Walk to Work Day

Media release: Friday September 6 2024

Walk to work - and away from heart disease!

Walk to Work Day – Friday September 6 2024

The Heart Foundation is encouraging people to step up to the challenge of walking to work, as the benefit of walking is highlighted on Walk to Work Day.

The annual event, held this Friday 6 September, encourages employees and employers to build regular walking into their daily routines.

Heart disease remains Australia’s leading cause of death, but it’s largely preventable through lifestyle changes including increased physical activity, such as walking.

According to the latest National Health Survey, only 1 in 5 five (22.4%) adults aged 18–64 years meet the recommended levels of physical activity set out in the Australian Physical Activity Guidelines.

The Heart Foundation’s Senior Physical Activity Advisor, Elizabeth Calleja, said walking for an average of 30 minutes or more a day can lower the risk of developing heart disease and stroke by 35 per cent and Type 2 diabetes by 40 per cent.

“The Heart Foundation encourages everyone to walk regularly, as we know that daily walking at a moderate pace lowers your risk of developing heart disease. This can help you manage your blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and reduce your risk of a heart attack,” Ms Calleja said.

“Walking is free, fun and can be a great social activity to connect you with your local community. Plus, it’s good for your heart health and your mind.”

The research is in: walking wins!

Heart Foundation Funded Researcher Verity Cleland, an Associate Professor at the University of Tasmania’s Menzies Institute for Medical Research, is researching the barriers and enablers which help people improve their cardiovascular health through walking and cycling for transport.

A/Prof Cleland said walking for heart health was about shifting traditional mindsets when it came to daily exercise.

“Walking to work is a great way to incorporate incidental exercise into your day,” she said.

“Adding these small amounts of physical activity into your day can really be a great way to build up your weekly physical activity total.”

Walking can be flexible – even if you can’t walk to work

A/Prof Cleland said people were more likely to start and continue physical activities such as walking if it was easy to fit into their lives.

“For a lot of people, walking the whole way to work might not be an option. You can try driving and parking a bit further away and walking the rest of the journey or using public transport and getting off a stop earlier and walking the rest,” she said.

“Exercise doesn’t have to be another thing to add to the list, we can flip the narrative so that physical activity is part of who we are and what we do.

“Walking is a great way to get to and from work without giving exercise too much thought.”

The Heart Foundation recently launched its ‘Walking Wins’ campaign, designed to encourage 400,000 Australians to get moving for a healthy mind, body and heart. Free and easy to join, Heart Foundation Walking is Australia’s largest free walking program supporting individuals and groups on the path to better health.

For a free Personal Walking Plan or to join a local walking group, visit walking.heartfoundation.org.au.