Is there a best time of day to take your daily walk? The answer depends on what you hope to gain from it. Morning walks may help your body clock and establish a healthy routine, while afternoon and evening walks may offer advantages for exercise performance and metabolic health.
But experts agree on one thing: The best time to walk is ultimately the time you’ll stick with.
Regular brisk walking can help manage weight, improve cardiovascular fitness, lower the risk of several chronic diseases, improve mood and sleep, and reduce stress and anxiety, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Benefits of a Morning Walk
Walking outside in the morning provides natural light exposure that helps regulate your circadian rhythm, the body’s internal 24-hour clock that influences sleep and wakefulness. Morning light can also promote alertness during the day and support better sleep at night.
Steven K. Malin, professor in the department of kinesiology and health and the department of medicine at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, says establishing a morning walking routine can also make exercise easier to stick with because there may be fewer competing demands early in the day.
Morning exercise may also affect how the body uses energy, although the idea that it necessarily makes you burn more calories throughout the rest of the day is less certain.
Benefits of Walking Later in the Day
If morning walks don’t fit your schedule, there may be advantages to heading out in the afternoon or early evening.
“In the afternoon or early evening, walking often feels physically easier because body temperature, muscle function, and coordination peak later in the day,” Malin explains. “This may produce better performance if you’re walking briskly or uphill because the muscles are ‘primed’ to work better.”
Later exercise may offer cardiometabolic benefits as well. Physical activity helps muscles use glucose and improves insulin sensitivity, which can help control blood sugar.
“If you are looking to lower your blood pressure or improve blood vessel health, then late afternoon or early evening is suggested to be better as well,” says Malin.
An afternoon or evening walk can also provide a physical and mental break after a long day. And walking after a meal can be particularly useful for helping manage the rise in blood sugar that occurs after eating.
So When Should You Walk?
There’s no need to rearrange your day in pursuit of a perfect walking hour. The health benefits of regular physical activity are much better established than the benefits of exercising at one particular time of day.
The key is consistency. Choose a time that fits your schedule and makes it easier to turn walking into a regular habit.
Whether that’s first thing in the morning, during a lunch break or after dinner, the healthiest walk may simply be the one you actually take.
Lynn C. Allison ✉
Lynn C. Allison, a Newsmax health reporter, is an award-winning medical journalist and author of more than 30 self-help books.
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