The Benefits of Taking up Hiking as a family

Thinking about taking up walking as a hobby? It is physical, it’s simple, free, and something that the entire family can enjoy! Despite being a low-intensity form of exercise, walking is great for cardiovascular fitness. And as it works muscles across your entire body, it releases feel-good chemicals like endorphins and dopamine. In this guide, we’ve covered five key benefits of putting on your boots and taking up walking as a hobby.  

1. Better state of mind

Just a few minutes of walking every day could help to improve your mental health. Movement is medicine, and walking makes no exception! Even if you increase your activity levels by as little as 20 minutes per day, you’ll start to see a huge difference. Why not start by walking your local parkrun?

Gentle walking can be meditative: that means it helps you to focus on the present moment and can relieve signs of stress too. Being surrounded by natural environments is a fantastic way to unwind and reset.

2. Improved sleep

Walking during the day could be the secret to a better night’s sleep. When you expose your skin to safe levels of natural sunlight, you’ll absorb some all-important Vitamin D. This helps your body to regulate vital nutrients responsible for bone, teeth, and muscle health.

As walking boosts circulation too, your mind and body will benefit from increased blood flow. It only takes a small part of your day to lace up your walking boots and get exploring. When you get home, you’ll be flooded with endorphins and ready to relax, recharge, and enjoy a decent night’s sleep with comfortably tired muscles.

3. Social connection

Walking is an incredibly social activity too. While many people enjoy heading out into the hills on their own, hiking is something that can be enjoyed in small or large groups too. As a family, it allows you to bond with each other, something you may not normally get to do.

There are no distractions when you’re out in the countryside. With just your surroundings to focus on, you can get lost in thought-provoking conversation and help each other to stay motivated over longer distances too. And if you start getting lost, it’s always handy to have a helping hand to get you back en route!

4. Muscle building

The motion of walking activates almost all muscle groups in the body. It engages lower muscles like the glutes, calves, quadriceps and hamstrings the most.

If you walk daily across challenging terrain – and push the pace from time to time – it’s highly likely that you’ll eventually see a leaner muscle tone throughout your body. It makes a great alternative to going to the gym if you’d rather work out in nature, and there’s no pressure to beat your personal best either.

5. Weight management

Finally, it’s worth remembering that walking burns around 100 calories per mile. If you walk for 10,000 steps per day, that’s at least 400 more calories burned!

It’s a gentle activity that not only elevates your heart rate gradually but promotes healthy blood circulation too. This makes walking a wonderful way to stay warm through autumn and winter. And if you’re keeping an eye on your weight, going for a pleasant walk every day helps you to make progress without starting an intense fitness routine.