Whether you're a fan of the song "Walking in Memphis" (Marc Cohn, 1991) or "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" (Nancy Sinatra, 1966), you have to admit that Dire Straits' "Walk of Life" (1985) says it all: Walking can transform your life.

That's also the message of a new study that determined the most active 25% of American adults get the equivalent of two hours of walking at a pace of almost three miles per hour every day.

The researchers then found that if most American adults ages 40 and over adopted that routine, they would extend their life expectancy by more than five years — from just under 79 years to nearly 84.

And if people who are quite sedentary start walking for around 112 minutes every day at that pace, their life expectancy skyrockets by close to 11 years.

For the least active, each hour of walking could add about six hours to their life expectancy — and that adds up, year after year.

Don't walk away from the opportunity to increase the quality of your life, and how long you have to enjoy it.