Scientists tell us even three 20-minute walks a week help us live happier, healthier and longer. As a committed walker since I did the 30-mile Hike For Hunger in high school I love what this exercise does for the body. Yet what I crave most of all is what it does for my head. Feeling…
Americans in both major political parties want to increase or maintain current levels of investment in walking and biking paths and broadly support federal infrastructure expenditures. Those are some of the highlights of a new national poll commissioned by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a nationwide network of public trails, and…
If you’re hoping that exercise might keep you from gaining weight this holiday season, you may want to dial up the thermostat and do your workout indoors. According to a surprising new study, exercising in chilly temperatures could undermine dieting willpower. By now, most of us have heard or discovered for ourselves that exercise is…
Research shows outdoor walks improve mental health British and American scientists have published new research showing that group nature walks help us combat stress while boosting mental well-being. Researchers from the University of Michigan and Edge Hill University in England evaluated 1,991 participants in England’s Walking for Health program, which hosts nearly 3,000 walks per…
Despite the fact that the snow arrived earlier than usual, we can’t get around the snow and cold in Wisconsin. And while most of us can find plenty of reasons to love this Wisconsin weather (cross-country skiing, anyone?), it also puts us at an increased risk for slips, trips and falls. The death rate in Wisconsin due…
Walking is going places. Humans’ most common pastime — forsaken for decades as too slow and too much effort — is now recognized as a health breakthrough, an economic catalyst, and a route to happiness. Real Simple magazine (circulation: two million) declared “walking America’s untrendiest trend” in its February 2014 cover story. A month later, Builder magazine (a construction…
Army Staff Sgt. Juan Roldan was on patrol in Baghdad in 2006, when a warhead struck his vehicle, killing two colleagues. Sergeant Roldan suffered a blow to his spinal cord, a traumatic brain injury and severe damage to his legs, both of which had to be amputated above the knee. “When I first got injured,…
Finding the motivation to exercise can be a challenge at any time of year. Add cold weather and shorter days to the mix, and working out — especially outdoors — can seem like a tremendous feat. But exercising outdoors has a range of benefits such as increasing vitamin D exposure and a general sense of…
A health system finds a fun way to boost population health through a local, recreational trail. Winding through 165 miles of picturesque Pennsylvania terrain, the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor is an outdoor enthusiast’s dream come true. But two years ago, it was underused. Elissa Garofalo, the Corridor’s executive director, knew that sometimes people…
We all know that exercise can make us fitter and reduce our risk for illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease. But just how, from start to finish, a run or a bike ride might translate into a healthier life has remained baffling. Now new research reports that the answer may lie, in part, in…
