WALK DOWNTOWN BELLEVUE

To walk or not to walk, is it a question? Walking may be the perfect exercise to improve your health. It burns about 100 calories per mile. Other benefits include improving endurance, flexibility, muscle tone and strengthening of bones—all without pounding your joints.

Walk Downtown Bellevue, a summer campaign organized by the Bellevue Downtown Association, returns June 24-August 29.

Join the movement along with our partners from Overlake Hospital, Group Health and the City of Bellevue to promote a healthier lifestyle and explore Downtown Bellevue by foot. Stop by any of our participating locations to pick up an official starter kit—which includes a complimentary pedometer courtesy of Overlake Hospital. The pedometer enables you to count your steps. For starter kit pick up locations visit www.bellevuedowntown.com/walk. Help us reach our goal of counting enough steps to walk around the world!

Find ways to incorporate walking into your everyday life—take stairs instead of the elevator, walk and don’t drive for those nearby errands.

* The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend walking for a total of at least 30 minutes per day, five days a week. Research has shown that the 30 minutes can be accumulated throughout the day. For optimal health benefits aim for 10,000 steps per day.

Health Benefits of Walking:

• Reduce risks of heart disease, stroke and diabetes
• Lowers high blood pressure
• Helps prevent arthritis, Alzheimer’s and depression
• Improves coronary circulation
• Alleviates lower back pain
• Improves your mood and sleep quality