How I was able to improve my mindset

With no need to spend money or find transport to a gym, walking is an easy way to complete your exercise goal for the day.

When it comes to choosing an exercise, walking is often overlooked for more high intensity activities, but it provides many subtle benefits including improved mood, better sleep, weight loss and reduced risk of disease.

Now I’ve begun my A-levels at college, I’ve found I have a lot more flexibility and therefore free time!  

That’s why I’ve started scheduling long walks into my week, and I’ve began to see an improvement in my general mindset.

During the winter months where days are shorter, darker and colder my mood can be a little low.

So even if it’s for only an hour I’ve been aiming to walk outside, in my local area, to help improve both my mental and physical health.

Obviously, this hasn’t happened overnight and some weeks I’ve found I have no time to manage a long walk, but even walking to the train station instead of driving (which is also good for the environment!) has made a difference.

It’s the small changes that have improved my day and even my week.

So, what benefits have I noticed after incorporating walking into my daily routine?

Well, the main change is my mental wellbeing. The fact that I have to find the motivation to get ready, leave the house and actually walk has, after multiple outings, made me a lot more determined each time.

Over time it has also left me feeling more enthusiastic to do other things in my life.

Another change has been through my fitness, I’ve seen an obvious improvement in how long I can sustain doing other exercises like running and hockey, without feeling tired like I used to.

I’ve also noticed straight after walking that I feel much more energised, which means the rest of the day is much more productive.

This has allowed me to get things done that I might not have done, if I hadn’t left the house and just stayed in bed.

Now, obviously some benefits can’t be seen straight away, research shows that walking will improve my quality of life and increase lifespan in the long-term.

I’m going to keep going with my new regime and hopefully see these benefits too!

One thing for sure is that getting out in the fresh air and putting one foot in front of the other is good for but you’re not going to be able to find that out without taking that first step!