Barry at Nordic Walk 2 Fitness in Newcastle, UK, published a really interesting article in his blog about other ways that exercise can help with weight loss, and it ties in nicely with our Walking for Happiness philosophy.

Here’s a quote from their site:

” … vigorous aerobic exercise has an appetite suppression effect over the short term. In 2008 , scientists at Loughborough University in the UK found that two hormones which affected appetite were affected by vigourous aerobic exercise , namely ghrelin and peptide YY. Ghrelin stimulates appetite whilst peptide YY suppresses appetite. Following exercise ghrelin was down regulated whilst peptide YY was up regulated – the overall effect being to suppress appetite – the effect lasted a few hours.

Conclusion to all this is that dietary control is the major factor in weight loss and is assisted by exercise. Relying on exercise alone will not lead to significant weight reduction. Further suuport for this may be in the article entitled The Exercise Myth by Dr John Baradi , a well know US-based Fitness Professional and , in my view , a very honest man !”

Of course, Nordic Walking burns more calories than ordinary walking, improves your mood by increasing serotonin, dopamine and endorphins, and develops lean muscle mass, which, in turn, burns more calories.