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Walkability Study
Article: Motivation
Hopefully you are seeing signs of the WV Walks campaign around town. Our ads
have been on TV, the radio, and, of course, in The Dominion Post. Yesterday, we
had a very successful Intergenerational Walk at the waterfront. It is nice to
see families making time to walk together.
Time is the single biggest barrier to regular walking. Our lives are busy, our
schedules are crowded, and we have more to do than we can ever accomplish. So,
how can we ever find the time in our schedules to walk? Many of my friends have
told me that the last thing they need is another 30-minute daily activity.
Although most of us realize that walking every day will benefit our health and
wellness, we struggle to find the time.
I believe we become too focused on barriers. As a strategy to overcome the
barriers, give yourself a month of fitting a little walking into your life
religiously. Make the commitment to walk continuously for at least 10 minutes
per day and see what happens. I can almost guarantee you that your mind will
follow your body; that is, the barriers will diminish when you become accustomed
to doing a small amount regularly.
Break the 30 minutes into three ten-minute segments. Take ten minutes in the
morning, ten minutes at lunch, and another 10 minutes prior to getting into the
car to go home.
I also recommend learning more and more about the benefits of walking. When we
have a reason to do something, we have a way of finding the resources to make it
happen. We live our values.
Reading this column may not be exposing you to great (or even good) literature.
However, simply reading about a healthy behavior has been shown to help motivate
people to perform that behavior. The more they learn about it, the easier it is
to do it. Simply spending three minutes to browse this column may change your
life, even if the change is imperceptible now.
You can find daily exercise tips in the newspaper, on TV, or on the radio. Pay
attention. The more receptive you are to their message, the more likely you are
to change your life for the better.
Keeping a log of your walking is another means of motivating yourself. Become a
member of WV Walks. It is free and there is no obligation. You can get a
personal log by signing up on this website. Also, feel free to call me
(293-0763). When you make a commitment, it is easier to fit your walks.
Speaking of fitting it in, join us this Thursday at WVU Student Recreation
Center for the President's Walking Cup. Registration is from 11:00 – 11:45 AM
and the walk begins at 12:00 noon. On Saturday, April 30th there are two
opportunities to walk and also two worthwhile causes to support. At the WVU
Coliseum, the Alzheimer's Association is holding their Memory Walk. Registration
begins at 10:00 AM and the walk begins at 10:30 AM. Then at 12 noon at the WVU
track, the Kids Changing Kids Walk to benefit Ronald McDonald House will begin
registering participants. The walk will begin at 12:30 PM. Come and join in the
fun.
Since we can never exercise as much as we eat, Dr. Cindy Fitch will be
presenting this week's Dominion Post Lecture Series on nutrition on Monday at
the Monongalia County Health Department (behind Centra Bank on Medical Center
Drive) from 5 to 6 pm. The topic is "Training at the Dinner Table." This program
is free and open to the public.
Isn't it time you started walking?