If you are fortunate to have a mama, a kind and generous stepmother, or a friend or neighbor you love and adore like a mom, you will most likely want to spoil her with a special treat or favor this Mother’s Day. Thankfully, Valentine’s Day chocolates are no longer gracing the shelves this month, so you can steer clear of tempting your mom with diet sabotaging junk food. To add to the splendor of giving, you can even find something to give that gives back to you in a healthy and satisfying kind of way.

The following are five things you can give, or do, that will not only be well received by your “mom,” they will also healthfully benefit you in return.

Mow the lawn

However dull and boring this Mother’s Day gift idea may sound, a fresh cut yard is food for the soul. Your mom may be spending all of her waking hours planting flowers and preparing the garden, so having help with the lawn will be much appreciated. And to complete the good deed, you will get a refreshing workout in return, and it will leave you both feeling satisfied and happy.

Wash the windows

I know what you are thinking. You think this blogger is telling you to do all of the housework for your mother. Yes and no. Window washing isn’t something that goes unnoticed, and the joys of looking out through clean windows will prevail long after Mother’s Day has past. And yes, your benefit is a workout for your upper body and balance. What could be better than that?
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If you’re not the long-distance running, or even jogging type, there’s good news concerning the benefits of walking. New studies are showing that just 30 minutes a day can be extremely beneficial.

The benefits of regular, brisk walking include stronger bones, regulated blood sugar levels, and lowered blood pressure and cholesterol. And California-based health plan Kaiser Permanente has launched an educational campaign called EverybodyWalk to spread the word.

The idea is this: While many people have clung tight to the idea that in order to be healthy, they have to walk 10,000 steps a day – which equates to about 5 miles – that isn’t necessarily true. It takes almost two hours to hit the 10,000-step mark. But aiming for 30 minutes a day at a challenging pace is more than sufficient, says Kaiser Permanente executive Ray Baxter, PhD, who not only backs the idea up, but has adopted the practice for he and his employees as well.

“We actually do have walking meetings at Kaiser Permanente, believe it or not,” says Baxter. “My team is pretty productive, so it must be working.
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Are liberals doing more walking than conservatives? If a recent story on ‘The Crisis in American Walking‘ from The Slate is accurate, potentially yes.

But before we get all political and step on toes, maybe it’s not conservatives’ fault. Perhaps the fault lies on the cities in which they live.

Tom Vanderbilt, author of the above mentioned article, investigated why more Americans aren’t walking, why other countries are walking more, and how the decline in walking is affecting our health.

It all began at a highway safety conference in Savannah, Georgia. After attending a class on pedestrian safety, Vanderbilt spiraled into all-out investigation mode on the topic of pedestrians in America, and how the pedestrian has become some odd being traveling on foot instead of by car, horse or plane.

When crossing the street after the class, Vanderbilt noted looking up and seeing a “Stop for Pedestrians” sign and, finding the whole thing odd, thought, “Why not just write: ‘Stop for People?’” What has walking in America become? A hazard? A rarity?

The experience got him thinking, and he began researching the topic, which resulted in a four-part series on the topic of walking in America and why it’s become a problem and point of fixation for many. It seems people either do it or they don’t. And it shows in the way their cities are designed and laid out.
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Tomorrow is National Walk to Work Day. Do you have your best walking shoes ready? We hope so, because walking has been proven to be one of the best forms of exercise for our physical and mental health.

We love that walking is one of the few workouts we can do that doesn’t require any fancy or expensive equipment. And it provides such great health benefits as overall body tone, weight loss and weight management, and reduced risk of cancer and heart disease. Plus, just about anyone can get out and walk as it’s a low-impact aerobic exercise, which makes it a great activity for everyone at any age.

Just in case you need more motivation to participate tomorrow, here are five benefits that walking provides, as well as five simple ways to start walking more often.
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Have you ever considered that being healthier could be as simple as a 30-minute daily walk? Renowned integrative medicine pioneer, Dr. Andrew Weil, believes this whole heartedly, which is why he and Australian podiatrist Phillip Vasyli have devoted an entire shoe line and month-long event to the cause.

The event is called ‘Walkabout: a 28-Day Quest for Good Health,’ and it kicked off March 27th via a virtual press conference. At the media event, Weil and Vasyli shared about the campaign and their ultimate hope for the Walkabout.

The pair’s goal is to get people out there and moving. “The [concept] is very simple, doesn’t cost a lot of money or require a lot of time, and yields great results,” said Weil.

Anyone can participate. You simply get out and walk 30 minutes everyday during the 28-day event. The campaign has also brought on 50 brand ambassadors from across the U.S.  to promote the event and encourage participants toward their goals by sharing their daily activity via their personal blogs and social media accounts.
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