Missed the October online Walking chat? Read below to see what topics were covered.

Walk this Way!

Last year, the US Department of Health and Human Services published the 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans with exercise recommendations for all ages. These recommendations state that most health benefits associated with exercise occur with at least 2 hours and 30 minutes a week of moderate-intensity physical activity, such as brisk walking. If you’ve been thinking about beginning a walking program or were looking for tips and resources to rev up your current routine, join a live chat hosted by e-Extension’s Families Food and Fitness Community of Practice, October 14, from 2 - 3 p. m. ET. We’ll provide you with lots of helpful information on how to start a walking program, what kind of walking shoes are best for your foot, and cool, on-line tools to help monitor your progress.

The following document is a pre-reading material:
Be Active Your Way - A Fact Sheet for Adults PDF

This chat will be led by Rebecca Davis. Rebecca is a Nutrition and Health Extension Educator with the University of Maryland.

Walking Chat with Rebecca Davis
October 14, 2009, 2PM ET

Topics:
1. Shoes – purchasing tips; impact on feet and legs
2. Target heart rate
3. How much should I walk?
4. Motivation – support groups, Pedometers, indoor exercise
5. Web-based walking programs
6. Alternating activity types when exercising – strength training, yoga, walking vs. running, carrying weights while walking
7. Exercising with a bad back
8. Swelling/Itching of hands and fingers when walking
9. Ways to promote chats among ‘regular’ people

Shoes
- The best time of the day to purchase athletic shoes is late in the day and after you’ve been walking awhile.
- When asked if feet and legs could be harmed by walking in running shoes, Rebecca responded that she has yet to find a walking shoe that is as comfortable as a running shoe. Most experts say that the insole of a walking shoe should be thinner than that of a running shoe.
- Tips when purchasing walking shoes include:
o Bring your socks; make sure you try them on because athletic shoes usually run small.
o If you have a neutral foot (not flat, not high-arched), then you need a rear-foot stability shoe.
o If your foot is flat with low arches you should look for a straight last and motion control shoe to help stabilize your feet.
o A last is the shape of the sole and footprint around which the shoe is built.
o People with high arches should look for cushioning shoes. The biggest difference between walking and running shoes is the midsole and the thicker cushion.
o Any reputable athletic store will know the difference between stability and cushioning shoes. Shoes should be labeled as either walking or running shoes.
- Robert commented that many people seem to work, shop, and even play in shoes that would rub blisters on their feet if they walked a mile in them. It is hard to motivate people to walk when their feet hurt. He suggested we encourage people to wear comfortable shoes or at least have a pair available.

Target Heart Rate
- Individual fitness level determines the target heart rate you should strive for during exercise.
- Generally, you should exercise between 60-85% of your maximum heart rate.
- Use the following formula to find your target heart rate:

Example: 220 – (40 years old) = 180 (Maximum Heart Rate) × 70% = 126 beats per minute (Target Heart Rate)

How much should I walk?
- The 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommend 150 minutes/week of moderate intensity aerobic activity and muscle strengthening activities on 2 or more days.

Motivation
- It is difficult to exercise when you are not “in the mood”. Some people find it motivating to exercise with friends. Support groups are an important component to staying motivated.
- Donna walks indoors to Leslie Sansone DVDs so she doesn’t have a support group.
- Rebecca encouraged Donna to visit the American Volkssport Association at www.ava.org. This website has links to walking groups in every state. It is a useful resource to find others to walk with. Meeting someone to exercise with is great motivation.
- Most malls also have walking programs. If you live in a rural area with no mall, you may think of other large, public buildings with staircases you can walk up and down, i.e. the public library.
- Other motivation tips:
o Setting goals and meeting them is a good way to stay motivated. But you need to make sure your goals are realistic, positive, and measurable. Examples include time in activity, pounds lost, increasing your steps per week, or, if you are training for an event, increasing your mileage.
o Using a pedometer. Robert recommended the Omron HJ-112 Digital Pocket Pedometer. It takes about 20 steps to walk off a calorie. So, if you eat a piece of fried chicken, you need about 9,000 steps to walk it off!
o Robert is also in a walking group and about half the regulars use pedometers.
o Donna uses mypyramidtracker.gov to help motivate her. You can enter what you have eaten prior to exercise which helps motivate her to walk more.
o Rebecca walks on the treadmill while watching movies when she’s feeling unmotivated.
o Since Donna does not have a treadmill, she puts 2 TVs next to each other. She watches a movie on one and the Leslie Sansone DVD on the other. This helps Donna maintain a good pace while walking. When on the road, Donna uses her laptop.
o Robert got his wife the full 10 seasons of the TV series “West Wing”. Without commercials, each episode runs about 40 minutes. They made a pact to only watch them during the winter when on the treadmill. During the episode, you can walk about 2 miles or run 3-4 miles. It took them 6 months to get through the entire series and they fought for time on the treadmill . . . Now that was motivation!

Web-based Walking Programs
- Many states have virtual websites with trails that you can use as motivating tools. America on the Move (http://.americaonthemove.org/) has several trails.
- Most states have web-based walking programs such as “Walk Across Illinois” (http://www.walkacrossillinois.org/) or “Walk Across Maryland” (http://www.walkmaryland.umd.edu). These are especially good tools if you are working with children.
- Most of Donna’s clientele in rural Alabama are not regular internet users so this presents a problem with web-based programs.
- Rebecca suggested using the programs in schools.
- Donna asked how to get these programs in schools – train the trainer model or go in individually?
- Most of the work Rebecca does in schools is by finding a teacher or principal who is really interested. Sometimes she is able to come to teacher training sessions and give an introduction to the walking program. Then she finds a few teachers who are interested.

Alternating Activity Types When Exercising
- It is important to do both aerobic and muscle strengthening activities.
- When strength training with weights, you should give yourself a day’s rest between workouts.
- Yoga is a good stretching and muscle toning. It is not aerobic. An aerobic activity causes your heart rate and breathing rate to increase.
- When comparing walking and running, running is a better aerobic exercise but you can get an aerobic workout from walking but you have to stay vigilant and make sure your heart rate stays elevated.
- Carrying weights does not offer any added benefit to walking. Wearing weights around your ankles while walking is bad for your joints.

Exercising with a Bad Back
- Suggestions for staying active when you have a bad back include:
o Chair exercises from the Arthritis Foundation Curriculum (http://www.arthritis.org/)
o A rehab-like program that Kentucky promotes; the train the trainer classes are offered through Berea College
o An exercise ball is helpful for people with a bad back.
o A good investment may be 1 or 2 sessions with a (qualified) personal trainer or physical therapist to get specific recommendations.

Swelling/Itching of Hands and Fingers when Walking
- You may itch while walking because your skin is dry.
- Robert attributes swelling to increased circulation to rid the body of excess heat. Rebecca added that this may not explain why you swell during cold weather.
- Donna thinks swelling may be a circulation issue especially if you just let your arms swing and aren’t actively using them.
- According to Dr. Robert Shmerling of Harvard Medical School, swelling is due to vasodilation. “Blood vessels open up, leading to increased blood flow near the surface of the skin. Vasodilation may occur as one of the body’s ways of regulating temperature. Releasing heat generated by exercise is important, as it allows the body to maintain normal temperature. Even before working up a sweat (another means of releasing heat), the blood vessels near the skin tend to dilate. This allows more heat to be released from the blood as body temperature rises during exercise. Other explanations include
o an exaggerated, normal reflex. During exercise, blood flow to exercising muscles increases. In an effort to maintain circulation to other parts of the body (including the hands), blood vessels may dilate. In some people this reflex is more pronounced than others.
o Trapped fluid. During exercise, there is increased circulation throughout the body. While the legs have large muscles that work hard during many exercises and that help “pump” this added blood flow through the veins, the arms have smaller muscles and they may not be working as hard during a workout (for example, while jogging). If the hands are held below the level of the heart, the added fluid must travel against gravity. Together, these factors make it harder for the fluid to return to the heart. The extra fluid that is “trapped” in the hands can cause puffiness”.
From MSN Health and Fitness Expert Advice at http://health.msn.com/health-topics/heart-and-cardiovascular/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100205913

Ways to Promote Chats among ‘Regular’ People
- Ask counties to post the chat schedule on their web page.
- Ashley F. emailed the chat to the Mississippi Department of Education. She also asked what would be a good time to market a chat specifically toward Mississippi’s teachers. The response was 3:30 PM CST.
- Ashley G. commented that many chats are moving to evening times. Chats and webcasts offered at this time better spans all time zones for many topic areas.

Thank you so much for participating in the Families Food and Fitness “Walking and Monitoring” Chat!

Thank you Rebecca Davis for leading the chat!

Attendees:
Ashley Griffin, eXtension
Jane Clary
Rebecca Davis, expert
Donna Shanklin - Alabama
Ellen
Jimmi Buell, NC State U
Pam Staton 2
Robert Schmidt (USU)
Rosemary Rodibaugh
Susan
Ashley Fondren
Pat Pace

Polling Questions

How much do you regularly exercise per week?
<150 Min/WK --- 40%
150 Min/WK --- 11%
>150 Min/WK --- 50%

Do you have trouble staying motivated to exercise?
Yes --- 67%
No --- 17%
Sometimes --- 17%

Browse related Articles by tag: families food fitness