Move more this May. As it’s National Walking Month, the nation is being encouraged to get those steps in – from heading to your destination on foot instead of driving to taking leisurely strolls in the great outdoors just because! Although we all love the idea of getting in more steps, we know trying to squeeze a daily walk into a busy schedule can be daunting. However, the weather is getting warmer, the days are getting longer, and we think this month is the perfect opportunity to ramp up that step count. If you need some inspiration on how to get more walking into your daily life, read on – Grangers has got you.
Small Changes
Tiny tweaks to your daily routine can easily boost your step count. Taking a short walk during your lunch break, walking to the shops instead of driving (or parking further away from the entrance) and using stairs instead of elevators will get you moving more, and the great thing is that you will hardly even notice! If you don’t have the time or the energy to shoehorn a full-on hike into your day-to-day, just moving a little bit more by making small changes is a sustainable way to get using those legs of yours.
Make It Work For You
Weave it into a health routine/workout plan. If you are consistent and walk every day for 31 days, you could be on your way to forming a new, healthy habit. Try not to see a daily walk as a chore but as an investment in your mental and physical health. A walk can be planned around your schedule or effortlessly weaved into a workout or fitness routine, all it takes is setting aside 15 to 30 minutes of your day to do a quick loop of the local park, walk to the post box and back or circumnavigate the perimeter of your garden a few times. Remember – it doesn’t need to be a mammoth trek!
Be Adventurous
For those seasoned walkers, why don’t you step it up a notch this May? Take your love of walking to the next level and plan longer, more rewarding walks. Maybe you could attempt a trail you’ve always wanted to try, bag a Munro or join a walking group. You could even time your walks to see how quickly you can scale that tor or cross that valley, challenging yourself each time to go a little further or stride a little faster or set yourself a challenge, like the Three Peaks Challenge. Take it as an opportunity to soak up some beautiful scenery and reconnect with nature.
Do It For Charity
Maybe you’re the kind of person who needs a bit of extra motivation, so instead of walking for yourself, why not walk to raise money for those in need? You could join the RNLI Mayday Mile, a month-long fundraising event that is challenging the nation to walk a mile a day for every day of May. This is a sponsored event, meaning participants will gather donations that go towards helping RNLI volunteers save lives this summer. To get involved and support the RNLI’s lifesaving work, click here to find out more. Other charitable treks include Cancer Research’s 100 Miles in May challenge or Alzheimer’s Society’s Step 10k a Day in May.
Do It For Yourself
There are endless health benefits to going for a daily walk, from improved cardiovascular health and a reduced risk of chronic diseases to enhanced cognitive performance and increased energy levels. Walking can also have a positive impact on your mental health, alleviating stress, triggering the release of endorphins (also known as the happy hormone) and even promoting self-confidence. Aiming to walk 10,000 steps a day can help you lose weight or maintain a healthy weight when combined with a healthy diet and lifestyle. Walking is one of the best low-impact exercises you can do, working every muscle without causing undue stress on your bones and joints. May is also the ideal time to get involved, meaning you’ll be beach-body-ready for summer.
Keeping Your Walking Gear Performing
It’s very easy to be discouraged from a walk by poor weather, and knowing the notoriously temperamental UK weather, we could see thunderstorms or gale-force winds in May. Here at Grangers, we’re not put off by rain. In fact, we embrace it – we love seeing beading on a freshly-reproofed GORE-TEX jacket! To keep yourself warm and dry for longer on your rainy walking excursions, make sure you keep your waterproof gear clean and protected with our water-based, PFAS-free and world-class aftercare solutions. Use Performance Wash to clean, followed by Clothing Repel or Performance Repel Plus to reproof. Or, if you’re a little short on time and effort, simultaneously clean and reproof in one wash with Wash + Repel Clothing 2 in 1 and save yourself water and energy too.
Have Fun
Try not to see these walks as a chore but as a fun activity! There are many ways you can spice up a relatively mundane walk. You could curate a playlist of your favourite songs on Spotify or Apple Music to get you hyped up, invite a friend for a catch-up, treat yourself mid-walk to a coffee or ice cream, or bring along your four-legged friend. All these things are really simple to implement, but can elevate your walking experience and might even make you look forward to getting in those extra steps. And, if you miss a day, so what? There are 31 days this month, and even if you spend one day walking more than you usually would, that’s still an achievement and more time outdoors.
So why not challenge yourself to a walk more this May? You never know, you might form a new healthy habit, lose some weight and have fun along the way!
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