A Walk A Day Can Keep The Doctor Away, Unless You're Experiencing These Health Issues

Exercise is important. We’re all agreed on that, but not all of us are gym bunnies. That’s why walking has become so popular in recent years, with experts suggesting that even just a half-hour walk daily can lead to benefits like improved cardiovascular health and notable mood boosts. 

But what happens if even a low-impact exercise like walking causes you issues? Certain health conditions can mean that walking for extended periods is off the cards, or will at least leave you in notable pain if you try. 

Luckily, there are ways to walk for a healthy lifestyle regardless of how your body tries to prevent you. Simply keep on reading to find out about the health issues that could stand in your way, and the best ways to walk around them. 

# 1 - Arthritis
Arthritis is characterized by joint pain and inflammation, and it can significantly reduce your range of motion. However, experts also state that low-level exercise is the best thing to relieve arthritic pain, so you’re probably going to want to overcome that walking aversion. 

The best advice we can give you for this is to simply start small. Instead of following the 30-minute rule, individuals with arthritis should build up with walks as short as 5-10 minutes to. Even this can help to ease your joint pain enough to do a little more each day. You should also make sure to loosen your joints before each walk with gentle warmup exercises, which could include toe raises and ankle circles to improve your range of motion before you get walking. 

# 2 - Hypermobility
Hypermobility, which refers to excessive movements in your joints and tendons, is a condition that you’re born with, and it can affect everything from your balance to your strength. It can also result in significant joint pain when you try walking for extended periods. Yet, like with arthritis, low-impact exercise is a key element of treatment. 

If you’re struggling to walk even short distances, then physical therapy can be a huge help as it can significantly strengthen your joints. Equally, treatments such as supportive insoles can be effective for improving your comfort while you walk. 

# 3 - Sciatica
Sciatica is a condition that causes radiating pain along the sciatic nerve, which includes your lower back, hips, and the tops of your legs. As well as making walking generally difficult, sciatica is unique in that it worsens with movement. 

Despite that, failing to move because of sciatica can cause escalating problems elsewhere. That’s why it’s so important to seek the help of a sciatica chiropractor as soon as you notice symptoms. A chiropractor can work to help with underlying sciatica causes, like spinal misalignment, as well as ensure full-body healing. Throughout your treatment, you should slowly find that you can start walking again, after all. 
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A walk a day can keep the doctor away, but if you’re experiencing any of these health issues, then you might need to take a slightly different route to hitting your walking goals.