take a brisk walk. seriously

technically, may is national walking month , but we would humbly like to offer up october as an alternative. it comes with brisker weather and pretty fall foliage to gawk at. (it also comes fresh off the heels of sourdough september, if you feel the need to walk off all that bread).

we really, really don’t walk enough

a 2017 study of more than 100 countries published in the journal nature found that canadians have pretty dismal walking rates. on average, the number of steps taken each day was approximately 5,000, or the equivalent of four kilometres. residents of hong kong came out on top with 6,880 steps each day, or roughly six kilometres. canada came in below average at 4,819 steps a day, just a smidge better than the americans, and much worse than the british, who typically walked 5,444 steps a day. basically, everyone in europe walks more than we do.

a study released in september 2020 from statistics canada found that canadians employed in full-time work were sedentary for 68.9 per cent of their day, on average. and more than 80 per cent of us aren’t getting the recommended 150 minutes a week of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (brisk walking falls into this category). it’s not much better for the young, either. according to a 2015 participaction report , only five per cent of canadians between the ages of five and 19 were getting the daily minimum of 12,000 steps.

the general view

however, it’s hard to oversell the benefits, given the stacks of research into the activity. to put it bluntly, more walking equals less death. according to a report from c3 collaborating for health in the u.k., studies have shown an association between walking “and a reduction in deaths from all causes, ranging from 19 to 30 per cent depending on the frequency and length of walking activities.” the best results were seen with walking 20 kilometres per week, beyond the steps taken in regular daily activities.

no, it’s not just for old people

because walking is low-impact, its reputation sometimes suffers as an exercise for the elderly only. yes, regular walking has been shown to have a positive impact on everything from fewer injuries from falls to slowing the onset of dementia , but the benefits of walking aren’t limited to one demographic.

a systematic review and meta-analysis published in the british journal of sports medicine found that adults taking part in outdoor walking groups reaped wide-ranging health benefits such as reductions in blood pressure, resting heart rate, body fat and cholesterol and lower rates of depression. the mayo clinic has its own list of benefits; walking can help strengthen bones and muscles, improve balance and coordination and prevent heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

and don’t forget about children. george mammen, a phd candidate at the university of toronto, says walking to school every day has a host of benefits : “children who walk to school have been found to have higher academic performance in terms of attention/alertness, verbal, numeric, and reasoning abilities; higher degree of pleasantness and lower levels of stress during the school day; and higher levels of happiness, excitement and relaxation on the journey to school.”

better than bmi?

in 2019, researchers at the university of leicester published a study of the walking speeds of nearly 475,000 britons in mayo clinic proceedings, a peer-reviewed medical journal. in a nutshell, they suggest that fast walkers lived longer than slower walkers, even if the fast walker was considered overweight or obese. this is important given that one’s body mass index (bmi) — a measure of body fat based on height and weight — is no longer the measure of overall health it once was. in fact, it is now considered simply a measure of size as opposed to an indicator of disease.

this is your brain on walking

researchers at the university of toronto published a study of more than 26 years’ worth of scholarly research in the american journal of preventive medicine. they found that just 20 minutes of walking or gardening a day can ward off depression in people of all age groups.

clearly, walking is good. and if you still feel drawn to the couch, perhaps consider the words of neuroscientist shane o’mara who poetically described the impact walking can have in an interview with the guardian.

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