One of my two March intentions is to walk 30-60 minutes a day. It was also my February intention and I failed miserably. But what I know is that I feel so much more energized, creative, intentional, joyful, and filled up after a good walk.

 

And there are actual, real studies that have confirmed these feelings.

 

Here are some reasons to prioritize a daily walk, even if you have a super tight schedule

 

Blood sugar balance:

A quick walk after a meal will get your glucose distributed to your muscles rather than just floating around your body, creating a spike. We want to minimize our glucose spikes as much as possible because spikes lead to insulin resistance, which leads to weight gain, hormone issues, diabetes, and other health issues.

I have personally started to see that a walk or gentle use of muscles after any meal (even healthy ones) really change my glucose levels. I started wearing a continuous glucose monitor about 4 months ago and the information is fascinating! I was actually in the pre-diabetes range, something I didn’t have any indication of, so it was shocking. But focusing on well balanced food combos and moving after I eat makes a world of difference.

Get in a walk around the block after dinner each night and you will be doing such a great thing for your blood sugar and hormones.

 

Energy:

A morning walk and the sunlight exposure you receive (even if it’s not “sunny”) helps our circadian rhythms, the cycle that helps manage our hormones. Checkout this blog post about circadian rhythms to learn more.

Serotonin, aka the happy/energetic hormone, should be abundant during the day time to give us energy. It is a natural part of our body’s typical functioning. More serotonin is produced when we are exposed to natural sunlight. That indicates to our body that it is daytime so it needs to amp up the serotonin.

Unfortunately, a lot of our daily habits are counter to the natural circadian rhythm and stunt the production of serotonin.

Getting our for a walk in the morning will tell our body to rev up the serotonin production, which will not only help balance our hormones, but also give us a bit of energy.

 

Joy:

As state above, serotonin is known as the happy hormone. It has been proven to boost mood, among other things. Because of the hit of serotonin your body receives when it’s exposed to light, a walk during daylight hours can definitely contribute to joy!

 

Digestion:

Walking after a meal isn’t just good for blood sugar balance, it also supports digestion. It’s pretty straight forward- our food wants to travel down, and if we are standing/walking, gravity makes it much easier. If you are chronically bloated after lunch or dinner, try a 10 minute walk.

 

Who’s going to be walking more in March with me???

 

XO,

Kelsey