy alternative to introduce into the daily routine.

According to human resources consultant Michael Page, in Spain the average travel time to work is 36 minutes, six minutes less than the European average.

If it is feasible to do the journey on foot, it can be a good way to get started in the practice.

For the benefits of walking to be optimal, “according to scientific evidence, the adequate daily amount of walking to maintain good health is one hour of continuous walking, burning 150 calories of additional energy and with a total of 8,000 to 10,000 steps.” , listed in ReAdapta Fisioterapia.

Less sedentary lifestyle, better mental health

Something as simple as walking can also be an ideal activity to combat loneliness when done in company.

From the WeWalk platform, present in 16 countries - although at the moment with a very limited presence in Spain - different modalities are offered to do in groups: walk for seniors, morning walk, Nordic walking (with canes, a complement to hike in green areas of cities) or

power walk

(which could be defined as a brisk walk).

They even offer walking sessions for companies, designed as a group activity to encourage teamwork, and classes to obtain a certification as an expert walking coach.

Walking to work can be a good way to start this exercise.Alavinphoto (Getty Images)

In a frenetically paced life dominated by productivity, carrying out quiet activities as a therapeutic tool—from pottery to calligraphy or sewing classes—has become a hobby with which more and more people connect.

In order to enjoy more walks in urban environments, citizens demand more green spaces and areas suitable for enjoying this type of activities.

According to data from the survey carried out by the YouGov public opinion institute in March 2021 among residents of Madrid and Barcelona, ​​68% of those interviewed demanded more areas for walking.

Enjoying leisure time, improving physical fitness, combating loneliness... the benefits of a good walk seem almost limitless.

Added to this is its potential as an antidote to certain mental health problems.

Alberto Ramírez, psychologist and CEO of MentalMadrid, explains it like this: “Physical exercise in general, be it walking, running or any type of strength activity, cardio, etc., greatly mitigates anxiety, stress, even depression.

This is because we increase the production of serotonin and dopamine, which are hormones that help us reduce anxiety and combat depression and, therefore, there is a significant improvement in our physical and emotional system.”

Spending a good part of the day sitting not only causes muscle problems, a sedentary lifestyle has a direct impact on the mind.

Ramírez recalls that “the WHO considers it the fourth risk factor for mortality in the world” and adds that “it has been observed that those people who have a sedentary life have very low levels of BDNF [brain-derived neurotrophic factor], which is a protein with many brain functions.

Among them, it prevents our cognitive deterioration, increases concentration, improves blood flow in the brain and our attention.”

With the arrival of spring, what better time to go for a walk?