A new study has found that while you walk, staying focused on a specific target ahead of you will make far distances appears shorter and thus enables people to walk much faster, as per the researchers.

“People are less inclined towards exercise if physical activity seems daunting, which could occur when distances to be covered by walking appear quite long,” said New York University's Emily Balcetis, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology and one of the study's co-authors.

These findings does indicate that by having a keen observation and visual attention on a specific target, like an apartment a few blocks ahead, rather than simply looking around your surroundings, makes that distance to be seen shorter, it helps you walk even more faster, and also makes the working out and exercising part more easier.

The study, which appears in the journal Motivation and Emotion, focused on "attentional narrowing," which affects perceptions of space.

The researchers have come to a conclusion that narrowing attention on a finish line would make it to appear more closer, help increase walking speed, and lessens the feelings of physical exertion. If, to begin with, you can only walk fast for a couple of minutes, that's fine. Don't overdo it on your first day.You can break up your activity into 10-minute chunks, as long as you're doing your activity at a moderate intensity.