May is National Walking Month, which encourages us to leave the car at home and find ways to incorporate more walking into our days.
Walking a little each day can offer a great benefit to our overall health and wellbeing, including our heart.
It is a low-impact form of exercise so most people can give it a go. Right now is also the perfect time of year to get outside as the evenings lighten and temperatures start to warm up.
Here are some ideas to help you clock up more steps this May and beyond.
Set a Goal
This can really help you make walking a daily habit. A good example would be aiming to walk for twenty minutes a day, five days a week.
Plan your week every Sunday evening and schedule in you walking times to make sure they happen.
You could even ask a friend to commit to walking with you to help you stay motivated.
Set up Walking Meetings
For those of us working from offices, swap your usual desk-based meetings for walking ones. This can be done in person with colleagues, or on the telephone, using headphones.
Make it Fun
Get the kids involved by going on a scavenger hunt or wildlife spotting walk. You could simply head out with the family and look out for certain colour cars, anything to add an element of fun!
For more tips on how to stay healthy, sign up for our weekly healthy tips at www.heartresearch.org.uk/healthy-tips.
To help keep your heart healthy, why not try out some of our Healthy Heart recipes from our website: https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-recipes-2/.
Or have a look through our Healthy Heart cookbook filled with recipes from top chefs, celebrities and food bloggers: https://heartresearch.org.uk/heart-research-uk-cookbook/.
