Footwork is key for many activities, including walking. If you want to keep your body up to snuff and get in an effective workout, then getting a hold on your footwork very important.
It is obvious that footwork for a fencer is different than a runner, but you may not realize that walking is more than muscle memory. Walking as a workout will require you to pay more attention to your foot and how you are stepping through them. If you think of it, you should try to apply good practices in your casual walking habits as well! This will allow you to make your cardio walking workouts more autonomous, so you can work on other aspects of your walk and not just focus on your feet.
The key to walking is to walk in a rolling motion. When you are taking a step, your heel should be the first part of your body to contact the ground. From there, you should roll from your heel to your toe as you work through the step. After that, push off with your toe. Okay, now it is time to get going with the other leg! You should now be taking your back leg and bringing it forward.
This might seem trivial to you, but the next time you go for a walk, think about the motions you are making. Actively make yourself roll through from heel to toe; does it feel any different than your normal step? You should be keeping your arches strengthened and supported. How is your balance? Are your shoes allowing you to roll through your step? If you are not able to roll through your step, your shoes might not be flexible enough. Try looking into a pair of shoes that are less stiff.
Once you have your step mastered, it is time to start thinking about your stride. If you are trying to get a workout in, you should know that taking longer steps is not the way to get to your destination faster. Overstriding can be harmful to your body, and it is also inefficient. Instead of overstriding, you should take more, smaller steps. This will also give you a better workout. The quicker your stride and the more steps you put in, the more work your body will be doing! The majority of your stride should be behind your body. In other words, the distance between where your back leg is pushing off the ground to your core should be further than from your core to your front leg. Remember, the power comes from your back leg, not your front one. The quicker you walk, the more power you will get because you will be getting more use out of the back part of your stride.
Getting back to the basics when you are walking is extremely important in order to get the most effective workout in.
