shortwalk.blog.co.uk

(AP Photograph)

Overnight, London was seemingly transported into the centre of a snow-globe. Somehow, bundling up and having a walk through the magic of a snow covered city seems much more desirable than this...

(MykReeve's It's Snow Fun posted on Flickr today http://www.flickr.com/photos/mykreeve/)

Just another instance of why it is smarter to walk!

Heavy snow brings commuter chaos
Thursday February 8, 01:34 PM
Read the Yahoo article on the next page...

Pages: 1 2

"All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking"
- Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher

"Exercise, such as walking, increases the blood flow to the brain. A 1999 study of people over 60 found that walking 45 minutes a day at 16-minute mile pace increased the thinking skills of those over 60. The participants started at 15 minutes of walking and built up their time and speed. The result was that the same people were mentally sharper after taking up this walking program" (Wendy Bumgardner, Certified Marathon Coach, http://walking.about.com/cs/mindandspirit/a/mindspirit.htm).

(more on this topic to come!)

Walking is a great way to get around! Not only is it healthy for you, it is healthier for the environment.
"Motor vehicles create a substantial amount of air pollution. In fact, transportation is responsible for nearly 80 percent of carbon monoxide and 50 percent of nitrogen oxide emissions in the U.S. Not surprisingly, many metropolitan areas do not meet the air quality standards specified in the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments. Although individual cars are much cleaner today than they were in earlier years, if total traffic continues to grow, overall air quality will deteriorate. Moreover, cars and trucks burn millions of barrels of oil, a non-renewable energy source, every day.

Pollution Facts:

Motor vehicle emissions represent 31% of total carbon dioxide, 81% of carbon monoxide, and 49% of nitrogen oxides released in the U.S. (The Green Commuter, A Publication of the Clean Air Council)

60% of the pollution created by automobile emissions happens in the first few minutes of operation, before pollution control devices can work effectively. Since "cold starts" create high levels of emissions, shorter car trips are more polluting on a per-mile basis than longer trips.

A short, four-mile round trip by bicycle keeps about 15 pounds of pollutants out of the air we breathe. (WorldWatch Institute)

Air pollution contributes to the deaths of 60,000 people nationwide. In urban areas with poor air quality, asthma is becoming a more significant health concern" (Harvard University School of Public Health).
Thanks to www.walkinginfo.org for the facts and figures!

"Walking is the nearest to perfect exercise".
Professor J Morris and Dr. Adrianne Hardman, 1997

Health benefits of walking

Studies show that walking can:

Reduce the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke
Lower blood pressure
Reduce high cholesterol and improve blood lipid profile
Reduce body fat
Enhance mental well being
Increase bone density, hence helping to prevent osteoporosis
Reduce the risk of cancer of the colon
Reduce the risk of non insulin dependant diabetes
Help to control body weight
Help osteoarthritis
Help flexibility and co-ordination hence reducing the risk of falls

We found very useful and helpful website you might be interested in.
This website is : www.walkit.com

You can find every walking route wherever you want to walk in Central London, moreover it will tell you how much energy you will consume while walking.

Try it! It's so smart and cool!