After a healthy dose of horrific recent car misfortunes, the most dreaded outcome of becoming car-less has finally forced its crippling hand upon me.

Some months ago I ranted on this very page about the soul-destroying traffic problems currently bringing the country to its knees each morning during rush hour and explored several healthier and more active transportation alternatives, cycling and walking among them.

When the comfortable interior of your car beckons, tempting you away from the apparently less pleasant option of proceeding on foot, it really can be difficult to motivate yourself, however many seemingly good justifications for walking you can think of.

Little did I know at the time of publication, I would shortly be left with no other choice. “Be careful what you wish for,” some might say. Walking would have been impossible several months ago, but thankfully I have since relocated, with my new residence situated only about five kilometres away from my workplace – not an impossible distance to traverse on foot.

When faced with the seemingly bleak prospect of having to walk, I gave myself a couple of little slaps on the wrist for questioning it. In large cities elsewhere in Europe, being so close to work is viewed as a godsend, and city workers are all too happy to slip on their walking shoes and save exorbitant transport expenses.

A second slap on the wrist was well-deserved for considering, even if just for a second, failure to practise what I preach as a fitness professional. So off I set on what turned out to be a 45-minute commute, give or take several minutes. A little tweaking of the route even meant the journey actually became quite a pleasant one.

I found I was arriving at work feeling fresh and invigorated. The walk home was a little more daunting in regular late-afternoon fatigued states, but actually turned out to be a great winding-down process. I would arrive home with a clear head, with many worries resolved or swept firmly away from the forefront of my thoughts.

Walking can help improve the efficiency of your cardiovascular system, reduce the risk of heart disease and strengthen the muscles of your legs and core

I confess, I have since experimented with the bus service to help alleviate various legs of the journey on those particularly challenging or unpleasant days. In light of the traffic situation, however, and perhaps some other variables, the entire journey time turned out to be almost impossible to cut down. Factoring in the time spent waiting at bus stops and the associated unpredictability of such a practice, it became clear that walking is possibly the only way to anticipate exactly when I would arrive at my destination.

Unfortunately, the situation on our roads has led us to a reality nowadays in which it is virtually impossible to accurately predict the duration of journeys by any other means during rush hour.

It’s almost impossible to say how long this routine may last, and of course we are not all about to ditch our cars altogether any time soon. However, I must admit, I have nothing but positive things to report so far. Shorter journeys on foot, which would previously make the slothful side of me cringe now seem a doddle. A short hop down to the corner shop or walking between office blocks or elsewhere during the day quite literally seem like walks in the park.

We know that walking can help improve the efficiency of your cardiovascular system, reduce the risk of heart disease, as well as strengthen the muscles of your legs and core. Improved fitness will enhance your sense of well-being and boost your energy levels throughout the remainder of your day.

More physical activity throughout the day often translates to better quality sleep too. The benefits are numerous, so what are we waiting for? Perhaps it’s an option more of us might entertain.

You’ll just need a comfortable pair of shoes, an easy-to-carry briefcase or better still, back-pack and if the last couple of weeks are anything to go by, perhaps an umbrella might serve you well too.

If you log on to Google maps and check the distance between your home and work and associated estimated walking time, which is surprisingly accurate by the way, you might find it’s not as bad as you previously thought.

If your estimated journey time does not exceed 30 minutes, you could find it is actually quicker to walk than drive if you commute during the busiest times of the day. You could start off with once a week at first and add or decrease, based purely on preference. You might actually turn out to love it.

If you consider that international physical activity guidelines recommend 150 minutes of moderate activity per week, you could easily exceed this tally by walking to and from work two to three times a week. Instead of burning petrol in your car, you can burn off some of that stored energy around your hips, tummy or thighs, because that’s exactly what fat is, stored energy.

We live in a world where we pay for fuel to get to work and then we pay to use gyms or home exercise equipment to burn off yet more energy. Dies it not all seem like an awful mismanagement of energy itself?

So consider the option of walking to work and use your fat stores for something a whole lot more useful and practical: going places.

matthew.muscat.inglott@um.edu.mt

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