Step out at SWFC
 
SWFC CP Walking for Health
 

The Walking for Health Initiative started in 1996 when a GP, Dr. William Bird was trying to get his patients moving more.  It became a national movement in 1998 with a pilot set up to get more people taking part in exercise.  For many people, starting exercising is a daunting prospect - they may be overweight, suffering from a heart condition or high blood pressure, or just a bit shy.  Making that first move to get out of the door and do something can be very difficult.
Walking for Health aims to provide a friendly environment where a walker can join a group of people and be welcomed to walk at whatever speed and for whatever distance they want.  Within Sheffield, Sheffield Health Walks was one of those pilot schemes set up in 1999.  In 2012, support for Walking for Health moved over to the Ramblers (with funding from Macmillan and later the National Lottery), and in 2016 the City Council withdrew funding for health walks in Sheffield.
Step Out Sheffield was formed to manage the 22 health walks who wanted to carry on being in Walking for Health, with Sue Lee (previously employed by the Council) taking the role of Chairman (and generally organising things)
By 2018, they had grown to 28 walks when SWFC Community Programme approached them for help organising a walk from their Stadium. It was envisaged that this walk would be at the top end of the Health Walk spectrum, aimed at people who still needed the exercise but who could walk for more than the 50 to 60 minutes which most SOS walks abide by.
In 2020, SWFC CP and the walkers on TWWOT decided they wanted a bit more freedom to challenge themselves, as they were regularly pushing the 3 mile or 90 minute restrictions imposed by Ramblers on Walking for Health walks, so Step Out at SWFC was launched.
If you want to join one of our walks, just turn up. A list of the walks can be found on the Schedule page.
Just arrive 10 minutes before the walk starts and introduce yourself to a leader.
One of the mantras for Walking for Health is that walking is free - and you can do it any time. Instead of sitting watching television, get out there and walk. A good pair of shoes is all you need (although other clothes are advised, especially in winter). 

Obviously some people walk faster than others, but medical advice is that to be beneficial a walk should be 'brisk' - and the easiest way to define brisk is that you should just be able to hold a conversation while walking, without running out of breath - so you might want to walk with a friend or you’ll end up talking to yourself! Of course, there are times when you will want to stop talking and just listen to the skylarks - we can recommend some walks for that as well.

Always start exercise gently, warm up the muscles with a few stretches, and stretch again at the end. Walking is a low impact exercise so there’s no need for lots of preparation but always take the first and last five minutes of the walk more gently, then stride out in the middle.

If you are doing these walks alone, take a mobile phone. You're not out in the wilds, but if you twist an ankle it can be a long hobble home (don't forget the taxi fare as well, just in case).
Other walking for Health walks can be found at https://www.walkingforhealth.org.uk




 












just making sure we have a vertical scroll bar, otherwise it jitters sideways.