Health walks are purposeful, brisk walks done on a regular basis.

The two important words are brisk and regular

Because the main objective of a health walk is to improve your cardiovascular health, so the walk should be purposeful and brisk (in other words more than just a stroll).

Regular because you need to take exercise 5 days out of 7 to gain all the benefits of walking

Health walks are not walking at a fast pace, they are geared to people who have not exercised at all, who have been ill or had heart surgery etc.

They start at a very gentle pace and over level ground – each walk is carefully risk assessed to make sure there are no hazards or features that would discourage walkers – their aim is to get you walking and enjoying your walking.

Each person is encouraged to increase their walking pace as and when they can. No special equipment is needed – just appropriate clothing for the weather of the moment.

In America and Britain seven out of ten people are not physically active enough to benefit their health.

As more people realise that walking is the ideal way to become fitter and healthier, communities as well as governments are promoting health walking groups.

Don’t want to walk by yourself?You like to chat as you walk? Want to meet new friends?

Then organised walks are for you – it is a well known fact that walking with others has a health impact on individuals because good social networks enhance health.

Plus, organised walks provide a distraction from everyday stresses and stress contributes to poor health.

Look out for walking initiatives in your area. Often your health professional will be able to advise you on the whereabouts of a group.

One such scheme in Britain is “Walking the Way to Health” which aims to get people walking in their own communities and is especially aimed at people who have taken little or no exercise in the past.

There are over 11,000 trained leaders and I have recently been trained and joined the team in Monmouth. Here we have Health walks every Tuesday morning for an hour and on Sunday mornings also for an hour.

We try to get out and about in our local community and encourage others to do so. Our walkers are of all ages and look forward to meeting one another and increasing their fitness at the same time.

Enjoy your walking!