Walking to Wellness this Winter
If you need to find the motivation to get out and about this winter, you may be surprised at just how little activity you need to do to boost your health and wellbeing.
Recent government and NHS studies across the UK have consistently found that around a third of us are what is classed as “physically inactive”, that is doing less than 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week.
There is a lot of evidence that even a short walk of just 10 minutes can have some pretty major benefits when done regularly. According to Public Health England the benefits of walking include increased physical fitness, healthier weight and a 15% reduction in risk of early death. Plus, if you have existing health conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes or lower back pain, just 10 minutes of daily brisk walking can help the management of those conditions too.
In 2019, Public Health England identified that keeping physically active can reduce your risk of:
● Type 2 diabetes by 40%
● Cardiovascular disease by 35%
● Breast cancer by 20%
● Colon cancer by 30%
● Dementia by 30%
This is reflected in statistics from medical journal The Lancet’s 2020 Global Health report, which suggest that physical activity prevents 26,600 premature deaths in the UK per year.
And it’s not just your physical health that can benefit from regular walks, according to mental health charity Mind; “Being physically active helps people manage stress, anxiety and intrusive thoughts. It can also help improve self-esteem and mood.”
This is further backed up by Public Health England, who have stated that regular physical activity can also reduce your risk of becoming depressed by 30%.
There can be some downsides to walking too, especially if you’re not used to it. A lot of walking can result in uncomfortable blisters, even with the best brands of footwear. New boots and shoes are especially likely to rub and cause pain for the first few days or weeks. So, whether you’re breaking in this season’s latest boots, shoes or trainers, or just getting out and about more to stay active over the coming months, it’s important to get prepared in order to keep those blisters away.
“We found that existing blister products weren’t as easy to use or effective as they could be”. So says Nick Thompson, Director of Sheffield-based Zurego Ltd. “Blister plasters can be fiddly and often rub off, and socks which claim to be ‘anti-blister’ often are just a slightly thicker material, so we went about creating a range that delivers on its promises and helps all levels of walkers and sportspeople to stay comfortable.”
Blis-Sox® are soft, flexible, open-toed undersocks which are lined around the heel with a tough but highly flexible thermoplastic elastomer gel. The gel stays in place on the skin, absorbing and dissipating friction, impact and pressure to ensure that you can focus on your surroundings, not your painful heels. Customer feedback for Blis-Sox® is impressive, scoring an average of 4.5 out of 5 from buyer reviews on a leading online store.
Blis-Toes® use the same hi-tec flexible gel as Blis-Sox®, but are shaped specifically to protect toes. Each pack contains 2 large and 2 regular Blis-Toes comfort sleeves to suit pretty much any circumstances.
Each Blis-Toes® sleeve can be cut to size, and they really do fit even the most unique feet! Put them on before you head out or slip one on at the first sign of rubbing to ensure that blisters don’t become a pain in the… er… toe!
Blis-BloxTM are amazing self-adhesive gel patches which stay put without any actual glue. The ultra smart gel holds onto skin so you can place the patch wherever you need it, yet it comes off painlessly leaving no sticky residue, and it won’t rip out all your hair like a regular plaster will!
Great for the tops of feet, under laces and boot-tops, or even under rucksack straps to protect shoulders.
All in all, they may be the simplest and most effective weapon against blisters you can buy.