Best Fitness Blog

... By Karli Taylor

I hope you are sitting down for this one: After the age of 20, if you do not add activity to your day or cut calories, you will gain approximately one pound each year.

Now that I’ve gotten your attention, what if I told you that you don’t have to do anything drastic to keep that weight from creeping up on you? Feel better? Keep reading.

If you walked an average of 150 extra steps every single day, you will avoid that weight gain. That is the equivalent of walking for 3 minutes that you would normally be sitting. You can accomplish this simply by pacing your office or home while on the phone or parking a little bit further away from the front door or your office or grocery store.

Can’t find extra time during your average day to sneak in a few steps? You can accomplish the same thing by going to the gym for 30 minutes 10 times a year- yes- a year!

Now, let’s say you don’t just want to maintain your weight, but you’d like to lose a pound every year as you age. All you have to do is double those numbers and enjoy the benefits of virtually reversing the aging process!

The bottom line is simple: weight gain happens slowly over time. SO slowly, that sometimes we don’t see it until it’s too late and we have gained 20-30 pounds. Start being conscious of the amount of activity you do each day, and this sneaky weight gain will never impact your lifestyle!

Benefits of Walking Backwards ... by Karli Taylor

On my way to work this morning, I saw something that I don't see very often. A man was running into the park--Backwards. Weird? Only because not many people do it. Running or walking backwards is actually a very smart thing to add into your workout program.

Backwards (or retro) running has been used for sometime in a rehabilitation setting, but is also a smart way to prevent injury.  Now it would seem as though walking or running would work the same muscles regardless of whether or not you are facing the direction in which you are going- right? Well actually, the way the foot strikes the ground and the way your posture has to react to that actually forces all of the opposing muscles to work. This provides the running or walking muscles with a well-deserved and much needed break. The muscles of the front of the body are stretched while the ones in the rear are stressed- exactly the opposite of what happens during forward propulsion.

I suggest you start off with backwards walking (not running), realizing that it will be challenging for both your body and your brain to adapt to. You may wish to choose a flat area outside with no obstacles around. Start with a 15–30 second walk – you might even get a little dizzy and lose your balance. You can create backwards walking intervals that are used once or twice for every 30 minutes of forward exercise. Once you are successful at a two minute retro-walk, then you can begin a retro-run strategy following the same parameters as listed about for the walk.

Other benefits of backwards walking/running:
It is a great way to fight the effects of "rounded posture." The body must now open up (i.e., extend the spine, retract the chin and protract and depress the scapula) in order to force its center of gravity to push posteriorly.

It “steps up” our nervous system. The most important contributor to movement is our nervous system. Movement in all planes and in different ways (i.e., moving backwards) will make our nervous system more intelligent. This will ultimately protect us against potential injury! It has also been shown that the more we challenge our nervous system , the lower our risk of memory loss as we age!

It is a great way to warm up before a running race. Many times, I will see individuals statically stretch before a long road race. This puts our nervous system to sleep. Next time try backwards walking/running and some sideways stepping.  These dynamic movements will supercharge your nervous system and prepare it for the dynamic motion to come.

Finally, it’s fun! It will keep you from getting bored with your routine, and add a whole new perspective. Include retro-walking/running as part of your workout circuits. It is a great way to burn extra calories and a great way to work the neuromuscular system.