Today is National Take a Walk in the Park Day – what better way to get moving!

Walk the walk—Before you accepted the Susan G. Komen 3‑Day^® challenge of walking 60 miles in three days, you might have taken walking for granted. Believe us when we tell you that 20 miles a day for three days in a row is no easy feat for your feet. With the 3‑Day events just a few months away, now is the time to learn more about walking and how to put more pep in 60 miles’ worth of steps.

American Bone Health suggests training your postural muscles to walk properly and avoid injury. Some other tips from their website:

Walk tall with your head straight.

Keep your shoulders relaxed.

Breathe with your chest, not your abdomen.

Engage your core.

Dr. Sally Warner, a sport science expert and member of American Bone Health’s Medical and Scientific Advisory Board, says training to improve your walking form means you need to be more mindful of this subconscious movement.

Warner has authored a 3‑Day blog for our Healthy Living Series where she breaks down the physics of walking, shares some exercises to get your body ready to walk, and shows you how to walk for peak 3‑Day performance. Read all about it here.

Put Your Best Foot Forward—As you begin taking on more and more miles in your training, consider foot care. A great place to start is shoe and sock selection. Click here for some key tips to keep your feet blister free!

Best Laid Plans—One of the best things you can do, to balance work, life and training is to create a walking plan. Be sure to follow a training plan or download the 3‑Day training app to keep you on schedule. Here are some tips for sticking with your plan:

• Take 10 minutes on Sunday night to map out your plan for the week. Put it in your calendar on your phone so you get reminders for every training day.
• Don’t let that little voice in your head talk you out of it. Taking time for training is very important and your 3‑Day will be here before you know it. When you start negotiating with yourself, put on your shoes, grab your water bottle and tell yourself you’ll just walk 10 minutes. Often times just getting out the door is the hardest part and you’ll find you needed that walk after all. You got this!

Straight Talk from the Pink Bubble "Always make sure you train in what you plan to wear on event. There is nothing worse than a seam that rubs or an ill-fitting undergarment." —Angela Baldwin, 3‑Day Walker

Next time, we’ll tackle nutrition… hey, we can’t eat mac-n-cheese every day! We’ll share tips on how to manage your appetite, keep up your energy and get the nutrients you need to keep your bones and body strong!

This is the second installment of Healthy Living. If you missed the first email, click here to catch up

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