Walk your way to HEALTH

Get outside, explore on foot and soak up nature while increasing your wellbeing and fitness levels

Simple and free, walking is not only in your DNA, it's also your very best prescription for good health, says Sir Muir Gray, an expert in public health and author of Dr Gray's Walking Cure (£5.50, Offox Press Ltd).

'We humans are not made for running or sitting. Our bodies are designed to walk - and our ancestors did it all the time,' he says. 'The problem is that we now live in a world in which walking is not made easy, with many of us living too far from our work and amenities to walk to them. This means we walk less than we used to, and certainly less than we need for good health and happiness. Even if we have to find ways to consciously reintroduce walking into our lives, we can all walk more than the minimum necessary for our work or daily life and the benefits are enormous.'

Use our walking tips to get the very best out of this enjoyable exercise, and watch your health and fitness levels soar.

Walking back to happiness

Wherever you walk, even if it's on a treadmill, just the fact that you're exercising will lift your mood. But the gains are all the greater you can walk in nature, says Dr Suzanne Bartlett Hackenmiller, a doctor of integrative medicine.

'As well as mood-lifting endorphins, being outdoors triggers a rush of feel-good neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin and research going back to the 1980s has consistently found that getting out in nature boosts self-esteem, and helps ease symptoms of depression and anxiety.

'Even if you're short of time, studies show that you can expect to lift your mood within the first five minutes of being outdoors.