We all know that walking is an important part of our health and too many people have gotten comfortable with driving a few blocks to the store or spending hours in front of the computer. But don't think that walking around the block is going to make up for those extra calories consumed the day before. It just doesn't work that way.

Walking should never be considered as the sole workout you perform, especially if you are over the age of 30. If you have recently had surgery, are recovering from an illness or are obese, walking is an excellent way to begin to slowly work your body into shape to prepare to a more intense level but it just is not possible to rely on walking, no matter how brisk, to replace anaerobic or sprint cardio type of exercises.

As we age, our growth hormone decreases in its ability to produce natural secretion. There is a way to keep your GH active but it won't happen with walking or aerobics alone. Anaerobic or sprint cardio type of exercises is the only way to enhance the growth hormone that your body needs to create to work on muscle tone and body fat. Walking is just simply not intense enough to stimulate this hormone.

Anaerobic or sprint cardio is a simple form of exercise that is a type of interval or sprint-type of workout. If you have been taking a brisk walk each morning and find that it is very easy to achieve without working up a sweat, your body has grown accustomed to this regime and now is the time to move up to a more strenuous mode of exercising. The average sprint workout will leave you breathless for at least 30 seconds.

Whether you choose running, riding a bicycle or using exercise equipment, the rules are the same. Warm up for two to three minutes at a relaxed speed before taking off at an intense pace for thirty seconds. At this point you are feeling your muscles begin to give out and your oxygen level almost gone. You have now woken up your growth hormone so that it can feed your body with its necessary benefits to reduce the aging process, boost your immune system and reduce your risk of cancer.

Don't stop with the first thirty seconds though. Slow back to a relaxed speed to catch your breath for ninety seconds and do it again. Try to complete a set of 7 to 8 30-second sprints in order to get your GH level to its peak performance. This may take quite a few tries to achieve over a period of time but once you have reached this goal, the significance will become apparent.

Inches will begin to decrease, body fat will reduce and your energy levels could literally go through the roof. Once you’ve dedicated yourself to a program like this, and the results start to kick in - will you know or understand why brisk walking can never take the place of a sprint-type of workout.