Exercise Routine

The only way to tackle metabolic problems is through the proper regulation of blood glucose. This is your target and it can't be done without exercise. Exercise is vital for proper blood glucose regulation. Whatever the low carb community has told you about exercise is false. They are caught up in the useless effect exercise has on calories but that is irrelevant. They also tend to say that exercise has "health benefits, just not for weight loss". That is a lie. 

Effects On Metabolism

Exercise affects metabolism so profoundly that diabetics have been able to improve their diabetes with an exercise program alone and no diet changes. So when it comes to affecting metabolism, exercise is king. Something that affects metabolism that much, will induce weight loss and help with weight maintenance. Your metabolism will not improve without exercise. Lack of exercise has been the main reason why many people have not reached their metabolic goals. Exercise not only helps regulate insulin but it directly affects leptin, which is the main hormone needed to be able to lose body fat. 

Keep It Steady State

The best form of exercise, for people with metabolic problems, is one that does not trigger a stress response. Steady state, low to moderate intensity exercise, of long duration, is best. For this reason, we recommend walking on this blog. 

Walking does not trigger a stress response and it's not adaptive. This means that you do not have to keep increasing it to continue increasing benefits or keep the benefits you already acquired. Walking is also our natural movement. It is the exercise we evolved to do. For this reason, it doesn't matter what your current physical condition is, walking is always beneficial. 

How To Walk

You must "walk for exercise". A lot of people are under the impression that walking to the mailbox counts as "walking". Though everyone walks, unless they are in a wheelchair, and all walking adds to your daily step goals, not all walking produces benefits. 

You have to actually "walk for exercise", which means walking at a consistently steady, moderate pace, for a long duration (1 hour or more). You should "feel" your walk afterwards, with mild aches, pains or tiredness. As your health improves, you will instead begin to feel physically better after your walks. 

The average human walking speed is 2.5 - 4 miles per hour. You can check your walking speed by using a pedometer. Pedometers usually count steps, distance and pace. It can be a tracking device on your wrist or an app on your phone. 

Your walking speed is affected by several factors including your fitness level, age and incline. Studies have shown that your walking speed might be able to predict your life span. Not being able to keep up with an average walking speed can be an indicator of early health issues. 

A brisk walking speed is 100 steps per minute or 3 - 3.5 miles an hour, which counts as moderate intensity exercise. But brisk walking does not equate to better walking. You can walk at a lower speed, between 2.0 - 2.5 miles an hour, for a longer distance and achieve the same effects plus the added benefits of building endurance, burning more body fat and lower injury risk. I have always walked at a pace of about 2.2 miles per hour and it's worked perfectly for me. 

So walk at your own pace. You should be able to talk during your walk without becoming winded. 

Recommended Routine

A good walking regimen is 8K - 10K steps or 5 miles a day. As your stride improves you will have to rely less on steps and more on distance. 

The best walking routines affect dopamine so walking out in nature is best. Dopamine reacts to seasons. Walking out in nature, feeling different temperatures, smelling different things and watching greenery is beneficial for you to start enjoying your walking.

Walk with purpose. That is the way our ancestors walked. Striving to reach a goal, like a shopping center, park or other landmark you enjoy, will keep you motivated. Find others in your neighborhood to walk with you or get a dog. You can walk to a store for a cheese stick or hold off on any podcast episodes and only listen in during your walk. Sometimes I walk through neighborhoods to get gardening ideas or to pick pinecones. Just keep a short term goal in mind. We never walked for nothing. Retrain your brain to associate a reward to walking. If you do this often enough, you might start enjoying your walking routine because of its effects on dopamine. 

"Walking for health" is not enough. Dopamine doesn't care about logic. It only evolved for you to meet a goal and "health" is too abstract and long term of a goal to motivate anyone. You need a short term, immediate goal for dopamine to react when you succeed in acquiring it.

Using a pedometer or tracker can help you with motivation, particularly if you are able to engage with others to complete challenges or achieve goals together. 

Choose The Right Time

Dedicate a time of day for walking and make it a routine. That way, nothing gets in the way of your walking time and you will have nothing else to do but walk during it. 

Make sure that you exercise during your eating window. This does not apply for people who are doing daily, 16 - 18 hour fasts. These fasts are too short to become problematic. Only fasts that are 24 - 72 hour have issues. If you are fasting longer than 24 hours, do not exercise on fasting days.

Find Solutions To Achieve Results

If you live in an area where walking outside is impossible, during certain times of the year, position your computer or TV in front of your treadmill and watch walking videos as you walk. There are thousands of walking/hiking tour videos on YouTube, from all over the world, so it will feel as though you are walking in a new area every day. 

If you don't have a treadmill but still can't walk outside, you can search 'Leslie Sansone walking in place' on YouTube for a great walk at home routine without special equipment. 

Don't Stay Sedentary For Long

The best walking routine is one which is done frequently, so if you are able to, you can divide your daily walks into two sessions - one in the morning and another in the afternoon. Depending on your climate, you can do half your walk in the mornings outside, and the other half in the evenings on a treadmill inside. 

Position your treadmill in front of the TV so instead of sitting down to watch your favorite program, you can watch while walking. This also triggers dopamine in relation to walking. Whatever gives the brain dopamine, it will seek more of, so you will seek to do more walking the more enjoyable you make it. 

Don't Stress

Stay away from high intensity protocols, hot yoga, strenuous Zumba and too much weight lifting. All of these exercises are counter productive as they trigger more of the stress response you are trying to avoid. Also, depending on your health state, they can lead to injuries which will only cause down times as you recover. You want to avoid injures as they only lead to more sedentary behavior. 

Strength Training

There are many easy muscle building videos available on YouTube, which require no special equipment. The best type are the ones that use your own body weight. If you have certain physical limitations, there are videos that can help you still get a work out by using alternative methods (e.g. wall push-ups instead of floor ones). Search for 'beginner' videos if you are new to strength training work outs and need these extra tips. 

Remember that many stretching routines, like Yoga, also build muscle. Stretching will help you work out with less pain and injury risk. 

You can read all of the benefits of exercise by clicking the links under the label 'Exercise' on this blog's right side column.