How to Maintain Weight by Walking

Steps

1. Commit yourself to the goal of remaining healthy and fit.

   • You will be more successful at maintaining your weight if you intentionally see yourself as a healthy person.
   • Make exercise and healthy eating a part of your daily life. Resolve that you will be an active rather than a sedentary person.
2. Walk at least 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week. Some people are able to maintain a healthy weight this way though you may find you need to increase your time to 45 minutes or an hour, or even to 55 minutes a day, 5 days a week. You will soon learn which plan works best for you and allows you to maintain a healthy weight.
3. Invest in good walking shoes so you will ensure healthy feet and protect your body from injury. Stretch before you begin your walk.
4. Combine walking with strength training. Lifting or carrying light weights as you walk helps build muscle and burns calories.
5. Refuse to become discouraged if you gain weight or slip back into bad habits. Increase your walking time and resolve to begin again.
6. Prepare yourself for any challenges you might face. An illness or injury might put you off your walking routine for a time. The weather may be too hot, cold or rainy to allow you to walk outdoors. Plan alternative exercise such as using a treadmill or doing aerobics until conditions are right for you to return to walking outdoors.
7. Motivate yourself to continue your walking.

   • Team up with a friend or walk your dog. Having someone else along on your walk will make it more interesting, as well as keeping you motivated to keep it up, even if you may not exactly feel like a walk on a particular day.
   • Vary your route from time to time to keep it from getting boring.
8. Discover opportunities to add to your walking. Park some distance from the entrance of your workplace, for instance. Take the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator. Take a walk during your lunch break.
9. Walk before eating. Activity can actually lessen your appetite.
10. Consider different kinds of walking.

    • Walk briskly and purposefully. Maintain good posture. Attempt aerobic walking for a good cardio workout. Look for places to walk where there is an incline. Walk with hand weights or wear a backpack.
    • Consider interval walking where you increase your pace for short periods of time and revert again to your normal pace. You might even jog for short stints during your walk.