“To walk, or not to walk; why not get the bus?” Indeed, Shakespeare. Indeed. Well, the good thing about walking is it’s healthier than getting the bus.

And you don’t have to sit next to some madman with his earphones in, turned up to 11, all whilst listening to rap music.

As you might expect, 52 Ways to Walk by Annabel Abbs champions walking and its various purposes. Let’s take a look at it then.

52 Ways to Walk: The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time

‘Walking is just tied up with absolutely everything’ 👣 🥾 Oh @annabelabbs we are 100% with you there! If you’re a keen walker and reader check out our latest episode of Nature Bantz here 🎧 https://t.co/N1ASpBw88Z pic.twitter.com/wE7A8gmF3i

— Go Jauntly (gojauntly@mastodonapp.uk) (@gojauntly) May 2, 2023

There’s a early May 2023 podcast extract from Annabel Abbs. To note, she’s titled Streets on the book cover but is covered as Abbs online. We’re running with that!

And this book was a rather timely read for us. In late January, we moved to the countryside after 20 long years of living in cities (see Flatmates & Neighbours: The Best of Our Rental History).

We did this largely to escape the staggering housing crisis problems the UK faces—if you live up north, at least, it tends to be a bit cheaper living out in the sticks. At least in theory.

One surprising by-product of our move is the constant walking.

We lived in Manchester city centre from 2020-2023, a three-year run that included the pandemic and many lockdowns. But we thought we were being pretty active as we’ve always had a high-intensity cycling routine with an exercise bike.

Yet our walking was pretty rubbish. Since the move, we’ve endeavoured to hit at least 10,000 steps a day.

52 Ways to Walk (as you might expect) supports our new life goal.

We think walking has a bad reputation—boring, plodding, the type of thing only older generations do. That seems to be the common mindset towards it. To keep fit, you should be running 20 miles a day and doing 300 push ups.

But combined with other activities, walking is brilliant. Streets is eager to highlight this across some 53 chapters. You can delve into these as you see fit—some examples:

• Walk in the Cold
• Just One Slow Walk
• Take a Windy Walk
• Walk Alone
• Walk With a Dog
• Walk With a Purpose
• Climb Hills

As we usually walk alone, we’re taking a look at that chapter here:

“In all the hue and cry about our current pandemic of loneliness, it’s easy to overlook the importance of solitude. Recent studies content that living in our digitised, always-on society makes time alone more important than ever. Solitude – particularly when walking in nature – can be both rejuvenating and therapeutic. According to sociologist Jack Fong, time alone encourages us to confront who we are. When we remove ourselves from our usual social context, we gain perspective, we nature the relationship we have with our self. Fond, who takes a monthly solo hiking trip, believes solitude is as restorative and essential as exercise or healthy eating.”

We include this bit as doing anything by yourself in Western society is seen as a bit off. Whether going to the cinema alone or eating alone—no. YOU NEED SOMEONE WITH YOU! Otherwise you’re a Billy no-mates loser!

Complete nonsense, of course, which shows how deeply ingrained insecurities about alone time have become. Streets notes:

“A solo hike is a completely different experience from either a group ramble or a walk with a friend and I urge you to explore it. Walking solo is the ultimate in freedom. We can se off when we like, go where we like, at the time and pace that suits us, for as long – or short – as we like. We can stop when we want, for as long as we want. We can follow an enticing path, valley, trail, alley. Not needing to consult or consider, we are free to do exactly as we please.”

Yes, then, we encourage you to not be put off by heading out by yourself.

And this leads to the reason for all of this—the health benefits. 52 Ways to Walk was thoroughly well researched by Abbs and she covers the many, many health benefits of regular walking. Dr. Eric Berg covers the core ones below.

Alongside the physical benefits, the advantages for your mental health are through the roof. Now, a lot of the activities of your editor here, Mr. Wapojif of this site, keep him shacked up in a room alone like a manic—the writing, work, the blogging, films, video games etc.

He’s come to realise, at 38, the importance of setting time aside to get out.

Public health researcher Professor Devi Sridhar notes in The secret to why exercise is so good for mental health:

“When you’re feeling low, it’s tempting to do a Netflix binge, or spend hours scrolling on social media comparing others’ lives to yours, and feeling increasingly sad. This is especially true for teenagers. The antidote we know clearly from epidemiology and biology is to just get moving: whether it’s joining a team, going for a long walk, or finding a community gym or yoga class. You’ll certainly feel more hopeful afterwards.”

52 Ways to Walk: The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time is where it’s at, yo.

Over those 52 chapters you’ll discover a more conscientious way to walk. You’ll find out all about the science behind it and the importance of it in your life. And if you’re reading this and thinking “I rarely walk very much” or you drive your car everywhere, then here’s a chance to at least give it a go.

We don’t own a car. Never have done.

52 Ways to Walk reinforces our goal to keep it that way. Abbs writes in a lively and fun way, keeping you engaged, whilst also making you want to put the ruddy book down and head out into the wilderness.

It’s highly recommended for those looking for a new lease of life.

Try Out StepsApp to Track Stuff

On a final note, for your walking goals we can recommend StepsApp.

If you track everything over days, weeks, and months it makes the experience more fun. And you can see the results. The steps! The calories burned!

It really makes you feel better about your progress being able to look back and see what you’ve achieved. Try the app! It’s free to download and use.