When you need to unwind from the stresses and strains of everyday life, spending time in the fresh air can help you to clear your mind and find a new perspective – and that’s especially true if you’re engaging in some form of physical activity at the same time.
Exercise has long been thought to help improve both our physical and mental wellbeing, and you don’t have to break a sweat to reap the rewards. With enough regularity, something as simple as a gentle walk could help to lift your spirits and keep you fitter.
But, if taking that first step into the world of walking feels more like a giant leap, a group walk can be a great source of motivation. That’s where the Ramblers comes in: the charity offers fun, sociable group walks across the country, helping you meet new people and broaden your horizons. The Ramblers believes that every single person in Britain should be able to enjoy walking in nature, and is fighting to ensure just that.
By offering tried and tested routes, playing a vital role in the opening and maintenance of paths across the country, as well as offering sociable, welcoming weekly walking groups, its passionate volunteers and staff have made walking easier for so many. But they won’t put their feet up until everyone has plentiful and equal access to the stunning natural landscapes of Britain, especially given just how many benefits to walking there are...
With Britain’s gorgeous landscapes right on your doorstep, there are endless opportunities for you to get outdoors, whether you want to experience the peaceful hills of the Lake District or explore Devon’s quaint country paths and trails.
And, if you keep reading, you may just find the motivation you need to put on your walking shoes right now...
1. Walking can help to keep you physically healthy
Did you know that the World Health Organisation recommends that adults engage in at least 150 minutes of physical exercise a week? You could look at that as just 30 minutes a day, five days a week. It’s thought to be enough to help lessen your risk of developing illnesses such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes.
2. Walking can boost your mental health
Research has shown that physically active people could have up to a 30% reduced risk of becoming depressed. Staying active can also help those who suffer with depression to recover. In older people, staying active may improve cognitive function, memory, attention and processing speed, as well as reduce the risk of dementia.
3. Walking helps to relieve stress and improve sleep quality
Exercise prompts your brain to produce more endorphins, a chemical that’s known to boost your mood. It can also provide stress relief for your body, as physical movement helps you to shed any tension you may be carrying and distract your mind from nagging worries. As a result, walking can also improve your sleep quality, which is often disrupted by stress.
4. Walking can boost your creativity
There’s nothing like spending time in nature’s playground to spark your imagination. From beautiful backdrops to incredible wildlife, your daily walk is likely to be bursting with creative inspiration. And there’s science to back this claim too, with various journals, including a research paper from Stanford University, making the link between walking and creativity*.
5. Walking gives your day a structure
Whether it’s a lunch hour power walk or an evening stroll, incorporating walking into your everyday routine can provide you with a structure to your day. This may help you to accomplish more of your daily tasks, and as walking is an activity that you can depend on, it serves as a part of your day you can always look forward to.
6. Walking can be a form of socialising
Walking can be a great way to spend quality time with your loved ones, because you’re less likely to be interrupted or distracted by others, or by messages on your phone. It can also be an opportunity to meet new people, especially if you take part in an organised walk, which encourages people in a local community to get together regularly.
7. Walking is a way to spend time with yourself
Walking with friends and family can be fun, but taking yourself out for a wander also has its benefits. Whether you need some alone time alone or you’re looking for a chance to get to know yourself better, there’s something empowering about making the time to do something you enjoy.
That’s why the Ramblers helps open the way for walkers across the country, by working to preserve Britain’s world-class walking network. And, as well as group walks, the Ramblers offers fully tried and tested routes across Great Britain. Thanks to the Ramblers members’ app, it’s never been easier to find a group walk or route even when you are on the go.
There’s so much about walking that can make life that little bit better, and the Ramblers is committed to helping as many people as possible discover just that!
As a member of the Ramblers, for just £3.05 per month, you’ll get unlimited access to the Ramblers’ library of tried and tested walking routes, plus its 50,000 fun and friendly group walks. But that’s far from all there is to the Ramblers. Your membership will help increase access to green spaces, open up more places to walk and boost Britain’s wellbeing one step at a time. After all, there’s plenty to do.
With its members’ support, the Ramblers...
• Helps thousands more people every year broaden their horizons on foot because walking in nature makes us happier and healthier.
• Maintains paths to prevent them being blocked or becoming overgrown, provides advice to walkers, and helps individuals overcome more personal obstacles, like a lack of confidence to explore or knowledge of where they can walk, because the Ramblers is committed to removing all barriers to walking.
• Helps protect walking access rights. As a result of over 85 years of hard work by the Ramblers, we are now free to roam across millions of acres of land, including national parks and national trails.
Find out more about the vital work the Ramblers does and pledge your walking miles in 2022 for the chance to win some amazing prizes.
The Ramblers is generously supported by players of the People’s Postcode Lottery, as part of the lottery’s Climate Challenge initiative. People’s Postcode Lottery manages lotteries on behalf of 20 Postcode Trusts.
* https://news.stanford.edu/2014/04/24/walking-vs-sitting-042414/
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