What is perceived as “fast” walking pace by a very sedentary and physically unfit 70-year-old will be very different from a sporty and fit 45-year-old.įor this reason, our results could be interpreted as reflecting relative (to one’s physical capacity) intensity of walking. There are no established standards for what “slow”, “average” or “brisk” walking means in terms of speed. New study shows more time walking means less time in hospitalĪnother important point is that participants in our study self-reported their usual pace, which means the responses were about perceived pace. from To minimise the chances of this reverse causality, we excluded all those who had heart disease, had experienced a stroke, or had cancer when the study started, as well as those who died in the first two years of follow up. For example, it could be that the least healthy people reported slow walking pace as a result of their poor health, and also ended up dying earlier for the same reason.įast walking for some might not seem it for others. Our results suggest walking at an average, brisk or fast pace may be beneficial for long term health and longevity compared to slow walking, particularly for older people.īut we also need to be mindful our study was observational, and we did not have full control of all likely influences to be able to establish it was the walking alone causing the beneficial health effects. In these older age groups (but not in the whole sample or the younger age groups), we also found there was a linearly higher reduction in the risk of early death the higher the pace. Compared to slow walkers, brisk or fast walkers aged 45-59 had 36% lower risk of early death from any cause. For example, average pace walkers aged 60 years or over experienced a 46% reduction in risk of death from cardiovascular causes, and fast walkers experienced a 53% reduction. We also found the beneficial effects of fast walking were more pronounced in older age groups. Those who reported walking at a brisk or fast pace had a 24% lower risk of early death from any cause and a 21% lower risk of death from cardiovascular causes. “Enhanced Protein Translation Underlies Improved Metabolic and Physical Adaptations to Different Exercise Training Modes in Young and Old Humans.” Cell Metabolism, 2017. “Age-related changes in speed of walking.” Medicine and science in sports and exercise vol. “Association between Walking Speed and Age in Healthy, Free-Living Individuals Using Mobile Accelerometry-A Cross-Sectional Study.” PLOS ONE, 2011. Exercise and physical activity for older adults.” Medicine and science in sports and exercise vol. “American College of Sports Medicine Position Stand. “Investigation of a UK biobank cohort reveals causal associations of self-reported walking pace with telomere length.” Commun Biol 5, 381 (2022). “Step-Based Physical Activity Metrics and Cardiometabolic Risk: NHANES 2005-2006.” Medicine and science in sports and exercise vol. Whether you’re a young adult, a senior, or somewhere in between, the Borg scale is a good gauge to determine how hard you’re working because it’s based on how you feel and not a predetermined formula that may not apply to your fitness level, like hitting a particular pace. “'Brisk walking’ would fit in the category of ‘moderate activity’-breathing heavily, able to hold brief conversations, still somewhat comfortable, but becoming more challenging,” says Elson, who’s also an instructor at Harvard Medical School. A perceived exertion rate of 12 to 14 typically indicates you’re performing moderate-level activity-which is right where you want to be for a brisk walk. A six rating is physical activity perceived as “no exertion” (think: lying flat on the floor) while a 20 rating is “maximum effort” (think: sprinting as fast as you possible can). The Borg scale uses a self-determined rating between six and 20 to measure physical activity intensity based on sensations such as increased heart rate, breathing, and muscle fatigue-in other words, your “perceived exertion” level. What constitutes a brisk walk varies by a person’s baseline individual fitness level, so the best way to tell how hard you’re working is by using the Borg Perceived Exertion Scale, says Lauren Elson, MD, a board-certified sports medicine, and physical medicine and rehabilitation physician with Spaulding Rehabilitation in Massachusetts.
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