When we think of walking as physical exercise, it is likely that we will do it mechanically and without exploiting its enormous possibilities. We use the classic tracksuit or relevant technical clothing, put on our sneakers and adjust our activity bracelet or smartwatch before heading towards our usual walking area.
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However, you should know that there are many, and very effective, ways to increase the level of demand so that walking becomes a powerful physical exercise. This does not mean that walking in itself, without adding other elements or considerations to the equation, is not effective. It is, although it is less true that it is not the most demanding activity unless a little spice is added.
To make it an exercise that allows you to improve cardiorespiratory fitness, strength and even spend more calories if you are immersed in a weight loss strategy, you can choose to increase the time, the number of steps, the speed or increase stairs and slopes, among other formulas. Are very valid strategies to make it.
But you can also grab a dumbbell or a kettlebell and increase the intensity and multiply the benefits of the walk, which you can even reduce and turn into a hybrid training in which you combine cardio with muscle work. This time from the core.
How to work the core in movement
And it is that the area that includes the abdominal muscles, lumbar, pelvis, glutes and the deep muscles of the spine is essential because paying attention to them can help us reduce the risk of suffering injuries, improve postural hygiene, flexibility, coordination and balance, we will better protect the internal organs and we will be able to prevent very recurrent pain such as neck and back pain. The benefits are not few.
And, as we said, we can use some weight to perform two exercises that are very effective. “Among the movement patterns recommended to work the core as a whole, there are anti-tilt movements, in which, with the central stability that we achieve by activating the set of muscles that make it up, we prevent the spine from tilting towards one another. or another side,” explains David Marchante.
Two effective exercises
This graduate in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences, specialist in strength training and disseminator of topics related to fitness and nutrition through his social profiles, shares two ways to achieve that specific goal. “Simply walk steadily with one dumbbell or two dumbbells It’s a super interesting job.”, he assures. “Among the best-known exercises to achieve this, possibly the farmer’s walks (less demanding) and the waiter’s walks (more demanding) are the most common.
“He farmer’s walk is an exercise that involves walking holding a weight in one hand or two weights, one in each hand. By carrying weight in both hands, you will be forced to constantly stabilize yourself, thus strengthening your core muscles. Although, personally, I prefer the unilateral one because it involves a more localized effort on the obliques on the opposite side,” he adds.
But as the expert advanced, there is always a way to ‘complicate’ things a little more. “If you are able to use a lot of weight unilaterally and find it difficult to increase resistance, the waiter walk Is another option. Similar to the farmer’s walk, it involves carrying weight while walking, but here the focus is on carrying the weight with one hand above the headincreasing the external moment arm and the demands on the stabilizers of the upper limb as well,” he shares.
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Furthermore, according to Marchante, it is also a highly recommended exercise if among our routines we also do push work with dumbbells or barbell. “I really like it to warm up (even with little weight) on push days, thanks to that last detail I just mentioned.
Functional exercises for everyday life
So, as you can see, it is possible to walk and gain a lot of core strength at the same time. Even without scrolling We would already be working the area. Obviously these exercises, especially if a lot of weight is added, may not suit everyone or be maintained for long distances. But in any case we can take short walks using one of the two modalities and their variants.
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Furthermore, these are two very complete exercises that can also help you on a daily basis to completing movements that involve twisting, bending, or carrying weight. Who hasn’t returned from shopping with several bags in both hands? The farmer’s step is not something you are unfamiliar with. But now you know how to make it – or the waiter’s – an indispensable part of your routine.
Álvaro Piqueras is a sports expert and in the last five years he has specialized in fitness, nutrition and other health topics. Try to stay up to date with new research and trends in the fields you master to be able to rigorously share the training routine that can inspire a change in your habits, the properties of the foods that should be part of your diet or scientific findings that can improve the physical and mental well-being of people like you.
He began his career in local and regional media in the land of Don Quixote, specifically in Albacete. From there he made the leap to national media after an enriching time at a wonderful independent advertising agency named after a Beatles song (GettingBetter), although he always kept his journalistic vocation intact.
Hence, he pursued his dream of working for one of the main publishing groups in the country such as Prisa, Vocento and now also Hearst. Perhaps you have read him in the digital version of Diario As, addressing countless topics, or in ABC and other newspapers and magazines of the group, preparing branded content reports for large brands, multinationals and institutions. And if you haven’t had the chance, now is the time to do it at Men’s Health and Runner’s World.
As it could not be otherwise, he confesses to being a lover of sports and from a very young age he has tried disciplines as diverse as athletics, football, basketball, tennis, cycling or swimming. Sometimes he is feeling the adrenaline of the competition, and other times he is simply enjoying the benefits of physical activity. He has now taken up functional exercises and boxing because he is certain that the bag is incapable of hitting him back.
Graduated in Advertising and Public Relations from the University of Alicante, he also has specific training in social media management and direction, strategic planning and graphic design. Lately he has delved into the universe of generative artificial intelligence applied to journalism, but he swears and swears that he does not use it professionally because, among other considerations, he continues to enjoy every word he writes after 20 years of experience in the communication sector.