Walking can be a fascinating and enjoyable way to get to know the place you live, enjoy the countryside, explore new places and meet people. Getting out into daylight and raising the heart-rate can have hugely beneficial effects. In a recent study, the British Heart Foundation discovered that people who walk briskly for half an hour a day reduce the risk of heart attack by 40 per cent.
Meanwhile, another study showed that contact with nature on a country walk
eeping fit needn’t be a chore. In fact, raising your fitness level, getting your heart beating faster and flooding your mind and body
powerfully reduces stress levels. The secret ingredient, scientists say, is the greenery. There’s even a name for a lack of it - “Nature Deficit Disorder”.
But that’s not all. The steady rhythm of walking can have a powerful positive psychological effect.
None other than the great poet William Wordsworth found a walk in the countryside a powerful tonic for composing poems.
Throughout his life, Wordsworth continued to pace, finding the rhythm of his stride repeated in his poems. It has been estimated that Wordsworth walked 180,000 miles in his life. It certainly did him no harm, living as he did to the grand old age of 80. The focusing and calming effect of walking