In late September 2012, my travels took me to Italy to speak at an international Wellness Congress in Northeast, Italy. The meeting was held at the headquarters of Technogym in Cesena, Italy. I was there to contribute to a panel discussion on exercise and health, along with Dr Steve Blair (University of South Carolina), Dr Eddie Phillips (Harvard University) and Dr Mike Pratt (Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta). Also speaking at the congress was former President Bill Clinton and the President of Italy, Georgio Napalitano.

It was a great meeting that highlighted the contributions regular exercise can make to health and wellness around the world. All of us agreed that the single best thing that could be done to promote health around the world was to encourage everyone to do regular exercise, such as by taking a daily walk. I was struck by how health and wellness experts from around the world all say the same thing with regards to how much exercise is optimum to promote health and that is 150 minutes of moderate exercise (like a brisk walk) each week.

I took the opportunity to bring my son Matt with me and spend a few days exploring Italy. We had a great time visiting Rome, Florence, Venice and Bologna, before heading on to Cesena. We had a chance to visit most of the great tourist spots and take in a soccer game at the Olympic Stadium in Rome. Of course, we did a lot of walking everywhere we went. Italy is a great place for walking and it is wonderful to explore a new city on foot, rather than by car.
Keep on walking!
Bob