MIO 3500 Top Nav

Taking Cardio Outside

Walking and jogging are by far the easiest and least expensive forms of exercise. All you need is a sidewalk
or path, a comfortable pair of shoes and a few
minutes of time.

But be sure to walk before you jog in order to condition your muscles slowly and avoid burn-out. Here is a great suggestion to get you started...

When you get home from work, rather than immediately going inside, go for a ten minute walk — five minutes out, five minutes back. Do this everyday, adding two minutes each week until you are walking 45 minutes everyday. This is one of the best ways to burn calories.

Once you're comfortable walking steadily for 30-45 minutes, you're ready to start a walk-jog program where you alternate between walking and jogging for set intervals. For example:

  1. On your first walk-jog workout, walk for seven minutes and then jog slowly for three — repeat this three times for a total of thirty minutes
  2. When you feel ready (this may be days or weeks later), walk for five minutes and then jog for five — repeat this three times for a total of thirty minutes

As you feel yourself improve, continue to decrease your walking time and increase your jogging time, and within a few months, you'll be able to jog the entire thirty minutes!

Practice Proper Walking/ Jogging Form

Regardless of your particular walking style keep your form as perfect as you can. Maintain your body alignment with your weight evenly distributed. Imagine a string pulling from the top of your head keeping your shoulders back and head up. Your elbows should remain at about 90 degrees and close to your body instead of flaring out. Place your thumb and index finger lightly together to keep your hands relaxed.

Your foot-strike should impact your heel, and then roll to the ball of your foot and then push off of your toes.