We know that exercise promotes better health. Your doctor tells you to exercise more often. The government puts out official exercise recommendations. So you go for a walk and pat yourself on the back - exercise accomplished, right?

A research team at the University of Alberta recently carried out a detailed study abut the health benefits of walking. They compared a group that took part in a walking program with a group that did a traditional fitness routine at moderate intensity.

They found that the fitness level of the walkers was significantly lower than those who did traditional exercise at moderate intensity. "Generally, low-intensity activity such as walking alone is not likely to give anybody marked health benefits compared to programs that occasionally elevate the intensity," said Dr. Vicki Harber, lead researcher for the study. "You've got to do more than light exercise and move towards the inclusion of regular moderate activity, and don't be shy to interject an occasional period of time at the vigorous level."

So walking for exercise won't give you the health benefits that more challenging exercise delivers. What does this mean for your walking routine?

There is a place for walking in fitness. Walking is the first activity that you'll need to master if you are new to exercise. It is a wonderful activity if your body is overweight, under conditioned or simply unaccustomed to moving much. Treat walking as a stepping stone to fitness, taking you from the couch to the gym. Walking is just a notch above not moving; you'll burn a few calories and warm up unused muscles.

The problem comes when your exercise routine begins and ends with regular everyday walking. As the study above pointed out, walking just won't deliver results. Your body is so efficient in its ability to adapt, you have to increase your exercise intensity in order to see results. What the study doesn't tell you is that you can walk to get the results you want, but you have to change your normal walking patterns.

Here are some advanced walking techniques you can try (allow at least a day to recover before doing another one of these sessions):

Increase the frequency of your walks. If you currently walk three days per week, increase it to five days per week or try some double sessions. Go for a morning walk with your dog and an evening walk with a friend.

Speed it up. Imagine you are late for a very important appointment and try holding a fast-paced walk for 20 minutes. To estimate how fast you are going, try counting your steps per minute (SPM). A quick guide to estimate your speed is 120 SPM equals three miles per hour, 130 SPM equals 3.5 miles per hour, 140 SPM equals four miles per hour and so on. A pedometer can count steps for you.

Try intervals. Walk as fast as you can for one minute, then walk slowly to recover for one minute. Repeat this sequence for 20 minutes.

Find those hills. Walk up and down a hill repeatedly to build strength and increase lung capacity. Start with 10 minutes of hill repeats and work your way up to 20 minutes. Go up at a brisk pace and down slowly to recover.

Add resistance. Wear a backpack. Start with 10 pounds of added weight and work your way up from there. Wear ankle and arms weights. If you have little ones that still go in the stroller, incorporate them into your walking routine. The added weight will burn more calories, increase strength and improve bone density.

Go off-roading. Find some trails to walk with varying terrain. The change in scenery will work your body in ways pavement can't.

Increase the amount of time you walk. If you walk 30 minutes three days per week, try increasing one day to 40 minutes and add in some speed walking on another.

Take the stairs whenever possible. You can also take that far away parking spot to help increase the amount of steps you take per day. The more steps you take, the more calories you will burn. If you think you take as many steps as you can, than change the quality of the steps you take by incorporating some of the advanced walking techniques mentioned above.

When you walk:

Push off with your toes. Each step should be a smooth roll from heel to toe with the back foot pushing off or driving you forward.

Use your arms. Keep your elbows by your sides and swing them back and forth in a natural motion. Keep the bend in your elbow at 90° and pump them as you go.

Don't take extra large steps. Taking large steps can actually lead to injuries, so take your normal strides, just speed them up when called for.

Start with a warm up. All your advanced walking sessions should begin with a five-minute warm up walk at a normal pace to prepare your body for the added intensity.

End with a cool down. A five-minute cool down allows your heart rate to come down slowly and help flush lactic acid build up in your muscles. A typcial workout session may inlcude a five-minute warm up, a 20-minute speed session and a five-minute cool down for 30 total minutes.

Try a walk through Wilcox Park in Westerly. It has a great scenery, hills and stairs to add some variety to your walking routine. Here is a sample starting plan:

Monday - 30 minutes at normal pace

Tuesday - five-minute warm up, 20 minutes fast paced, five-minute cool down

Wednesday - 20 minutes at normal pace

Thursday - five-minute warm up, 20 minutes hill repeats, five-minute cool down

Friday - rest

Saturday - a 50-minute walk at normal pace.

Sunday - rest

Now get out there and enjoy the foliage and cool air of autumn!

Todd Cambio is a personal trainer in Stonington and is also associated with Advantage Personal Training in Old Mystic. E-mail Todd with your questions or visit his web site for more information about injury prevention and strength and agility training programs.