If you’ve thought of taking a stroll instead of using your vehicle, it might be one of the best health decisions to make.

Walking comes with a plethora of benefits to everyone irrespective of age or fitness level. The beautiful part about walking is that you don’t need anything to get started. All you need to do is incorporate it into your daily schedule and also a bit of consistency.

Here are some of the health benefits that come with taking a stroll

Burn calories

If you’re looking forward to burning some calories, a stroll is one of the ways to go. When you burn calories, it becomes easier to lose or maintain weight. Some of the factors that determine how well you burn calories include the distance covered, walking speed, weight, terrain, etc.

It strengthens the heart

When you walk daily, it reduces the chances of coming down with heart disease. The risk even reduces further when you increase the distance or the duration of the walk each day.

It improves your mood

It is important to mention that taking a stroll has a positive effect on your mood. Some studies have proved that taking a walk reduces symptoms of mental health problems like depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, etc.

To reap the benefits that come with this, you can spare three-four days a week, and target 30-45 minutes of walking.

It helps you think creatively

If you want to clear your head, one of the ways to go about it is to take a stroll. When you walk for some minutes, under the right conditions, it helps you think and process clearly. Walking opens up an unlimited flow of ideas, and it is a great way to boost creativity.

When you want to start walking, ensure that you use places that are designated for pedestrians. Also, ensure that the areas are well-lit for your safety. Ensure that you put on sturdy shoes that have arch support and good heels.

It is always a pleasure to travel by car. It offers unparalleled sights, an exhilarating adventure, and a sense of freedom unlike anything else. Some people travel by car, whereas others take other forms of transport, such as trains, buses, bicycles, autorickshaws, and walking. 

Those who dislike taking public transportation and prefer to travel independently usually choose a car over any other mode of transportation. In the world, everything has advantages and disadvantages.

If you are going to make the right decision, you should choose the alternative with higher advantages. The following are some benefits of driving:

• It is flexible

Car travel offers the benefits of flexibility as well as convenience. If it fits your commute hours, you can stop wherever you wish, take any street, any shortcut.

It is common for people to travel at their own pace, without rushing to reach their destination on time. Alternatively, others like to speed through the highways with their colleagues.

• You enjoy a better view.

The benefit of traveling by car is that you get to enjoy the beautiful scenery. However, when you travel by public transport, you always have to contend with the crowd and the hustle and bustle it brings.

However, the opposite is true, as you can hum along with your favorite songs while driving to work without complaining about the loud noise.

• You can save money and make new friends.

Luckily, carpooling has made it possible for you to share your car with friends and colleagues and save a significant amount of money on fuel costs.

As a result, you save money and contribute to a greener environment and strengthen your relationship. But, of course, the best conversations are those with the right group of people!

• You are not restricted by time.

There are often reasons why you miss your morning alarm, such as running out of battery, forgetting to set it, or switching it off during the night. However, in most cases, commuting to work is no big deal since you can make up the time on the road and get to work quickly.

Walking can provide numerous health benefits to people of all fitness levels and ages. It could also prevent certain diseases or even help you live longer.

Walking is free and can be easily incorporated into daily routines. Walking shoes of any kind are all you need to get started.

Here are five benefits of walking:

• It reduces your body’s fat by burning calories 

Walking affords you the privilege of burning calories. But, in the long run, it helps you maintain or reduce your body weight by reducing body fat. 

Several factors determine how many calories you burn, these factors i

• Speed of walking 
• The distance traveled 
• Whether you’re walking uphill or downhill (you burn more calories walking uphill than walking downhill) 
• How much you weigh

• Walking strengthens your heart

One of the numerous advantages of walking is its ability to help strengthen your heart. If you walk at least thirty minutes a day for a week, you can reduce the risk of heart disease by about nineteen percent. This can reduce even further if you increase the duration of the distance you walk every day.  

• Walking also helps to reduce the blood’s sugar level

You can reduce your blood sugar immediately after eating by taking a walk. A study established that if you take a fifteen-minute walk three times a day (i.e., After eating), you can reduce your blood sugar level even more than a 45-minute walk at any part of the day. 

• It helps to reduce joints pain

A daily walk can be beneficial to the joints, including the knees and hips. The reason is that it strengthens and lubricates the muscles supporting our joints.

The benefits of walking may also extend to people living with arthritis, such as reducing pain. Additionally, walking at least five to six miles a week could prevent arthritis.

• It boosts the functionality of the immune system.

You may be less likely to contract a cold or the flu if you walk regularly.

An examination of 1,000 adults was conducted during flu season. People who walked moderately for 30 to 45 minutes a day had 43 percent fewer sick days and fewer upper respiratory tract infections in general.

Walking also reduced the symptoms they experienced if they became ill. However, compared with adults in the study who were sedentary, those results were higher.

You can experience these benefits by taking a daily walk. It may be best to walk on a treadmill or around an indoor mall if you live in a cold climate.

Vehicle overdependence comes with no positive benefits. The advent of automobiles was expected to provide man with comfort.

However, over the years, man has come to rely too much on vehicles, ignoring the need to walk once in a while.  

Many people do not know that vehicle overdependence exists, but it is something they do every day.

It is important to mention that the Earth is currently deteriorating and our actions are making it worse. One of the ways we are destroying the planet is the smoke poisoning that our cars emit.

Our vehicles contribute to the environment’s poisoning because toxins are released into the atmosphere and environment. These toxins affects our health and those around us. If you are look at one of the leading causes of pollution, you will see that vehicle overdependence is one of them.

This is so because carbon is released into the atmosphere. There is toxicity in the greenhouse which contributes to global warming. In turn, this affects the Earth’s weather patterns which makes predictions difficult.

People would rather use their vehicles than walk even if it is a small distance that has to be covered. And when they fall sick, they don’t realize that one of the reasons responsible for this is lack of physical exercise.

When you walk less and use your vehicle more, you are at risk of falling sick more often.

It is imperative to make people aware of the causes of vehicle overdependence because as more people have cars, the Earth is at risk, and our lives too. One of the ways to fight against this is to be intentional about your actions.

To begin, you need to make sure you exercise regularly. For short distances that you can cover with your legs, it is best to walk instead of using your vehicle. Doing this would reduce the pollution in the environment and you will be doing yourself a favor because of the exercise involved.  

We all love the comfort that comes with driving and the numerous benefits it has. One of such benefits is getting to your destination faster than you would if you walked. However, have you considered that walking comes with some benefits you could never have thought of?

Below are some reasons why walking is a better alternative to driving:

Health improvement

Do you know that walking helps to improve your health? When you walk regularly, it is a form of exercise that helps to tackle stress, reduce calories and step-down the chances of heart disease.

If you don’t have time to exercise regularly, you can walk for some miles instead and still achieve the same results.

Appreciate road users and learn individual road responsibility

There are some things you will notice while walking, that you won’t see when you are driving. You will learn various things and understand better why people do certain things on the road. This is why walking helps you appreciate other drivers and road users.

Saves money

Walking instead of driving saves gas money that would be used to settle other expenses. Having walked to your destination, you can refresh yourself with fruits and water for energy. The money you spend on this would not be up to your gas costs.

Keeps your car in shape

When you use your car regularly, you would spend on maintenance and other costs. However, walking reduces this possibility. When you choose to walk to your destination sometimes, you are allowing your car rest.

Access to unlimited fresh air

When you are walking, you are spending time in nature which is good for you. This grants you access to unlimited fresh air that you might not get if you are driving.

You need to know that you don’t have to walk every day. However, it is best to drive on some days and walk on others. It is a profound way to reap the benefits of both walking and driving.

There are some people who are so used to driving, and they would barely walk even if it is just a small distance.

There is no denying the fact that there is a great comfort which comes with driving. However, there are also some disadvantages which a good number of people are not aware of.

It is advisable for you not to drive every time, you can take out time to walk once in a while, as there are some benefits which comes with it.

To start with, walking helps you to burn calories. Not everyone is aware of this advantage, but it is very much true. Driving does not help you burn calories, rather, it helps you add to them.

Walking is a proficient form of exercise, and when you do this on a regular basis, you are helping yourself to lose or maintain your weight.

In addition to this, walking also helps you to strengthen your heart. When you walk for around 30 minutes a day, the chances of coming down with a health disease is reduced, and when you walk more, the chances are greatly reduced.

Do you also know that, walking helps to reduce your blood sugar? When you take a short walk after you’ve had a meal, it helps to reduce your blood sugar. You should also ensure walking is included in your daily routine.

Sometimes, if you want to have a meal outside, you can decide to commute to the place back and forth. Doing this comes with no harm to your health, rather, it is beneficial.

Walking also helps to ease joint pain, and being too comfortable in the car helps to aggravate it. When you walk, your joints, hips and knees are protected.

This happens because the muscles which provide support for the joints are strengthened and lubricated. People who have arthritis are also advised to walk more instead of driving themselves around.

In the long run, people who walk would discover that there is an enhancement in their immune function. Walking comes with lots of benefits, and they are hidden in plain sight when you drive a lot.

Vehicle overdependence is a term which people are not used to. Rather, it is an act which a good number of people carry out. This is basically a condition when an individual is totally dependent on their vehicle.

Currently, the health of the constituents of the planet is facing a downturn, and people make this worse by being reliant on their vehicle to cover small distances, when they can easily do this themselves. When the health of an individual is at risk, it is an indication that they do not undergo physical exercise.

Also, using a vehicle too much, contributes to the poisoning of the environment, as much toxins are released into the environment, which affects your health and those around you. Taking a look at the causes of pollution in the environment, vehicle overdependence is at the forefront.

This happens because of the release of carbon into the atmosphere. The toxicity which is present in the greenhouse, causes global warming, and it adversely affects the weather patterns of the earth, making it quite unpredictable.

Much reliance on a vehicle has an adverse effect on the health of people. As earlier mentioned, vehicle overdependence leads to lack of exercise, which leads to disease in the long run. Diseases such as stroke, diabetes, heart-related issues and obesity, are all connected to lack of exercise. It is not advisable to overuse your vehicle, as it prevents exercise, as there are still distances which you can still cover by walking.

In order to contribute to the fight against vehicle dependence, you as an individual need to be deliberate about your actions. First off, ensure that you exercise regularly, by covering distances which you can with your legs. You need to put into change your thinking pattern when it comes to how long it would take you to cover some distances.

You should look at it from the angle that, it is not going to have a detrimental effect on you, as some would term it stress. Rather, it is a way to ensure that you carry out some form of exercise. Doing this would ensure that you have a sense of responsibility as regards your health, and that of your community.