Melanie Toye’s walking for health

Image by luxstorm from Pixabay My story You know some of my story if you read my blog. Basically, I needed to lose 24 kilos. I walked 10,000 steps a day every second week and lost 14 kilos. I am a huge advocate that walking works. Uh oh  Then I put back on my weight.  I was dealing with something pretty hard and was in survival mode so stopped looking after myself. It was between a 3-6 month period of survival mode and then another 3-4 months of healing mode. And I put all the weight back on because I stopped walking. What’s the result?  So that’s my history but what I have realised is. Yes, I have proven that if you want to lose weight and not go hard at the gym etc, you can lose weight by walking. Walking a lot.  You need time to walk. So if you have time and enjoy the outdoors or you have a treadmill and can watch movies or listen to music then give 10,000 steps a day a go.  Important information about losing weight What I really need you to know is and this...

Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay So I had this brainstorm moment. I have put on weight and I need to lose weight. I have had a gut full. (Mind the pun). Walking is becoming hard to fit into my schedule. Because I basically have to walk 1-2 hours a day and I just can’t fit that time in. It’s also swooping bird season, which I dread.  So I did some brainstorming.  1. Ask ChatGPT for a fitness plan  First, I went into chatGPT and asked for an exercise program to lose weight over a year. It was pretty standard, nothing fancy. However, I was still impressed it did give me a fitness workout. But it was boring and not something I really wanted to do. Maybe if I was a bit more detailed in my question, maybe I would have got a different answer.  2. Find a local gym  Then I went to look for local gyms but seriously the price a week was just out of my price range and again I would face the “time” problem. I leave early in the morning and get home late most nights so ...

Image by Shelley Evans from Pixabay It’s interesting isn’t it. Today I sat on the couch and around the early afternoon, I felt absolutely exhausted. Sure, I went out in the morning but I barely walked. Under 1,000 steps.  And yet, here I am, exhausted.  It’s been a few months and I haven’t been able to achieve 10,000 steps a day. Some times I get close and then I have a cheat day, which never works and then I struggle to get back into it for a few more days. And I go up and down in steps.  When I was walking 10,000 steps for about four months straight, I was losing weight and I had more energy. I could feel it. So it’s frustrating, how do we get more energy when we are tired to begin with?  I feel like when you are starting or re-starting like me. You get moments of energy. So you may be laying on the couch for an hour and you will get up and go to the bathroom and realise you have this very small burst of energy. Don’t sit back down, just yet!  Use that little...

Image by Bill Bowler from Pixabay It may seem easy, you press the power button and you start walking. But here are five ways how to use a treadmill: 1. You can choose the pace  This may seem like the main way to use a treadmill but have you thought about interval walking. What I discovered while on my treadmill is I can go a certain speed say 4.5 or 5.0 and then after 20 minutes, I can do interval training which means going 6.0 or 6.5 for five minutes and then back to my original speed. I can repeat this every 20 minutes.  Not only does it make the walking more interesting. The fast interval of walking boosts my heart rate and boosts my stamina. So when you are on a treadmill you can create these games for interval training and even change the pace of the music when you enter the faster pace period.  It’s only for a short period so you can catch your breath when you go back to your original pace.  2. Watch a movie while on the treadmill So I walk with my mobile. Thi...

Image by 健恒 廖 from Pixabay It’s an interesting concept. We want to walk more for health benefits and yet walking can turn to a feeling of annoyance or frustration. Why? Because once we start to walk every day at least 10,000 steps. In your mind you will either love that you are succeeding. That your health is improving and you can start to see the results. But at the beginning of the transition from doing nothing to now walking a lot, every day. It can feel like exercise (which it is) and it can feel like it’s a drag to walk. We start to not really want to walk so we don’t and then our health and goals stop and not improve and then we get angry with ourselves for not looking after ourself and still being the same since you started. It can definitely be a mental game, you may give up before you even properly get started. You may also thrive. The point is to this is if you just focus on each day. One day at a time to meet your goal of 10,000 steps. Then by focusing on just the day, you ...

Image by Jan Vašek from Pixabay It’s one thing to walk to lose weight or keep your weight or just walk for your mental health. But I’m finding the struggle to walk because of time.  Time is so precious in our lives and sometimes finding time is difficult. So it’s about getting savvy with finding time to walk for your health. Here are 6 ways to fit in time to walk for your health: 1. If you have children and they play a sport, while they are at training, walk laps around the soccer field or walk around the outside of a basketball indoor court. Find a way to move your body like walking when taking your child/children to training. That way you aren’t just sitting for an hour or longer and then go home cook dinner and prepare for bed. You are utilising that hour to benefit you for walking for health. 2. Get up thirty minutes before your normal alarm and walk on a treadmill or go for a walk. The benefits to waking up early before you normally start the day, is impressive. First you wil...

Image by simardfrancois from Pixabay So most of us know about what goals are but do you know how to make them work and achieve them?  As I have blogged about before, I lost 14 kilos just by walking. The goal walk about 9,000 steps a day and not miss a day and you will lose weight without changing what you eat. Impressive huh?!  That’s why I created this blog to share with you my journey and help you achieve your walking for health goals. So whatever your goal is, you have chosen to walk daily to try and achieve your goal.  When setting up a goal it’s important to create a start date and if you are competitive with yourself you can set an end date or if you are more laid back and want this to be a lifestyle choice, then you don’t need to set an end date. But setting a start date is very important. And it’s really important to set it within the week of setting your goal. Because that’s when you are most motivated to try to achieve your goal. So you have your walking for he...

Image by 💚🌺💚Nowaja💚🌺💚 from Pixabay So this week, I was excited because I had a week of walking planned. Sixty minutes separated by two times. So two thirty minute walks in a day. As I walk this thirty minute path, I have noted there is a possible shortcut to get to my destination and every time I think, maybe I should look this shortcut up, I instantly tell myself, “No, because you want more steps to walk, not less.”  And then I discovered another short cut, the bus. Instead of walking thirty minutes, I could probably spend between 10-20 minutes on the bus and get there quicker. It’s so easy to use and with Queensland’s 50 cents public transport fares in Australia, you can easily justify the cost. So why not take walking short cuts?  Well that’s really easy and you can tell yourself every time a shortcut arises. It’s simple, the point of walking for health is to walk as many steps a day as needed to see a result. For me, it’s 9,000 - 10,000 steps a day at a minimum but ...

Image by John Hain from Pixabay On your walking for health journey, it’s really easy to tell yourself silent judgements throughout your journey.  Silent judgements aren’t real but they feel real. They put us down making it hard to even just go for a walk. From being too fat, too big, finding suitable workout clothes for your body, your face is bigger, your legs are thicker, you have to walk slower because you’re not used to walking. All these silent judgements we place on ourselves is ruling our lives. They hold control over not continuing our journey.  Remember it might take 1-2 years to lose the weight you are seeking to lose and it might take longer but if you keep trying that’s one-2 years that you will be your ideal weight or just weigh less! Isn’t that better than never starting the walking journey because of the silent judgements winning? And then there is the silent judgements on others. They are thin, they are younger, they have more energy to walk and live life. I w...

Image by Fajar Arif from Pixabay  I know I know. If you are like me, take out is seen as a treat. And I really thought I would never eat less take out. But I challenge you, to find a meal you love and cook it for the week (unless you have kids, kids means they probably won’t want the same meal every day). So it doesn’t have to be the same meal for the week. Plan, buy and make time to cook your meals for the week. Make sure you love eating these meals. And then don’t buy take out. Don’t even remind yourself you aren’t buying take out. Because as soon as you think about take out, it’s really easy to get swept up in the convenience and yumminess of takeout. Wait till the following week and transfer to your savings or spendings account the money you have saved from not buying take out! Trust me, this feels amazing. The first week I did this, I bought myself essential clothing items with the money I saved and thanked myself for not digging into my savings to pay for it. I simply didn’t...

Image by Tumisu from Pixabay It’s currently winter in Australia and I have been half getting into a routine to walk 10,000 steps a day and the other half of me is cold and wants to just rug up all day. I think finding the balance is important. Yes, you may want a day to just relax. But sometimes that day off could lead to a few more days off and then weeks go by and you are occasionally walking but more not.  So to motivate you, remember your reason for walking in the first place. Whether it is for your health or your mental health or whatever is the reason. Remember why. Plaster this why everywhere. Write it down! On your couch so when you go sit down you think, should I sit or should I go for a walk? And/or place your reason why on the fridge. Place it on your TV. And then think is it time to relax or should I release some energy physically and mentally first by going for a walk and then relax?  Also, think how can I fit in more time to walk?  9 Ways to fit in more wal...

Image by Alexander Fox | PlaNet Fox from Pixabay So I decided to run an errand and landed in the outer city so instead of catching the bus for a 12 minute trip, I decided to go for an hour walk in the rain. Yes, I did have an umbrella.  I was walking alongside main roads where it felt weird to have intersections because if they ran a red light I would be a flat cake on the road. I guess I seemed less trusting in the outer city area mainly because no one was around walking because it was pouring. And I have never walked this part of the city before. Thank goodness for Google maps.  And as I was walking at first I just stared at Google Maps and the street signs and also my battery charge on my mobile. I was scared the hour trip would kill my battery and then I wouldn’t be able to use Google Maps for the walk home.  Of course, if I was prepared I would have printed the street names of where I had to walk in advance but the errand was unexpected and needed to be done urgentl...

Image by 춘성 강 from Pixabay Obviously there are many benefits to walking. Read below to see some of the major benefits: Benefits of walking equals lower blood pressure  Initially when I was heavier I had high blood pressure for over a year. I knew this because I got it checked regularly. When I started walking aiming 10,000 steps a day and lost 14 kilos my blood pressure returned to normal. My doctor was surprised and said just keep walking because I still had more weight to lose. Walking helps manage stress  Your mind will thank you. The amount of mind stress I have had which I have solved by going for a walk is incredible. What do I mean about mind stress. Mind stress is where you are stressing about something and it just rolls around and around your mind. So going for a walk helps you think of it and then think of ideas to solve it and then you can move on.  Walking increases stamina  You stamina improves. If you are like me, when I don’t walk enough or often I pu...

Image by Anna from Pixabay You know in this #walkingforhealth blog I have created, I have said from the very beginning you don’t have to change your diet to lose weight, as long as you walk.  I lost 14 kilos just from walking and not changing my diet.  And as much as I love eating take out and the convenience of it, in the back of my mind I think, well if I am eating healthier, I will have more overall energy and a longer lasting health benefits for my mind and body. It’s a win / win. So I do still eat take out. But this week, I challenged myself and I bought mainly vegetables: pumpkin, mushrooms, purple onion, snow peas, bok choy, cherry tomatoes and some diced beef and I made a stir fry. I changed it up each day, with different type of noodles and sauce. The first few days I just had veggies and noodles. And it was filling! Which to be honest I was scared of. Would I go to bed in a few hours and feel hungry? Nope! And then I added some meat for the next few days to change i...

Image by Dariusz Sankowski from Pixabay So I’m still getting used to making a walking routine and that’s because my every day can be different every day.  So it’s about trying to plan the day ahead, the day before.  What are your plans for tomorrow? How will you fit walking in?  Especially if your day tomorrow is working from home or just planning being at home. On those days, I really want to just sit all day and be a lazy potato because the comfort of my home is great. And I could really do a lot of sitting downs things like craft and hobbies to reading or crocheting while watching tv. So many opportunities to sit.  So I challenge you to every night think about when you will walk tomorrow. Also, don’t forget if your work gives you morning tea breaks, use them to walk as well! A twenty minute walk can be around 2000 steps. That all adds up to your day of walking.  You might find that waking up an extra thirty minutes early each day gives you some steps to walk...

Image by Pexels from Pixabay If you haven’t thought of a goal or a reason why you are walking it may be harder to stay motivated for longer. So it is important to have a long term walking goal.  For example here are some questions to help you work it out:    What is your goal? Why are you walking?  What is the outcome you seek?  Why have you chosen walking as your activity?  How often will you be walking to achieve your goal?  When did you want to start walking and when do you want to finish?  Are you walking to achieve something?  Who is going to keep you accountable towards your goal?  To help you see someone else’s response, I will share with you mine:  What is your goal?  My goal is to walk 10,000 steps a day. Why are you walking? I am walking to lose weight and overall a healthier version of myself. I want to build stamina to also dance and put less pressure on my joints because of weight loss from walking. I want to wear...