Tips to improve your walking form

For most of us, walking is an everyday activity that we don’t think twice about. However, having good walking form is important.

Proper walking form helps to reduce the risk of injuries and lowers wear and tear on your joints and muscles. It can also reduce tension headaches in your neck and aches in your lower back and legs. Great walking technique improves stability, balance, and coordination too, which can boost your exercise performance and training progress..

Tips to improve your walking form

Here are some top tips to help you boost your walking form. You can use these tips whenever and wherever you’re walking, whether you're on the sidewalk, in a shopping mall, or on a treadmill in the gym.

• Keep your head high and your neck in line with your spine
• ​​Avoid rolling your shoulders forward
• Elongate your spine to prevent excess strain on the muscles and ligaments in the upper and lower back
• Keep your shoulders loose and depressed (don’t tighten your traps or bring your shoulders up to your ears)
• Keep your abdominal muscles engaged
• Swing your arms as you walk, bringing the opposite arm forward with each step that you take
• Strike the floor with your heel and roll onto your toes

Here's what you should avoid doing when you're walking:

• Slouching
• Rounding your shoulders forward
• Looking down at the ground or at your phone
• Rolling your hips
• Walking with an uneven gait
• Taking unnecessarily long strides
• Walking in unsupportive shoes