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Stepping
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Arthritis
Today
Walking Guide |
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Is Your Town Making You Fat?
A walker-friendly community isn't just prettier - it's healthier, too!
If you have ever lived in the suburbs, you know all about suburban sprawl - streets that don't connect to one another, few sidewalks and minimal public transportation options. What you might not know is that if you live in the suburbs, you are more likely to suffer symptoms of ill health, including high blood pressure and obesity, according to a study by the National Center for Smart Growth, Washington, D.C. In fact, people who live in sprawling communities can weigh as much as six pounds more than people who live in more compact communities.
Step Towards Change
Make your community more walking friendly. These websites can get you started:
> The Partnership for a Walkable America,
www.walkableamerica.org
> Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center,
www.walkinginfo.org
> The National Park Service Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance,
www.nps.gov/rtea |
The difference is walking. People who live in sprawl walk a full hour less on average each month than people who don't, the study finds. And it's not just walking for exercise. In a walking-friendly community, people skip driving to "walk their errands," adding up 15 to 30 minutes of walking each week - enough for a 150-pound person to lose or keep off one to two pounds a year. "Living in a sprawling area, you have the option of total inactivity, because you can drive everywhere," explains lead researcher Reid Ewing, PhD.
If your hometown is not made for walking, you don't have to move - but you do need to make a conscious effort to move your body. "Fit in walking workouts in accessible places," suggests Marilyn L. Bach, PhD, a certified personal trainer in St. Paul, Minn. She suggests walking around shopping malls, high school and college indoor tracks, local stadiums and even airports.
And look for sneaky ways to add steps to your life, says Bach. For example, park 10 minutes away from your destination - that's a 20-minute workout!
– Alison Stein Wellner
Try a Pedometer
Use it every day, and slowly increase your goals. Go through a normal week
and track how many steps you take each day. The next week, aim for 300
more or so steps per day; the week after that, another several hundred,
and so on. Ultimately a total of 10,000 steps per day, which add up over
the course of moving around the house, running errands, working, gardening
and exercising. For some added motivation, pop on some earphones and let the Arthritis Foundation's
Walk With Ease: Your Step-by-Step Audio Guide
($14.95) provide you with encouragement and an original musical score designed to propel your walk. |
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