Too many of us are missing the benefits of a good, long walk

Years ago I rode the overnight ferry from Stockholm to Helsinki across the Baltic Sea I was accompanying my mother on a work trip to Scandinavia delightfully experiencing in person places I had been reading about for years We reached Helsinki harbor around lunchtime and dragged our bags over the cobblestones of a beautiful plaza Naturally hospitable the Finns had a greeter standing at the center of the plaza helping people with directions and logistics When I indicated her the name of our hotel and petitioned for directions the greeter pointed down the Esplanadi Helsinki s gorgeous central boulevard Is it a long way I urged Oh it s just a short walk was her sing-song reply Related Need a new year s resolution Try walking Reader it was at least two miles By the time we arrived at the hotel I was thoroughly annoyed with Finnish optimism By any stretch of the American imagination it was not a short walk A year later I had a similar experience in New York City staying with a minimal old friends in Brooklyn We had plans to go to a restaurant When we were deciding when to leave they mentioned Oh let s just walk there Sure thing I replied And we proceeded to walk at least three miles It was a fascinating trek to be sure but I was frankly astonished that the journey had even been attempted These encounters made me doubt my priors Since then I ve been wondering whether the vast majority of Minnesotans even urbanist ones are just not in the habit of walking very much How much people walk is a relative concept to be sure and it s not just dependent on the built surroundings Certainly street design is a big part of the equation It s almost impossible to walk in most of suburbs and the US rate of pedestrians being hit by drivers is off the charts of the greater part other countries in the Global North But I still suspect that habit and custom play a large role as well In general Americans are far behind majority of of the world when it comes to everyday walking habits and Minnesota is in the middle of the pack nationally when it comes to walking rates Even in parts of the city with nice sidewalks close destinations and good weather the majority people don t walk much unless they ve got a dog with them For Twin Cities folks any unnecessary walking like being forced to park a block from a restaurant is seen as a travesty This is why on average Americans walk fewer than moves a day far below peer countries Reliable comparative content is a bit hard to find but one research puts the rate of walking in Finland at double that of the U S and confirming my experience with multiple longer trips Minneapolis own survey details shows the walking mode share the percentage of people who take a trip via each mode as of trips but Census facts around walking to work has a number at about half that amount What the walkers say I decided to reach out to a few of my bulk trusted habitual walkers people who have been walking for years I questioned them how they developed the walking habit and how they kept it going While in LA my car kept urgent down and I ended up moving within walking distance to my job on Wilshire Boulevard explained Bryan who grew up in St Cloud I just decided I was done with the hassle and would get by without a car It was at the same time that I picked up photography so I would go on long walks exploring LA A -year-old amateur photographer Bryan now lives in downtown Minneapolis Elliot Park neighborhood Photography is a key part of his walking practices with often amazing results It was never ideological for me though he revealed I just didn t like the hassle of having a car and preferred walking and transit It fit my lifestyle with the photography explorations Maple leaves leaves cover a sidewalk in St Paul s North End neighborhood Credit Bill Lindeke For the record I also have a photographic walking practice though it s far less aesthetically appealing Whenever I see distinctive signs lampposts street musicians or street vendors I make a point out of snapping their photo and it adds wonder and anticipation to any St Paul stroll I was surprised how easy it was to do even in a town like St Cloud Brian commented describing his move back to Minnesota That s when I started to become more of an advocate and developed a firm car-free philosophy which has been supercharged since moving to Minneapolis in Strategies for winter walking I also got in touch with Joan a -year-old avid walker in St Paul s Macalester-Groveland neighborhood I appealed her how she got the walking bug I have selected risk-reducing things I do she noted referring to the dread of winter ice I use poles and selected of the shoe and boot attachments kind of work but I almost perpetually have poles Joan assistants regularly at her neighborhood church advocating for surroundings action and equity around housing in St Paul We walked as a family she disclosed remembering her childhood in the Chicago suburbs Especially with my dad who walked fast so it was invariably kind of an honor to walk with him if I could keep up I walked to grade school close by and walked to high school much father It s been part of my religion It s what I do To me Joan employs a surprising trick for piquing her walking interest Over the last number of years I ve been doing various virtual trips meaning I cover a distance located somewhere else but do it with miles here she explained I walked the Camino de Santiago virtually a scant years ago In other words Joan walked the Camino de Santiago the famous -mile walking pilgrimage through Spain only she did it in St Paul After each walk around her neighborhood she plotted her distance on the map in Spain virtually exploring that part of the pilgrimage journey to track her progress Related Walking in groups helps people stick with their exercise goals assessment finds It really helps to be able to go to Google Street View and see what territory I m in Joan reported I look at particular of the historic spots along the way and various of the cultural fun things along the way That s just one trick to keep her walking and keep from getting a bit too bored with St Clair Avenue a far less romantic destination Walking keeps me connected with society and I never get bored of it Joan concluded There s inevitably new things to see or people to bump into It doesn t feel boring to me And that helps me appreciate where I live a lot more The post Too several of us are missing the benefits of a good long walk appeared first on MinnPost