Get Off the Bus, Gus…

…and walk a bit. And then get on another bus. Get off. And walk some more! Great to see Brighton and Hove Buses supporting active travel, with this bus spotted in Portland Road, Hove.

Backache? Don't pop a paracetamol…

....because the drugs don't work, according to this latest research published in the BMJ. 

It recommends you go for a walk instead.

Just go for a walk. Go on. Just. Go. For. A. Walk.

That’s what the House of Commons Select Committee on Health have told GPs that they should be telling their patients, according to this report in the Telegraph. Because we are the some of the world’s most lazy people when it comes to physical activity. And because walking is good for health (who needs a gym?). And because practically anyone can do it. And because it’s free. And because you don’t need any special equipment. And because it’s good for the mind. And because you can start now, practically wherever you are. And because the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NIce) has said workers should be encouraged to stand up during meetings, and advised to walk or cycle to events outside their workplace. And because. And because. (Repeat ad infinitum).

Seen on a walk: Faversham, Kent

Seen near Faversham railway station, this amusingly-named narrow pedestrian alley - which you probably wouldn’t see from a car, and definitely couldn’t drive along.

Seen on a walk

A lost buoy on Brighton beach. Nothing to do with Peter Pan – a result of the recent storm. Seen from the prom – you wouldn’t spot this from a car.

Study shows that walking is key to older blokes avoiding strokes

According to research part-funded by the British Heart Foundation (press release here), and published in Stroke, the journal of the American Heart Association, over-65s who walk for an hour a day reduce their chance of a stroke by a third, while for men walking more than 22 hours a week, the risk is two thirds lower. Given that, in the UK around 152,000 people a year have strokes, which can be fatal, this is dramatic stuff.

The study (which appears to be about blokes, rather than folks) found that it was better to walk further rather  than quicker. The 3,435 healthy men aged 60 to 80 were followed in the study for 10 years. They were divided into groups based on how much, on average, each man walked per week. Men who walked eight to fourteen hours per week had approximately a third lower risk of stroke than men who walked less than three hours per week. So no need for power walks, just get out there. And the easiest way to do it? Don’t take the car, take a walk.

Seen on a walk: jellyfish over Hove

Amazing what you can see on a walk: one evening last month, these amazing cloud formations appeared in the evening sky over Hove.  One for all the Cloud Appreciators out there.

Walk, Don’t Run

Sound advice, based on results from a large scale medical study reported in today’s Guardian. Of course, the point about walking is that you just incorporate it into your routine – not as some special thing. So just get on with it!