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Walk Backward To Move Your Fitness Forward
This is what your joints have been missing!
A major mistake we make when training our joints and muscles is forgetting to change directions. If we’re always pressing, curling, or squatting similarly, we’ll miss out on strength and conditioning gains for nearly half of our tissues. In the same way that the demands of everyday life are multi-directional and dynamic, our training must challenge us in all planes and positions.
While there are hundreds of ways to implement this philosophy into your workouts, the easiest and most accessible is walking backward. There’s no equipment required, and virtually everyone can do it. Not only does it improve your balance and gait health, but it will strengthen neglected muscles like the hamstrings and anterior tibialis. Furthermore, it serves as a clever modality for those rehabbing injuries from Achilles tears and ACL complications to knee osteoarthritis and hip pain.
This opens the window to retraining your brain and body to do something that doesn’t come naturally to you. This will help you to be more intentional about your cadence, foot placement, and virtually every element of the gait. If you want to go fast, walk forward. If you want to go far and stay injury-free, it’s time to change directions.
