I walked from end-to-end of Manhattan and a cardiologist said the heart health benefits were similar

• I walked from the top to the bottom of Manhattan in 8 hours, checking an item off my bucket list.
• The walk was a great endurance exercise, a cardiologist told me, with health benefits similar to running a half-marathon.
• Here's what my journey was like, and the doctor's tips for people embarking on a similar journey.

I walked from the top of Manhattan to the bottom in 8 hours — and lived to tell the tale. 

The hike from the top to the bottom of Manhattan is popular among locals and tourists, and was even the plot for a Broad City episode.

But, as a health reporter, I knew the ambitious journey was more than just a check off my bucket list — it was a great way to highlight how walking can help our heart. Dr. Tamanna Singh, cardiologist at Cleveland Clinic, thought so too. Singh told me walking — even if it's not down the world's most densely populated island — is an underrated exercise for heart health.

"Your heart really doesn't care what you do, it can't distinguish between walking, running, biking, rowing, swimming, cycling," Singh said. "There are so many benefits from a cardiovascular perspective that you can get from walking, similar to running." 

Here's what it was like to walk from the top to the bottom of Manhattan, along with Singh's tips to get the most benefit for your ticker out of a long walk.

We started our walk around noon at at Inwood Park at the northernmost tip of Manhattan.

I woke up around 7 a.m. and had some leftover rice and tofu soup for a light breakfast, but opted not to eat a huge meal in case I felt sluggish on the walk. At noon, I grabbed some coffee and a pan de queso, or Colombian cheese bread, at the start of the walk for some light fuel. 

Singh said my instinct was a good one: it's best to eat a light, carby meal ahead of a long endurance activity. 

"Carbs are your friend when you're trying to increase your exercise because your body and your brain run on sugar," the cardiologist said. "It's okay to have some simple sugars to help fuel your body."

We walked along the Hudson River, taking in the fresh air and breeze during the first leg of our journey.

To get from Washington Heights to Harlem, my friend and I walked down a greenway along the Hudson River. The weather was perfect for walking: a breezy day in the 60s, which ensured we wouldn't overheat. 

In Harlem, we moved from the greenery back to the bustling streets.

About 4 miles and 2 hours into our walk, we stopped to refuel with for a lunch of veggies, shrimp, and rice from LoLo's Seafood Shack in Harlem. 

Energized from our meal (and another cup of coffee) we power-walked the height of Central Park.

Caught up in deep conversation about religion, marriage, and people from our college newspaper, my friend and I breezed through Central Park. Though the height of Central Park is technically 2.5-miles, the winding paths probably tacked on an extra half mile to a mile, but to me they felt like the quickest parts of the walk. 

Walking with a friend is actually a great way to keep you motivated on long endurance exercises, Singh said. "If you have a specific goal in mind, you can always look for someone to help you train or help motivate you, a partner-in-crime for your exercise."

We reached the bottom of Central Park and took a well-needed water break.

My feet felt surprisingly fine after 8 to 9 miles of near continuous walking, due largely to my well-fitted sneakers.

Singh said people interested in long endurance activities like walking and running need to protect their feet, since discomfort can cause you to get burned out quickly on the trip. "That kind of takes away a lot of willpower motivation to keep going," she added. 

The next hour of my journey was by far my least favorite: navigating crowds in Times Square.

Up until we got to Midtown, Manhattan, my friend and I — both fast walkers — maintained a pretty consistent walking speed. But our walking prowess was no match for the packed crowds on the streets of Times Square. 

From 59th Street to around 20th Street, we kept needing to slow down to allow for mobs of passerbys, and stop as we waited for the street lights to change. The pauses made me more conscious of the pain and fatigue in my legs, which, combined with the frustrating crowds, put me in a more quiet, sullen mood. 

In need of a pick-me-up, we stopped at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Chelsea for some caffeine.

The Starbucks Reserve is high on the list of my friend's fiancé's — who had come to tag along with us as we trekked through Midtown — favorite places to go in New York City. 

We caught our breath over some espressos and were off again after about 30 minutes. 

The sun was beginning to set as we made our way from Chelsea to Battery Park, the final 3 miles of our journey.

We had about 3 miles left, but the path was a straight line, meaning we could reasonably do it in an hour. We were less talkative compared to the first half of the day, choosing instead to power through the pain in our thighs to get to the finish line. 

Eight hours and about 16 miles later, we arrived at Battery Park all the way from Inwood Park.

My friend and I were ecstatic and exhausted. We spent some time taking photos and looking at the Statue of Liberty before heading back home to ice our thighs and go to bed. 

Had we walked a straight line from Inwood Park to Battery Park, the route would have been 13 miles, according to Google Maps, but we took some winding routes to explore the city. We didn't track our total mileage, but I'd estimate we walked 16 miles — 3 more than a half-marathon. And Singh said the steps we took — and the amount of time our body stayed active — probably matched that of a half-marathon, too. 

I took a well-needed break after our journey, and slowly made my way back to regular exercise.

I took a week-long break from any sort of challenging exercise, and Singh said my laziness was what my body needed after the 16-mile journey. Cardiologists recommend a week of low-intensity mobility following a marathon or long endurance journey, she said. 

I'm already planning my next walk — maybe this time around the perimeter of Manhattan.

I'd highly recommend anyone take the walk from the top of Manhattan to the bottom, especially tourists visiting the city. It's a great way to hit a bunch of different neighborhoods and get a feel for the island's diversity. 

"There is no goal that you cannot hit," Singh said. "We're kind of our own limiting factors. Just get out there and move."

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