Cash strapped Brits focus on free activities to boost health and wellbeing

With the recession still biting at the heels of consumers across the UK, savvy Brits are turning to free healthy activities such as walking and running to improve their health and fitness. Research from PruHealth, the insurer that rewards healthy behaviour, found that almost a third (27%) of us are focusing on doing free forms of exercise such as walking, compared to just 14 per cent in 2008.

Further insight from PruHealth's customer Fitbug pedometer data has discovered that walking is a popular form of exercise in summer but unsurprisingly this tails off as the seasons change into autumn and winter; Fitbug found the average number of daily steps taken by adults in winter 2011 was only 8845 compared to 9479 in summer 2011.

As we are set to have a particularly spectacular and colourful autumn due to the wet summer and warm weather, PruHealth and the National Trust have joined forces to launch the Great British Walk.  It aims to encourage people to put their best foot forward and venture out into the great British countryside to discover and enjoy special places.  A series of events, activities and trails are taking place at National Trust properties across the country from now until 4th November, so look for the walks in your area.

Dr Katie Tryon, head of clinical Vitality at PruHealth said: "The health benefits of walking span across several different areas of our wellbeing including physical, mental and social wellbeing. Thirty minutes of brisk walking each day can help reduce the risk of coronary heart disease, maintain a healthy weight, improve self-esteem, reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety as well as being an activity that can be enjoyed on your own or with others.

"At PruHealth we have found that our members who engage in monitoring their walking are a third less likely to claim on their health insurance. The crisp autumn air and leaves crunching under foot are lovely reasons to get outdoors and raise our heartbeats. The Great British Walk is a fantastic way to kick-start your walking goals and get the whole family active."

Further information and details of hundreds of routes for all abilities are available to download for free from nationaltrust.org.uk/greatbritishwalk, where families can get also involved by uploading details of their favourite walks.  Once submitted the walk will appear on a map and users will be able to share the walks that they have nominated via twitter using the hashtag #GBwalk.