More and more people are beginning to realise just what a great way walking is to exercise. It’s an enjoyable, low injury risk, low impact way to exercise and you can even introduce a social element to it if you wish. It’s the perfect exercise for anyone who is new to exercise or who just hasn’t worked out for some time.

You don’t need any special equipment or training and you can fit it into your daily routine whenever it suits you best. It’s also a very cost effective method of exercising. There are no expensive monthly membership fees to pay, so getting in shape won’t bankrupt you.

Just as with other physical activities, you will use up additional calories when you are actively engaged in walking. However, what is equally important is the fact that you will also raise your metabolic rate. What that means is that you will burn calories faster throughout the day, whatever you’re doing. If you’re surfing the internet, reading the newspaper, watching your favorite TV show - even if you’re sleeping - you will burn calories more quickly.

Over and above weight loss, there many significant health benefits to be derived from a regular walking program. Oxygen intake in the blood is increased and this not only improves blood circulation but strengthens the heart. It can help to reduce your blood pressure level, increase your lung capacity and it even helps to fight depression and anxiety. The risk of contracting certain variants of cancer is also much reduced for regular walkers. Walking will provide you with more energy and will help you to sleep better. The full list of health benefits is too long to include in full. Walking is better than any miracle drug or wonder health supplement.

You can make your walking exercise routine fun by turning it into a social activity. Go for a walk around the block with some of your work colleagues during your lunch break - or walk around your neighbourhood or local park with neighbours, friends and family members in the evening. If you want, you can just walk your dog.

Listening to music while you walk can also make the miles and the time fly by that much faster. If you don’t already have one, an mp3 player is a sound investment. Just be sure not to have the volume too high and pay particular attention to traffic if you’re in a busy area.

There have been a number of advances in fitness footwear technology recently. You can now take your pick from a wide selection of “toning” footwear such as Fit flops sandals, Skechers Shape Ups shoes, Masai Barefoot Technology shoes and Reebok Easy Tones exercise shoes. These all claim to increase the amount of work done by the muscles in your legs and butt and increase the efficiency of your walking workout. They achieve this by using special soles, which either mimic the effect of walking on soft sand or which generate an element of microscopic imbalance which makes your leg and butt muscles work a bit harder.

If you find it hard to keep your motivation up, then a pedometer might be a good idea. An Omron pedometer is accurate to within 5% and will display your results in terms of steps taken, calories used or distance covered. Most health advisers recommend a target of 10,000 steps a day in order to get the full benefits of walking, including weight loss. Carry your pedometer with you throughout the day and you will soon be actively looking for ways to boost your daily step count.