Whether you're "Walking on Sunshine" (Katrina and the Waves) or "Walking in Memphis" (Marc Cohn), it's smart to keep on keeping on. Walking is great for you at any pace and any distance — as long as you're committed to doing it regularly and extending your endurance and speed over time.

A new study found that sedentary people benefit from adding 500 steps a day to their routine, and every additional 500 steps improves their health measurably.

The research, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, also says that around 8,000 steps a day and walking at a faster pace provides great protection from heart issues and premature death. And doing 16,000 a day has no downside.

That agrees with another study that shows most forms of exercise are very safe.

The British Medical Association examined outcomes from 61 physical activities. Golf, dance classes, gym sessions, and running (walking and jogging too) caused the fewest serious injuries; but even horse-riding, one of the riskiest, had only 235 injuries per 100,000 participants.

Want to make your workouts even safer?

Yet another study shows that warming up before exercise is key to improved muscle performance. It's smart to do 10-15 minutes of stretching, jumping, running in place, or using stretchy bands to get your day off to a strong, agile start.

Then you can walk as far and fast as your legs will carry you.