To think that just walking for exercise isn’t enough to keep fit?

[Notjustanymum]

Just that, really! I’m somewhere North of 45 years old, and started walking last year before the pandemic hit. I walk twice a day (with dog) for about an hour each time.
While I’ve noticed that I pick my feet up better when walking now, I still struggle with uphill and stairs and have lots of trouble with foot and shoulder pain. I didn’t go to the gym before (or not for over 10 years, anyway).
What do you do to keep fit/keep aches and pains away? Should I be doing something else?

If you have a long commute & a sit down job with long hours. Walks are great for the body & mind !

Well, I do walk pretty fast, but seem to have hit a wall in terms of improving my fitness, so will be doing some of the other exercises suggested on this thread!
Thank you for all your answers, you have really inspired me...

A couple more thoughts...

Foot pain - do you pronate? (If you're not sure, do you tend to wear out the inner side of the soles of your shoes more than the outer side?) If so, you might find orthotic insoles make a difference - Boots have a lot of different kinds targeted at different areas of pain:

www.boots.com/sitesearch?searchTerm=orthotic%20insoles

They sorted out some heel pain I had a few years ago fairly quickly.

Shoulder pain - do you carry a shoulder bag? If so, and it it's only that side that hurts, consider using a rucksack or purse belt instead. If you already carry a rucksack, and you're not lugging a lot of really heavy stuff around, try shortening or lengthening the straps until you find the fit that is most comfortable for you. Does your dog pull?