Brisk Walking: 6 Common Mistakes You Must Avoid

Introduction

One of the easiest ways of ensuring that you stay fit and healthy is to go for a walk regularly. Walking every day in general has several health benefits, and brisk walking is an even more effective version¹. So, what is brisk walking? Walking could be at any pace- slow, moderate, or fast. Brisk walking means walking at a pace that raises your metabolic rate, to achieve better fitness. Theoretically, brisk walking refers to a walking speed of 3 miles per hour​² and  If you walk around 100 steps a minute, it can be considered as brisk walking, although it may vary from person to person³. 

Benefits of Brisk Walking

What is a better way of staying fit than by walking briskly with a companion in the evening breeze? It is not very strenuous, less time-consuming, and manages to keep the fun in fitness. 

There are several health benefits of brisk walking. Some of them are the following: 

1. Boosts Metabolism

Brisk walking ensures that the energy in your body is put to good use⁴. The surplus food in our body is converted and stored as fats. Brisk walking helps maintain healthy storage of fat and burns excess calories. It promotes efficient digestion and utilization of food and improves the metabolic rate. 

2. Improves Mental Health

A brisk walk may help clear your mind and be a healthy excuse to take a break from work. All the negative emotions that may accumulate throughout the day, find a vent for getting released through moderate physical activity that is not too exhausting⁵. 

3. Strengthens Bones and Joints

A regular brisk walk may improve your overall flexibility and strengthen your bones and joints⁴. An active lifestyle ensures a reduced risk of joint-related problems. 

4. Helps Keep the Body Weight in Check

A healthy metabolism may be beneficial for maintaining a healthy body weight. A brisk walk, when teamed with a balanced and nutritious diet, is a great way of staying fit⁶. 

5. Balances Hormones

Brisk walking may help lower the stress hormones of the body and release endorphins​ , which are responsible for feeling positive and one of the happy hormones, which are responsible for feeling positive and content⁵.

6. Makes You More Energetic

An active lifestyle ensures that you are more energetic. Brisk walking may not only increase your energy levels but may also help you retain it throughout the day so that you do not become tired easily. 

Brisk walking is a great way to improve one’s health condition; however, people concerned with knee joint health can resort to cycling, which is a comparatively low-impact exercise with more benefits compared to brisk walking. One can start with indoor cycling with the least resistance mode and gradually increase the resistance as per the advice of their health coach ​​and​​ physician. 

Dr. Nikhil Yadav, MBBS MD, CCEBDM

6 Common Mistakes That You Must Avoid While Brisk Walking

While you may think, what can be so difficult about walking, there are certain parameters, which if not followed, may render your efforts futile or even encourage negative results.  

Let us review some common mistakes in brisk walking which you must address immediately. 

1. The Pace at Which You Walk

People often make the mistake of walking at an improper speed when out for a brisk walk. A slow walk may not be doing enough for achieving your fitness goals. Walking at a fast pace might help in overall health compared to slow walking. However, a walk too fast may also make you feel exhausted soon and reduce the time and distance for which you walk. Thu, walking at a proper intensity and speed gives maximum benefits⁷. This, in the long run, will help you achieve your desired level of fitness. 

2. A Tense Body

A tense body including shoulders, neck and waist may restrict your range of motion. Keep your body relaxed, keep your shoulders away from your ears and swing your arms from your shoulders while walking to maintains alignment and walk at ease^4,8. 

3. Improper Walking Shoes

A brisk walk should only be done in proper walking shoes^1,2. Sneakers, sandals, or other kinds of footwear may lead to blisters and injuries and put undue pressure on your muscles and joints in the long run. 

4. An Improper Posture

An improper posture while brisk walking, such as slouched shoulders or a hunched back may lead to postural disorders. It may make it difficult for you to breathe and lead to back pain. Keep your back straight, look forward about 10-20 feet in front of you, keep your shoulders away from ears and maintain a neutral pelvis while walking⁸. 

5. Drinking Packaged Energy Drinks or Caffeine

It is a common practice to sip on packaged energy drinks or coffee or packaged fruit juice while on a walk. These beverages are processed and contain high levels of added sugar⁹. Try to choose water in case you feel thirsty while walking^1,2. Take a sip of water at a time rather than gulping the whole water bottle. That will help you stay hydrated and feel active. Munch on some fresh fruits 15-30 minutes before going for a walk to meet your energy requirements¹⁰. 

6. Movement Restricting Clothing Items

Tight and movement-restricting clothing items such as skin-fitting jeans and jumpsuits should be avoided when going for a walk. It can cause several skeletal and muscular disorders, and abnormal movement¹¹.   Activewear or light clothes breathable in nature should be worn to ensure maximum comfort while walking. 

Conclusion

Brisk walking is a great way of achieving fitness since it is convenient, less time-consuming and does not need a lot of equipment. However, some common mistakes such as wearing improper shoes, having a bad posture, or walking at an extremely high speed should be avoided to get optimum results from your daily brisk walk. 

References

1. Australia H. Walking for Exercise [Internet]. www.healthdirect.gov.au. 2024. Available from: https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/walking-for-exercise 
2. NHS. Walking for Health – Exercise [Internet]. NHS. 2022. Available from: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/walking-for-health/ 
3. Tudor-Locke C, Han H, Aguiar EJ, Barreira TV, Schuna Jr JM, Kang M, et al. How fast is fast enough? Walking cadence (steps/min) as a practical estimate of intensity in adults: a narrative review. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 2018 May 31;52(12):776–88. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29858465/
4. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Physical Activity and Your Weight and Health [Internet]. Healthy Weight and Growth. CDC; 2024. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/healthy-weight-growth/physical-activity/index.html 
5. Better Health Channel. Exercise and Mental Health [Internet]. Better Health Channel. 2021. Available from: https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/exercise-and-mental-health 
6. CDC. Benefits of Physical Activity [Internet]. Physical Activity Basics. 2024 [cited 2025 Nov 5]. Available from: https://cdc.gov/physical-activity-basics/benefits/index.html?utm 
7. Ungvari Z, Fazekas-Pongor V, Csiszar A, Kunutsor SK. The multifaceted benefits of walking for healthy aging: from Blue Zones to molecular mechanisms. GeroScience [Internet]. 2023 Jul 26;45(6). Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10643563/ 
8. Perfecting your walking technique. [Internet]. Harvard Health Online. [cited 2025 Nov 5]. Available from: https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/perfecting-your-walking-technique 
9. Alsunni AA. Energy Drink Consumption: Beneficial and Adverse Health Effects. International Journal of Health Sciences [Internet]. 2015 Oct 9;9(4):468–74. Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4682602/ 
10. Exercise and Activity Snacks: University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [Internet]. University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. 2024 [cited 2025 Nov 5]. Available from: https://www.uclh.nhs.uk/patients-and-visitors/patient-information-pages/exercise-and-activity-snacks?utm 
11. Yoo W. Effect of Wearing Tight Pants on the Trunk Flexion and Pelvic Tilting Angles in the stand-to-sit Movement and a Seated Posture. Journal of Physical Therapy Science [Internet]. 2016 Jan 1 [cited 2020 May 13];28(1):93–5. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4755982/ 

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