The modern way of life forces us to spend most of the day sitting. Subsequently, being sedentary for prolonged hours has been linked with a raft of modern diseases – that could be avoided.
A cluster of modern illnesses is primarily metabolic syndrome, i.e. metabolic stress. It is a disorder that involves a number of risk factors: obesity, heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes, elevated cholesterol and triglycerides, high blood pressure, and glucose intolerance.
Metabolic syndrome is predominant in around one-third of U.S. adults. Moreover, metabolic stress increases the risk of developing a serious illness.
The good news is that metabolic stress can easily be managed if you lead a healthy and active lifestyle. One of the easiest outdoor pursuits includes walking.
Now researchers understand how walking improves metabolic stress, it is easier to understand how walking has so many health benefits.
Metabolic Stress Is A Consequence Of Lifestyle
Metabolic stress represents the greatest therapeutic challenge of the 21st century. But now physicians have a better understanding of how it being stationary affects the body, it is possible to deliver more effective treatments for non-infectious mass diseases.
The symptoms of metabolic syndrome can basically be broken down into three categories: increased blood pressure, increased blood sugar levels, and increased blood fat levels.
It is usually accompanied by a state of obesity with visible excess body fat around the waist and an increased BMI index. People with metabolic syndrome are usually between the ages of 35 and 55, both sexes.
This disease of modern man is most often detected during systematic examinations or due to the patient’s desire to start the fight against obesity.
Metabolic syndrome significantly increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, arterial hypertension, and heart disease, especially complications of cardiovascular diseases that can have fatal consequences, such as a heart attack or stroke.
Healthy Habits
Maintaining body weight, adopting healthy lifestyle habits, and controlling sugar and cholesterol levels are extremely important for longer and better life.
Walking is one of the easiest health habits you can adopt because it has a low entry barrier. Most people walk during the day anyway. Even if you only make it a habit to walk a longer route to work and back, every little helps.
A dedicated program, of course, will deliver better results. For example, a brisk walking program increase heart rate, blood flow and breathing – all of which contribute to the body’s capacity to heal and clean out toxins we collect on a daily basis.
A study that followed 4151 people with an average age of 40 years proved that the more time we spend walking, the more we reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome. The conclusion of the study is that: “Total daily walking time is negatively associated with MS and increasing daily walking time is an effective way of preventing MS.”
Reduce The Risk Of Coronary Heart Disease
When it comes to metabolic stress, the main goal in the treatment of metabolic syndrome is to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. Another goal of treatment is to prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes if it has not yet developed.
Fifteen minutes of walking, about half an hour after each meal will lower blood sugar levels, as does a 45-minute walk in the morning or late afternoon. A brief walk immediately after a meal, at a moderate pace, maybe the simplest and most beneficial strategy in the fight against diabetes, especially for the elderly.
Recreation after a meal is especially important because it lowers blood glucose levels, which are usually elevated three hours after dinner. Many people sit up after dinner and go to bed with very high blood sugar, which is the worst thing you can do for your health.
Be Addicted To Walking, Not Food
Metabolic stress is treated by reducing or eliminating underlying problems (e.g. obesity and lack of activity) through weight loss or increased activity. Walking can help you lose weight and reduce the size of your stomach, especially in women.
For best results make dietary changes. The Mediterranean diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, and olive oil. This way of eating can help reduce weight, blood pressure, and lipids and improve signs of insulin resistance.
