Walking the right way can give you better health, fitness and attitude. It can help you walk faster and more smoothly.

Walking the wrong way can lead to wasted effort or even injury, not to mention ridicule.

1.    Over striding: When walkers try to walk faster, a natural inclination is to lengthen your stride in front, reaching out further with your forward foot. This leads to a clumsy, ungainly gait, striking hard with the feet. Your skins hurt and you really don’t get any faster. To cure: all of the power of your walk comes from pushing with the back leg and foot. Shorter, Quicker Steps: If you are trying to walk fast, concentrate on taking shorter, quicker steps. Roll Through, Push Off: Then think of really rolling through your step with your back foot and leg, getting a good push off. The result will be faster feet and lengthening your stride where it does you some good – in back.

2.    The Wrong Shoes: Not all “walking shoes” are good for walking. If this describes your shoes, you are setting yourself up for plantar facilities, muscle pulls and knee problems. Heavy: Walking shoes should be lightweight. Stiff: soles won’t bend, can’t twist them. Walking shoes should be flexible so you don’t fight them as your foot rolls through the step. Over 1 year old: The cushioning and support in your shoes degrades, you should replace your shoes every 500 miles. Too small: Your feet swell when you take a sustained walk. Your walking shoes should be larger than your dress shoes if you walk for 30 minutes or more for exercise. The cure: Get fit for the right shoes at a technical running shoe store in your area. The athletic shoe experts will make sure you get the right shoe for over-pronation, flexible enough for walking, sized right for the swelling everyone’s feet have while walking.

3.    Flapping, Slapping Feet: Instead of rolling through the step with your forward foot from heel to toe, your foot is flattening out prematurely. Either you are fighting stiff, heavy shoes or your shins are too weak to let you roll through the step. Symptoms: Your feet hit the ground with a slap. You land flat footed with each step and get no roll. You may develop shin pain. The cure: Get flexible shoes that bend at the ball of the foot. A pair of running shoes with a low heel is best. To strengthen your shins, ankle, and lower leg: Do toe raises: Stand on a stair facing upstairs with your heels hanging over the edge. Dip the heels down, and then raise them high. Repeat 10 – 20 times. Foot fun: While sitting around, several times a day, tap your toes quickly for several seconds. Then write the alphabet in the air with your foot. Repeat with the other foot. Heel walking: as part of your warm-up, walk on your heels for 30 seconds.

4.    Not Drinking Enough: You don’t drink enough water before, during and after walking. The cure: Drink a glass of water every hour throughout the day to stay hydrated. Ten minutes before your walk, drink a glass of water. During your walk drink a cup or more of water every 20 minutes. After you finish, drink a glass or two of water.  Avoid caffeine beverages before your walk, they cause you to lose fluid, making you thirstier as well as making you take inconvenient stops the wrong way. On walks over 2 hours, use an electrolyte- replacement sport drink and drink when thirsty. On long distance walks, drink then thirsty and be sure to replenish salt with a sports drink rather than drinking only water.

5.    Over training:  You walk and walk and walk. But you have lost your enthusiasm. You feel tired, irritable. You always have aches and pains. You may be overdoing it. The cure: Even the creator rested on the seventh day. Take a day off now and then to let your body repair, build up muscle and store up some energy to get you back on the road again. If you just can’t stand a true day off, do some upper body weight training instead of walking and lower bodywork.