Walking costs nothing, can be done anywhere and it can make a big difference to your health and the health of the planet.
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Walking. To put it simply this is what humans were designed to do. Our entire physical make-up is focused on our ability to walk. We are the only mammals to be habitual bipeds. Sure, other mammals can and do walk on two legs – bears and some monkeys and apes for example, but they do so only occasionally whereas humans do it habitually.
Whatever the reasons, once you’ve learnt to do it walking seems so simple that we do it without thinking. Or, so you think! In fact, we are thinking about it. A lot. And all of the time. For every step we take our brains are thought to make an astounding billion different calculations.
Homo sapiens weren’t the first to walk upright. Our ancestors were at it long before we came along. Early human ancestors were strolling about quite happily around 6 million years ago. Strangely though, scientists are still yet to figure out exactly why we evolved to walk on two legs.
Whatever the reason why though is irrelevant. The point is that we did evolve to walk and walk we did. From the plains of East Africa we walked – and colonised – pretty much every corner of dry land on the planet.
But not just is walking our reason for being, but it’s also good for us and it’s good for the planet. The problem is that nowadays our sedentary, desk bound lifestyles mean that many of us don’t do it enough. And this isn’t just an issue for adults. A study has shown that three-quarters of children in the UK spend less time outdoors than prison inmates. It shouldn’t be like this. Walking is a basic part of being a human being. It costs nothing. It can be done almost anywhere. And, it can make a big difference to the health of the planet and to you. Let us explain why.
Walking for health
We all know that walking is good for our health. But do you really know why? Let’s take a walk together and I’ll explain.
Reduces weight
Firstly, and perhaps most obviously, it helps you keep the weight down. A study conducted by Harvard University examined 32 obesity-promoting genes in 12,000 people to try and understand how these genes impacted body weight. What they discovered was that in those people who walked briskly for around an hour a day, the impact of those weight gain genes were reduced by around 50 per cent.
Stops you buying chocolate
So that first reason to walk was pretty obvious. But, did you know that by walking for just 15 minutes a day will help curb the desire for chocolate and other sugary snacks, which of course also helps keep the weight down.
Stops joint pain
After a long day hiking on a mountain trail you might find that every muscle in your body aches, but surprisingly perhaps walking just five to seven miles (7.5-10km) a week actually reduces joint pain and can even prevent arthritis and osteoarthritis.
Stops you getting sick
A study discovered that if you walk briskly for at least 20 minutes a day, five days a week then you’d have 43 per cent less sick days than someone who didn’t walk.
Reduces the risk of breast cancer
Of all the health benefits of walking this is probably the most surprising. A study by the American Cancer Society discovered that women who walked for seven or more hours a week had a 14 per cent lower chance of contracting breast cancer than those who walked three hours or less a week.
Helps you think
Walking is also good for our mental health. A you walk – particularly out in nature rather than an urban environment – your head will clear and you will have more creative thoughts. So, if you have a decision to mull over or a problem to solve go for a walk. Some of our best loved novelists were renowned for the amount they walked. William Wordsworth is said to have walked some 289,600km (180,000 miles) in his lifetime while Virginia Woolf obsessively walked around the English countryside. Dickens walked at night when he couldn’t sleep, and Hemingway said that he walked in order to solve blocks in his writing.
Walking is the secret to (almost) eternal life
Well, okay maybe not eternal but studies have shown that regular walking at an average pace could reduce the risk of death by 20 per cent and walking at a fast pace could reduce the risk of death by 24 per cent. So, when Gilgamesh set out on his epic to find the secret to eternal life he probably would have been best of just going for a long walk.
10,000 steps?
But how much walking should we be aiming to do each day? It’s commonly said that we should aim to walk 10,000 brisk steps a day, which is quite a lot to fit in with all the other things most of us to have to do each day. But don’t worry, it’s not true. That number is just a marketing strategy by a pedometer manufacturer, because it sounded good and was easy to remember! Studies show that for most adults the goal should be 7,000 to 7,500 steps.
Walking is also good for the environment
It’s good for our physical and mental health but walking is also good for the planet.
The number one most important – and obvious – reason as to why walking is good for the environment is that walking results in zero car emissions. Transport causes around 26 per cent of greenhouse emissions, and cars are a major contributor to that figure. Research shows that in the UK around 67 per cent of car journeys are between 1.6km (1 mile) and 8km (5 miles). However, if you were to habitually walk any distance of less than 2km (which shouldn’t take most people more than half-an-hour) then you could make a difference to the planet. It’s been estimated that if you were to make just five 2km trips a week on foot rather than using the car that you would decrease your personal emissions by 86kg a year. In addition to this, the more people walk the less demand there is for cars, which means less manufacturing and shipping both of which contribute to greenhouse gases. And of course the less people drive, the quieter our streets are.
Other environmental advantages of walking is that the more people in urban areas walk then the more demand there is for parks and other green spaces. That means more trees. And more trees means cleaner air. And, if you’re going to the shops on foot then it’s been found that you’re more likely to walk into and around a town centre than an out of town shopping mall. Walking into town is a small action, but it can help keep our town centres, local communities and businesses alive.
So, remember we were not designed to sit behind a desk or in a car. We were designed to walk. And with that thought in mind I’m switching this computer off and going outside for a walk!
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