

		Kick Off Your Walking Quiz

		What's Your Fitness Personality Quiz

		NEW! - Women's Health Quiz

		NEW! - Body Mass Index Calculator

What's Inside

	NEW! Dr. Cooper’s Cholesterol-Lowering Advice

	NEW! Quick Fit 15-Minute Exercise Program
	18-Week Walk a Marathon Program

	22-Week Faster Walking Marathon Program

	20% Boost Program

	Pre-Walk Warm-Up Routine

	3-Minute Post Walk Stretch Routine

	4 Tips for Faster Walking Technique

	Strengthening Exercises

Kick Off Your Walking Quiz

In order to start a walking program at the right level, take the following quiz. It has four simple questions-just pick the best answer for you.

1.	How active is your average day?
	Low key. Unless you count walking to the car, mailbox, fridge, or around the store, I'm either snoozing, sitting, or standing still.
	In gear. I'm often walking around at work, dashing up and down the stairs, or chasing kids.
	Overdrive. I have a physically demanding job or lifestyle that really keeps me moving (think river rafting guide, package delivery person, or aerobics instructor).

2.	How much conscious exercise do you get in a week?
	Not much. I rarely get breathing hard, let alone break a real sweat.
	I'm trying. At least three days a week I get breathing hard enough-at least for ten minutes-that if I were to answer the phone, the caller might ask what I was up to.
	I'm a jock. At least three days a week I work up enough of a sustained sweat to soak a shirt and need a shower afterward.

3.	How fit are you right now? If you warm up and then walk one mile at a hard, but not painful pace, it takes:
	> 19 minutes.
	14 to 19 minutes.
	< 14 minutes. (If you're not sure, go give a try so you can answer accurately.)

4.	Which of the following best describes the outcome you'd like as a result of being more active? (Keep in mind the more you expect, the more active you'll need to be.)
	I'd be happy to just be a bit healthier, to wake up less stiff each morning, and to have a reduced risk for chronic disease.
	I'd invest enough effort to receive all the benefits in (a), and also to begin losing weight at a noticeable rate (say, a pound every week or so).
	I'd work hard enough to get the health and weight loss benefits of (a) and (b), and also to begin noticeably improving my aerobic fitness and strength.

Adapted from "The Complete Guide to Walking for Health, Weight Loss, and Fitness," by Mark Fenton (Lyons Press, 2001).