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The Ultimate Walk Hacking Guide

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Troy Delaney independently researches, reviews, and recommends the best products. He may receive commissions on some (not all) purchases made from his chosen links. Learn more.

I love my morning walk. It’s a habit I’m consistent with, rain or shine.

I’ve written about eight reasons to take a walk every day and ten ways to optimize your walk, but what excites me the most is how much I get out of my walk because of the hacks I’ve implemented.

First, you need to understand the purpose of my morning walk. It’s designed to:

  1. Anchor my day with a healthy habit
  2. Get a low-impact workout that burns fat and builds strength
  3. Push myself slightly out of my comfort zone (eat that morning frog) and inoculate myself to discomfort
  4. Enhance the benefits of my morning fast like autophagy and fat burning
  5. Reset my circadian rhythm
  6. Walk my dog (@lunacovedelaney)
  7. Warm up enough to make my morning cold plunge more desirable
  8. Optimize my mindset for the day. Research has shown that 20 minutes outside (3X/week) leaves us feeling calmer and with sharper and more productive, creative minds.

So how do I accomplish all of this in a 40 minute walk?

I’ve hacked and stacked it. I’ve hacked everything from my sauna time, cold exposure, fasting, and exercise to optimize the time during these uncomfortable things so that I get the most out of them. But I’ve definitely hacked my morning walk the most.

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How to Enhance the Benefits of Cold Thermogenesis

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Baby, it’s cold outside…GOOD.

Before I get into the details, I recommend joining my Fire & Ice Contrast Therapy (Hot-Cold) facebook group.

There is an ancient Japanese practice called misogi that helps you reestablish a harmonious relationship with yourself and everything around you. The approach that is best known is through exposing the body to ice-cold water. A person typically immerses him or herself in a lake, waterfall or the sea. After performing misogi properly, you enter sumikiri – a state of pure clarity of body and mind. It is said that in this condition, your heart is as bright and clear as a cloudless sky, untainted by obstructive thoughts or worldly concerns.

Cold plunging is my misogi and I feel a sense of sumikiri every time I do it.

A Cold Thermogenesis Refresher

Cold water therapy — whether it’s a quick swim in an icy lake, a post-workout ice bath, or a brisk shower — can benefit your health in several ways.

Research has shown it can help you:

  • cut down on muscle soreness
  • cool down after a sweaty workout
  • get into a better mood (I know it does for me!)
  • aid your immune system
  • boost your metabolism and calorie burning
  • increase insulin sensitivity and help control blood glucose levels

It can even convert belly fat into metabolically active brown adipose tissue (BAT), which will increase your fat-burning capacity. More on this in a minute.

Some advocates say it can also decrease inflammation, improve your sleep and recovery, sharpen your mental focus and potentially fight certain types of disease as well as promote overall longevity. But more research needs to be done to determine if these benefits are supported by science.

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Hack Your Sauna Experience for Increased Benefits

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I’m constantly looking for ways to maximize the time I spend doing something, including my sauna time. Through extensive research, I have found ways to improve the sauna experience and increase the benefits you get from it (because there are a lot). 

I’ve broken down the hacks into Pre-Sauna (before you get in the sauna), Intra-Sauna (while you’re spending time in the sauna), Post-Sauna (what to do after your sauna session) and a few upgrades you can do if you have a Jacuzzi Clearlight sauna.

Keep in mind, this is just what I do. I would love to hear from you in the comments below.

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Excel at Your Sport and Life by Training Less through Fitness Hacking

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Conventional wisdom about improving physical performance like endurance and maintaining good physical health has rested on the twin pillars of volume and intensity (along with diet). While those are no doubt vital, there are a number of equally important, but completely ignored, ”fitness levers” you can pull to improve health and performance.

In fact, there’s MUCH more you can do beyond what traditional workouts offer while REDUCING the amount of time you exercise.

You don’t have to put in hours of training a week to build endurance, strength, or speed. You also don’t have to commit to an extreme amount of hours of exercise a week to improve body composition (muscle and fat) and health.

In fact, focusing on just volume and intensity can actually have the reverse effect and lead to over-training, burnout and injury.

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