Stepping out

BECKY DICKINSON embraces the joy of walking on the South West Coast Path in North Devon

- BECKY DICKINSON

This year will go down in history as the year the world stopped. The year flight paths vanished, motorways emptied, streets fell silent – if only for a few bewildering, yet in some ways paradoxically liberating weeks, where many of the demands of ‘normal’ life were put on hold.

And in that bizarre, altered state of reality, huge numbers of people discovered the simple solace of walking, not to get anywhere, but just to walk. In the depths of lockdown, that one hour of sanctioned exercise became a metaphorical life support system – at least for the healthy and fortunate.

Like so many others, I’ve never felt more grateful to live in Devon with its endless, glorious miles of stomping ground. I’ve long been an avid and evangelical walker and a global health crisis only reinforced this.

Because as mundane as it may sound, there is no exercise as gentle yet as effective, as invigorating yet as soothing, as putting one foot in front of the other. Studies consistently show that regular walking is one of the best ways to look after our health, lowering the risk of all sorts of chronic conditions: heart disease, cancer, diabetes, depression and even dementia.

Quite simply, the longer we walk, the longer we are likely to live. Injuries are rare (especially compared to running) and it boosts our fitness levels without placing our bodies under undue stress – and it’s free.