Top 5 Reasons to Walk to Work

To celebrate Walk to Work Week, 11^th to 15^th May, Project Coordinator for the Centre for Workplace and Community Health (CWCH) at St Mary’s University, Twickenham John Downey has written his top five reasons to explain why active travel is a brilliant way to get healthy. 1. Reduce Your Risk of Chronic Illnesses The risks of leading a sedentary lifestyle are becoming more widely reported on. Sitting down for extended periods of times increases your risk of illnesses such as Type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, some cancers, and depression. Even if you go to the gym four times a week, the more you sit the greater the risk you run of developing a serious illness. Using active travel to work is a great way to reduce your sedentary activity. 2. A Little Effort Can Have Big Results Small changes to our daily activity can really add up. Walking to work can help boost your calorie expenditure to help you lose weight and maintain a healthy weight. Whilst the calories burnt through exercise is unique to each individual, walking just two miles at a steady pace will burn over 100 calories, which is 500 a week if you do it every weekday! 3. Be Eco-Friendly Active travel is a brilliant way of being environmentally friendly. A recent government survey found that the average car built after 2014 emitted 123.1 grams of Carbon Dioxide per kilometre. As soon you chose to use active travel, you will have an immediate impact on the air quality around you and you won’t be stuck in traffic anymore! 4. Be Happier Physically active people have a 30% lower risk or developing depression over someone that is not active. Being active is also a great for your social life; you could arrange to walk to work with friends, family, or colleagues to make the most of the time lost whilst commuting. 5. Start Something Taking up active travel could be the start of a whole new you. If you find that you enjoy walking to work, and all of the health benefits it brings you, it could be the thing that opens you up to a whole new world of fun physical activities and help to develop the athlete hidden in you. The CWCH works to increase participation in physical activity and opportunities to be active. May is a month full of awareness events aimed to get us healthy and works closely with the Workplace Challenge. On the 20^th May workplaces all around London, including St Mary’s, will be taking part in the Midday Mile Challenge. The aim of which is to encourage as many employees as possible to get out at lunch for a mile walk, all are welcome to join the CWCH at St Mary’s for their Midday Mile. Don’t worry about getting on your gym kit just get out into the fresh air and don’t forget to snap a selfie using #midday on Twitter.