Wednesday musings, 7/13/16: walking for health

I was talking recently with a client about the benefits of walking on glucose levels in diabetics. I mentioned even walking 20 minutes a day was effective at reducing glucose levels.* In type II diabetics, a reduction in fasting glucose levels leads to less medication, which not only saves money but positively impacts overall health and well being.

The benefits of walking reach further than simply improving glucose levels. Walking in nature appears to positively effect mood and might reduce depression.** Even if you regularly run, taking the time to slow down and walk once or twice a week can help with recovery. Whenever clients ask me what they should be doing, the first thing I always suggest is a 20-30 minute walk outside, 2-3 times a week. It could be argued we were born to walk; returning to this primal, free mode of activity is one of the best things we can do for our health. 

*This is a nice overview of a little bit of the research, written by someone with diabetes (type I, though he references a far amount of research that has been done on type II): http://diatribe.org/issues/51/adams-corner
**Stanford research on walking in nature: http://news.stanford.edu/2015/06/30/hiking-mental-health-063015/

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Newsletter, July 2016: Creativity and procrastination, upcoming events, and suggested reading

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Wednesday musings, 7/6/16: The value of the experience