Brisk walking on a treadmill provides a long list of benefits. The workout builds lung capacity and endurance, burns calories, builds muscles in your legs, improves your heart rate and overall cardiovascular health and contributes to a healthy lifestyle. Beginners, though, should set certain limits on their exercise routine to avoid injury and maximize their workouts.
Shoes
Good walking shoes are critical to a beginning brisk walker on treadmills. Good shoes provide support in the feet through the heel, Achilles and ankle, as well as up the leg into the knees, hips and lower back. Walking briskly in worn-out shoes can cause injury in those areas. Also, comfortable shoes make walking more enjoyable and are likely to help you stick with an exercise routine and meet your exercise goals. Make sure to break in your shoes before you first wear them to exercise. Replace your shoes after one year or 400 miles.
Warm Up and Cool Down
Another important limit in your exercise routine is the amount of time you spend exercising in proportion to the time you spend preparing and recovering from your walk. If you exercise for one hour, include at least 20 minutes for warming up and cooling down. Limit your high intensity walking by adding time to prepare your body for the walk. Warm up by slowly building up your walking pace and stretch all the muscles in your legs. Cool down by gradually decreasing your walking pace and stretch your leg muscles again.
Intensity Limits
Beginners to brisk walking should be cautious about the amount of time they spend walking at high intensities. Going all out can cause injuries and make walking less enjoyable. Limit your first week of walking to 50 percent to 75 percent of your desired pace, length and intensity. Build up to the desired level in those areas over time.
Limit Self-Criticism
The most important limit as you begin a rigorous exercise routine such is on criticizing yourself. Think positively and do not allow missed short-term goals to distract you from longer-term ones. For example, if you walk three times a week for two months and then miss two weeks because you could not find the time or were briefly injured or sore, do not despair and stop the routine altogether.
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