Walkable Cities: Enhancing Our Health

I've been taking advantage of the nice weather than has finally reached Michigan. (Spring didn't really show up until a couple of weeks ago. Mind you, it's now the middle of June) I've started walking in the great outdoors again, enjoying blue skies and fresh air.

I recently discovered that one of my favorite walk routes has been pleasantly changed, " thanks to new widened sidewalks. I walked far enough to cross over a new walking bridge, which had once been simply a dead-end to the sidewalk. If I'd been motivated enough to walk to our local park (another mile and a half down the road), I could have wandered around forever on all the forested walk/bike paths our park has to offer.

This is one of the things that makes my community (Sterling Heights, Michigan, a suburb of Metropolitan Detroit) a great place to live - becoming an increasingly "walkable" city, along with the extensive walking/bike trails at Dodge Park. And when our City "Recreates Recreation," during the next few years, our residents will have even more "get fit" options: an Ice-rink, skate-park, canoeing/kayaking, and continued development of hiking/biking trails.

According to On Common Ground, a magazine produced by the National Association of Realtors, there has been an increased demand for "walkable" communities. Over half the people recently surveyed by the Urban Land Institute want to live in places where they can drive less, and walk more. This includes two of the biggest demographic groups, millennials and baby boomers.*

In the Metro Detroit area, some communities, such as Royal Oak and Rochester, offer a "downtown" area that bustles with local stores, restaurants, and other amenities. People of all ages get the pleasure of fresh air, people watching, and spending their money at local businesses.

It sounds like many of us are finally realizing the value of walking and other physical activity in our hectic, electronically-connected lives. As we continue to live longer, we're learning that health is our greatest wealth. Walking, bicycling, swimming, and even gardening can benefit both our physical and mental health. Exercising outdoors provides many benefits. There's just something about being in the fresh air that's not only energizing, but mood-lifting as well.

Walking and other physical activity can help us

(1) Avoid age-related illnesses 

(2) Beat the blues and manage stress and depression 

(3) Strengthen and even "grow" our brain cells, which helps our memory and other cognitive functions 

(4) Boost our energy 

(5) Tone our muscles and protect our bones 

(6) Lose weight and maintain that weight loss 

(7) Boost our confidence and self-esteem 

(8) Help our posture, improve our balance and flexibility