Why I Chose WalkFit for National Fitness Day (and Why It Matters More Than You Think)

exercise·Sarah Parker·Sep 28, 2025· 3 minutes

When National Fitness Day came around on Wednesday, I wasn’t entirely sure what to share. There are so many angles when it comes to fitness — strength, mobility, flexibility, mindset — but I kept coming back to something simple, accessible and joyful: WalkFit.

You’ll find the video at the end if you fancy giving it a go, but here are the two big reasons it felt like the right thing to highlight.

Reason 1: Cardio Isn’t Just for Your Heart — It Protects Your Brain

This week, one of the educators I train with shared a fascinating Swedish study on cardiovascular fitness and dementia. Researchers assessed the fitness levels of mid-life women and then followed them over the course of 44 years. The findings were incredible:

Women with high cardiovascular fitness in mid-life had an 88% lower risk of developing dementia later in life.

And here’s the thing — cardiovascular work doesn’t have to mean pounding pavements or signing up for a triathlon. It can be as simple as working a little more energy into your day:

Walking up hills or taking the stairs
Adding bits of speed to your walk or jog
Dancing, swimming, skipping or playing a quick game of something
The way we train in my weights sessions gives a cardio effect too
And yes — a little bit of WalkFit counts!

It’s less about the “perfect” workout and more about adding a little oomph to the movement you enjoy

Reason 2: Exercise Doesn’t Have to Look a Certain Way

The second reason I chose WalkFit is because it breaks the rules — in the best way.

So often, fitness is presented as something that needs:

A full outfit change
A certain space or equipment
A chunk of time
Perfect form
A certain level of confidence

WalkFit doesn’t demand any of that.

You can do it in whatever you’re wearing (pyjamas included).
It works in a small space.
It doesn’t take long.
You finish energised, not exhausted and unable to move!
And you don’t even have to get the steps right — just keep marching!

For so many of us, the biggest blocker is the belief that exercise has to follow rules - how many steps, how many minutes, how intense, how sweaty…

But movement can be part of our everyday lives — we just don’t think of it as exercise

What Counts as Movement? More Than You Think.

I realised during lock-down that I was fairly sedentary outside of exercise. And that is true for a lot of exercisers - even if you get an hour of exercise every day, you may still be sat for much of the rest of it

So how can we add in movement throughout the day, to break up bouts of sitting?

Walking/cycling to work or school - or getting off public transport a few stops earlier
Cooking, cleaning and tasks around the house
Gardening
Standing up and walking around momentarily before continuing with desk work
Stretching before getting out of bed
Reaching up to touch a door frame as you walk through it
Taking a moment and focusing on your breathing
Dancing in the kitchen (WalkFit moves optional!)