Just Beachy

My family heads down to the Texas coast for Thanksgiving (and pretty much any other four-day weekend we can get, as we are all displaced second-generation New Zealanders and feel a call from the ocean daily). This year the weather hasn't been the greatest -- cloudy, cold and blustery. But we still have managed to pack several hours worth of walking on the beach, which is way more interesting than strolling around Circle C on the weekends. There are seagulls to observe, the sound and energy of the waves propelling you forward and also people-watching with the rest of the tourists making their way up and down the beach. Yesterday we actually saw someone swimming in the ocean (the water temperature is about 66 degrees but it's 41 degrees outside and WINDY! You do the math!).
All of this beach walking got me wondering about whether it is better for your health to walk on a beach -- it seems more difficult to walk in the sand, bracing yourself against the wind. I found this entry on DiscoverWalking.com about the benefits of walking on the beach:

Aside from the beautiful view of the ocean and the great people watching there are many benefits of walking on the beach. Walking in sand requires a greater effort than walking on a hard surface. Your muscles and tendons will work harder as your foot moves around.

Walking at a slower pace requires more effort than walking fast or even jogging. Walking in sand requires 2.1 to 2.7 times more energy than walking on hard surfaces. Jogging in sand uses1.6 times more energy than jogging on hard surfaces.

For most of us burning calories is one of the benefits of any exercise. One the primary benefits of walking on a beach is that you will use 20 to 50 percent more calories than you would walking at the same pace on a hard surface.

So this is good news for me, especially after all of that pumpkin pie I ate yesterday and the mimosas I have (and continued to) downed.
Although I don't know that anything will save me when the alarm goes off at 5:09 AM on Monday and it's time (yet again) to do the mile run.