Evidence of fair method ological quality suggests that walking is associated with significant improvements in outcome compared with control interventions but longer-term effectiveness is uncertain .
With the use of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force system , walking can be recommended as an effective form of exercise or activity for individuals with chronic musculoskeletal pain but should be supplemented with strategies aim ed at maintaining participation .
OBJECTIVE To systematic ally review the evidence examining effects of walking interventions on  pain and self-reported function in individuals with chronic musculoskeletal pain .
An aerobic walking programme versus muscle strengthening programme for chronic low back pain: a randomized controlled trial
Objective : To assess the effect of aerobic walking training as compared to active training , which includes muscle strengthening , on functional abilities among patients with chronic low back pain . Design : R and omized controlled clinical trial with blind assessors . Setting : Outpatient clinic . Subjects : Fifty-two sedentary patients , aged 18–65 years with chronic low back pain . Patients who were post surgery , post trauma , with cardiovascular problems , and with oncological disease were excluded . Intervention : Experimental ‘ walking ’ group : moderate intense treadmill walking ; control ‘ exercise ’ group : specific low back exercise ; both , twice a week for six weeks . Main measures : Six-minute walking test , Fear-Avoidance Belief Question naire , back and abdomen muscle endurance tests , Oswestry Disability Question naire , Low Back Pain Functional Scale ( LBPFS ) . Results : Significant improvements were noted in all outcome measures in both groups with non-significant difference between groups . The mean distance in metres covered during 6 minutes increased by 70.7 ( 95 % confidence interval ( CI ) 12.3–127.7 ) in the ‘ walking ’ group and by 43.8 ( 95 % CI 19.6–68.0 ) in the ‘ exercise ’ group . The trunk flexor endurance test showed significant improvement in both groups , increasing by 0.6 ( 95 % CI 0.0–1.1 ) in the ‘ walking ’ group and by 1.1 ( 95 % CI 0.3–1.8 ) in the ‘ exercise ’ group . Conclusions : A six-week walk training programme was as effective as six weeks of specific strengthening exercises programme for the low back
Evidence of fair method ological quality suggests that walking is associated with significant improvements in outcome compared with control interventions but longer-term effectiveness is uncertain .
With the use of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force system , walking can be recommended as an effective form of exercise or activity for individuals with chronic musculoskeletal pain but should be supplemented with strategies aim ed at maintaining participation .
OBJECTIVE To systematic ally review the evidence examining effects of walking interventions on  pain and self-reported function in individuals with chronic musculoskeletal pain .