Walking exercise is good for losing weight and your heart... but if you don't maintain 'this posture,' it's all for nothing.

 

<Proper Walking Posture>

Head=

When walking, keep your gaze 10 to 15 meters ahead and do not tilt your head down. It is better to avoid walking while using a smartphone, as you tend to tilt your head unknowingly. Walking with your head down can cause pain in your neck and shoulders. Slightly tuck your chin toward your chest and keep your head steady without shaking. When breathing, inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth.

Back and waist

When looking at your side profile in the mirror, ensure that the curve of your waist connecting the hips to the back forms a C-shape. Walk with your chest pushed out and your shoulders pulled back. Be careful not to overexert your shoulders when trying to straighten them, as this can tense the trapezius muscles and cause pain; apply moderate effort. Also, avoid walking with your abdomen pushed out. Walking with your abdomen protruding can put pressure on the back of the lumbar vertebrae, potentially leading to 'hyperlordosis,' where the spine curves forward.

Arm=

When walking, swinging your arms back and forth can prevent your body from twisting. When you step forward with one leg, your pelvis connected to that leg also rotates in the same direction, causing your body to sway. At this moment, if your arms and legs move together, the rotational forces cancel each other out, allowing your body to move forward smoothly.

Step

When walking, the feet should be slightly spread in an 11-shaped pattern. When the feet touch the ground, walk in the order of 'heel → middle of the sole → toes' as if pressing down. When the heel touches the ground, ensure the middle part makes contact. Avoid walking with pigeon-toed feet, where the toes turn inward, or with splayed toes, where the toes are spread apart. Walking with pigeon-toed feet puts strain on the inside of the knees, while walking with splayed toes strains the outside of the knees. Walking with a straight, firm step while applying force is also not recommended, as it causes excessive load on the inside of the legs.

Walking with a stride about 10cm wider can stimulate more muscles and is beneficial for health. When the stride is narrow, you can walk by only lifting and lowering the ankles using the lower abdominal muscles, but when the stride is wider, you can also engage the thigh and pelvic stabilization muscles. Walking with a larger stride can also help improve cognitive abilities such as learning, memory, and language skills. There are experimental results showing that when you widen your stride by 10cm compared to normal walking, brain blood flow increases and oxygen saturation rises. As a result, nutrients are delivered more effectively to the brain, activating it and enhancing cognitive functions.