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 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 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 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...

Image by 丽 李 from Pixabay To be honest, I feel like I have put on a bit of weight and I always appreciate having a starting weight so I can see progress of me losing weight.  I have tried to fix my scales but at this stage it says I am 50kgs. Which I definitely am not.  That’s ok. So instead of just not exercising until I get scales I am going to do something better. I am going to walk every day 10,000 steps. Because I know walking will help me lose weight no matter what my starting weight is.  I definitely feel the importance of knowing the starting weight because you can quickly measure how much you are losing and how often. I don’t really like weighing myself more than once a week but I have done a weight loss app that wanted me to weigh every day. But I would rather see a kilo lost after a week then a hundred grams after a day.  But what it comes down to is consistency. Consistently walking 10,000 steps every day including Sunday. I found when I took a day off w...

Image sourced via: www.pixabay.com Yes, you read the title right. A cyclone is on its way to Australia. I had a week off and planned to do some fun stuff as well as more importantly getting into a walking routine. I have been slacking off and doing 10,000 steps here and there but not consistently.  And then Cyclone Alfred decided to present itself. My work week is nearly over and the most I have done is stay at home, eat and crochet. Walking has gone at the window. I do have a treadmill and it’s sitting there pretty wondering when I will get on and use it.  Sure the first two days I was in preparation mode for the cyclone and was bringing in everything from outside and tying things down. I was also drawn to social media and checked it every hour to see the latest news. And then the cyclone got delayed…  So I have been just enjoying my time crocheting and eating. I have been eating healthier with a lot more vegetables this week. But without the walking, I won’t be losing a...

Image by Olga Lobko from Pixabay Holidays are great! Fun, relaxing and sometimes even adventurous. And my holidays over the Christmas period were exactly that.  I know over Christmas every year, without fail, whether I am tiny or large, I put on two kilos. I also know it takes about two months to then lose it.  So guess my surprise when after my holidays, ready to start the New Year with my aim to lose the final 10 kilograms. Oh yes, my surprise. My surprise was I put on 5 kilograms over my fun holidays. Let me just say that again, 5 kilograms.  If I gained an extra two kilograms, I would have put half the weight on I had already lost. This was absolutely sad.  The other annoying factor is when I was my pre-holiday weight I actually felt like I was getting thinner. My face was thinner and my stomach not as round.  But now, my face is visually fatter and my stomach is much bigger and protruding out. Sigh. I can’t even hide it. I already wear those flowing dresse...

Image by kalhh from Pixabay   So the New Year has started and welcome to it.  To be honest, I had my goals preset just before the New Year and when the New Year hit, I didn’t start straight away like I was expecting to.  So what are my goals and how am I going to achieve them?  Basically, this year I want to lose my remaining weight of 10 kilos. (I did put on 4 kilos over Christmas so chuck on that extra weight and I have to lose 14 kilos).  I have literally lost an extra 14 kilos previously just by walking. I didn’t change my eating habits, I just walked. It took a year because I only walked 10,000 steps every fortnight so I was only losing weight every fortnight. Not weekly.  Again, I feel this is pretty good considering I didn’t focus on eating only carrot sticks to lose weight.  So however you plan it, just note it the time to lose the weight may take longer. So do not get discouraged. Because, for me, once the weight is off, I am culling my bigge...

  Image sourced via: www.pixabay.com  So I am on holidays and it’s the week before Christmas and I have already put on half a kilo. I always put on two kilos over Christmas, even when I was thin, I would put on two kilos.  And yes, it always comes off in January. But when I am wanting to lose weight and then gaining weight from holidays, it’s really a not nice feeling. I haven’t been this big in at least a year. That’s the worst about being overweight, when you go up on the scales and it scares you because you said you would never be that weight again.  Now I have to lose extra weight ontop of the weight I already want to lose.  So since Christmas Day, on Christmas I just ate and barely walked steps and that is ok. I want to enjoy my day. And then Boxing Day, I made sure I walked and the next day. And now I feel back into my routine where I can walk each day and close to 10,000 steps a day. I feel better. I know my weight won’t go down immediately and may be not...

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay It may not come as a surprise that walking more means losing more weight but I was surprised to learn the following.  For a week, I did around 9,000 steps a day. I lost 400g. Now this may not seem a lot but the week before I put on two kilos for not walking. Plus that is how I lost 14 kilos, a little every week. Don’t trust the mantra, “you must lose one kilo to be on the path of losing weight.”  The week after, I had a busy week and walked around 5,000 steps a day. Guess what? It wasn’t big and some might argue it was water weight but I still lost weight. 100 grams. Not much.  It proves that whether you walk a lot or maybe just half the amount of 10,000 steps you can still lose weight. In addition, I didn’t change my food diet or eating. I’m still eating what I want, when I want because I am a foodie and I feel like if I give up eating the foods I love then the weight I drop, won’t last long till I eat again.  So I’m trying to los...

Image by Gesina from Pixabay So the good news is, as per my introduction, I am aiming to lose another 10 kilos. And I weighed myself after my first week of walking and I lost 400g. It may not seem a lot but for me that’s how I lost 14 kilos. A bit every week.  I feel we get told to lose weight you have to lose a minimum of one kilo a week. Whereas, I found I lost 14 kilos by losing less than a kilo a week. It did take a year but there was less pressure on myself and my body.  So count your small wins because they do add up to your big wins. 

^The above image is me, during my walk.  Hi there, So I am so excited because I decided to go for a walk for an hour and a half. I had the spare time. I nearly didn’t do it because it was 30 degrees outside. But I bought myself no sugar Gatorade for every day this week. So if it is hot, I can rehydrate.  And in this walk, I took a scenic route and did over 10,000 steps and over the whole course of the day, I did over 12,000 steps. I was very tired by the end but I also felt so proud of myself.  I could have stayed home but instead I went out and achieved my daily goal. I am aiming for minimum 10,000 steps a day.  I tend to walk this many steps every second week but every first week I barely do 5,000. So I know walking extra every day, I see a great benefit. Also I mentioned I lost 14 kilos as well and my blood pressure, which was high for a year is now looking good after a year of walking. Proving there are many benefits to walking and losing weight.  Have a gre...