by Councillor Maggie McTernan

How far have you walked this week?

Maybe you’ve got a fitbit, or an app on your phone, that tells you how many steps you’ve done – probably not as many as you hoped.

Maybe you take the dog for a walk every day, come rain or shine. Or maybe, like me, you always mean to walk more than you do, but other things get in the way.

Sometimes it’s time pressure. There’s so much to do so there’s no time to fit in a walk. And it’s just so much easier to jump in the car – I can always take a walk tomorrow.

But when tomorrow comes, the weather is not great, and it might rain later, so I’ll just leave it. And days pass, and I’ve still not gone for that walk.

I don’t need to tell you the physical health benefits of walking. It’s the easiest form of exercise, and even better, it’s completely free. But it’s not just physical health, walking is good for our mental health too.

Getting out into the fresh air, spending time in the natural environment, can help with symptoms of mental ill health – what you might call a “green prescription”.

We are blessed in Glasgow with one of the best municipal park systems in the UK, and it’s only half an hour on the train to the highlands, if you want something more challenging.

Still, half of adults in the UK walk less than a mile a day. So how do we change that?

Well, if you’ll excuse the pun, start with small steps. If you regularly use your car, why not make one journey a week on public transport? And when you’re on the bus, get off a stop or two early, to walk that little bit more.

If you want others to walk with, there are plenty of walking groups in Glasgow – if you go to Dumbarton Road Corridor Environment Trust website, you’ll find information about what’s going on in the west of Glasgow.

What are you waiting for? Get walking – but remember, we are in Glasgow, so don’t forget your brolly.