Bushwalking for health

The rallying call of "let's go for a walk" heralded adventurous family outings in his youth, writes Sam Watson.  

My fondest memories of childhood were going for bushwalks with my cousins and our elders. It was an incredibly ‘spur-of-the-moment’ logistical operation.

These adventures happened on weekends and usually after we (the kids) were being a little high-spirited and unhelpful to the general peace of the family house.

“Right you kids…let’s go for a walk!”, Dad or one of the elders would sing out.

These walks would take anything up to 3 hours, one or two of us might have had a hat and going barefoot was the norm.  Even though we covered the same ground during these walks hundreds of times, none of us knocked back the opportunity to explore.

As an adult with my own family, I've continued these adventures.

I've always found bushwalking more enjoyable when it is a little unorganised. My basic necessities are a good pair of covered shoes, a water bottle and a cap. I like to find a stick (pictured) because I don’t like snakes and the occasional mangy dog quite often frequents the bush in which we walk, so safety is still a priority to consider.

The tracks I cover each weekend with my kids are only 10 minutes from the city and walking distance from home.

These walks are perfect for us.

I am recovering from a long-term health condition, so I’m not keen on trekking miles in the car to find an interesting trail. And my youngest fulla is only 2 and half years old. We can exercise all morning and arrive back at home so he can fit in a little midday sleep. Our outing doesn’t require much strategic planning at all! 

If you are interested though in professional adventure organisations, we found Brisbane Bushwalkers on the internet. This is a membership organisation with a yearly fee of $25. The website illustrates the extensive hikes that this group undertake.

But if you’re like me and living on a budget, you’ll be happily surprised what kind of adventures you can find whilst exploring your own neighbourhood!

Did you know regular physical activity is good for your heart because it helps minimise the risk factors associated with heart disease? 

As an example, if you're overweight, it increases your risk of a heart attack.  Regular physical activity can help you maintain a healthy weight. Other benefits to regular physical activity are: improved cholesterol levels, blood pressure and strong bones and muscles.

The National Physical Activity Guidelines recommends 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity daily to gain the health benefits.

"But I never have time to exercise"

If you're a busy person, finding 30 minutes to be active may be a challenge.

Damien O'Sullivan from the Heart Foundation says there are simple ways you can be active if you are time-poor.

"I actually try and incorporate it in the way I get to work on a daily basis, " he says.

"For example, riding my bike to work or getting off a station early."

Damien says he also uses public transport to get to meetings because it provides opportunties to walk.   

Image courtesy of Artur84 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

A huge thank you to all of you who took the time to complete our Move survey by 98.9FM and the Brisbane Indigenous Media Association. Your feedback was valuable and welcomed.

We offered $50 gift cards to five survey respondents picked at random.

Here's the winner's list:

R Fagen, Woodridge; D De Bree, Burpengary; J Eggmolesse, Kingston; T Kapor, Forest Lake; and A Wilson, Crestmead.

Congratulations!

Move is funded under the Australia Government Department of Health and Ageing's Local Community Campaigns which aims to address the prevalence of  chronic diseases amongst Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. 

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