Walking

Cut your risk of death by 70 percent in a little over an hour

There may be a sucker born every minute... but this time of year, it seems like they come along every 5 or 10 seconds.

They fall for scams they KNOW they shouldn't as they work to undo the damage caused by a little too much celebrating between Thanksgiving and New Year's.

Yes, they overdid it... just like they did this time last year. And they believe they can work it all away by making some dramatic changes on January 1... just as they believed this time last year.

So, they get hoodwinked into buying gimmicky exercise devices, trying fad diets, and signing year-long gym contracts for memberships that won't get used past January.

Don't be one of the suckers.

There's a much easier way to boost your health and add years to your life, and it won't cost you a penny.

All you need to do is go for a walk!

I know that sounds a little too good to be true. But unlike those diet scams and exercise gadgets, this one REALLY delivers, as a major new study finds that a brisk walk each day can slash your risk of death from just about everything.

It's more effective that any drug... any surgery... and even any other lifestyle change out there.

And ladies, if you can walk a little more than an hour a day, your risk of death plunges by more than two-thirds!

What makes the new study of nearly 17,000 women so unique is that it didn't rely on guesses or estimates. The women wore activity trackers so researchers were able to calculate exactly how much they moved each day.

As you'd expect, the study finds that more activity means lower risks.

As you might NOT expect, however, the type of activity didn't matter a whole lot. In fact, a brisk walk was enough to get all the benefits and then some.

The key is to keep at it: Women who got 70 minutes a day of moderate activity (such as that brisk walk) were 70 percent less likely to die over the two-year study period.

While the study was on women, you can bet that men would see similar results. And what's great about this is that there's nothing to buy... nothing to learn... and nothing to wait for.

You can get started right now, and the only thing you need is a decent pair of shoes.

Say "No!" to an early date with death

So many people refuse to make the dietary changes we all know are so healthy --changes even they know they should make. And if you ask them why, they shrug and say something like "you've got to die of something, right?"

If you've ever uttered something like that yourself, there's a new study out that I hope will change your tune, because it proves once and for all that while we'll all die of "something" eventually, having a diet and exercise plan can help put that date with death off for years.

Researchers in China put 438 patients at risk of diabetes on a diet to help them lose weight and an exercise program, then kept watch over a second group of 138 patients who were told to make no changes.

They were all tracked for up to nearly 30 years -- and in that time, 20 percent of the patients who made no changes died of heart problems, versus 12 percent of those who ate better and got more exercise.

That, to me, is enough of a reason to get motivated and get moving.

But the study finds a good diet won't just protect your heart. It can also protect everything else, slashing the risk that you'll die "of something."

Over the three-decade study, 38 percent of the patients who made no changes died "of something," versus just 28 percent of the patients on the diet and exercise plan.

It doesn't take much to get started. Exercise can be as simple as a brisk walk, jog or light run or an active hobby such as tennis, dancing or hiking.

And if you want in on the world's best diet, go Mediterranean. Not only is the diet packed with many of the foods you already love (including chocolate), but it's also proven to help you to lose weight, protect the heart and prevent a stroke.

It's been backed by study after study, and the latest research shows it can even help prevent diabetes.

Read this free report from my House Calls archives to learn more.

And if you need a little more help, I can customize a diet and exercise plan that's guaranteed to help you to eat better, move more, lose weight and slash your risk of major disease.

If you're in Southern California, you can make an appointment to see me at my clinic outside San Diego.

Not in the area? Not a problem -- we can do this over the phone. Call 855-DOC-MARK to learn more.