Lesson 2: Fundamentals of a Walking Program
Getting Started
The simplest way to start your walking program is to go out an walk. However, it is often useful to take some measurements so that you will have a baseline. That way, as your fitness improves, you have a basis for comparison.
The home fitness tests described are fairly easy to accomplish, and though certainly not necessary at the beginning of your walking program, will be something you will be glad to have in the future. Plan to repeat these tests about once a month.
1. Resting Heart Rate
Your resting heart rate is an indicator of your overall cardiovascular condition. When our bodies are at rest, we pump a certain amount of blood per minute. This is called our cardiac output. The average cardiac output for a person resting is 5 liters per minute. Total cardiac output is a product of 2 variables, stroke volume and beats per minute. In other words, if your heart is able to put out a larger amount of blood (stroke volume) during each heart beat, then your heart rate will decrease becomes of this efficiency.
So, here’s how you measure it. Keep a watch (either digital or with a second hand) by your bedside and take your pulse for 15 seconds before getting out of bed in the morning. Multiply this number by 4, to get your beats per minute. Do this 3 mornings in a row.
If you are simply the kind of person that can’t possibly remember to do this, you can take a less accurate resting pulse rate by resting for a while sometime during the day and then checking your pulse. This rate will likely be somewhat higher than your true resting heart rate.
An average heart rate is between 60 and 75 beats per minute, but very fit athletes can have a resting heart as low as 40 beats per minute!
2. The one mile walk
This is a test which will measure your aerobic capacity, because unlike a 100 yard dash, when you walk a mile, it is a sustained activity.
The test is very simple. Go to a track, warm up for about 10 or 15 minutes, and then walk a mile as fast as you can. Try to go at an even pace and don’t sprint at the end. The average person will walk a mile in a range of 14 to 19 minutes. By pushing yourself just a little harder, even for short intervals in the middle of your walk, you will increase your pace.
3. Waist-to-Hip Ratio Test
Though many people would like to become slimmer, for health purposes, where the fat is located on the body is important. If most of your fat is in the abdominal area, it is a more serious health risk than fat on the hips and thighs. The Weight to Hip Ratio test measures the waist at its smallest circumference and divides it by the hips at their largest location. Men should have values of 0.95 and lower and women, because of their tendency towards larger hips, should have values of 0.80 and lower. Aerobic exercise such as walking is the only way to reduce the fat in the abdominal region of your body.
