Wednesday is National Walking Day! | Community Spirit

The premise behind National Walking Day is simple: lace up your sneakers and go for a walk. Walking is the easiest form of physical activity and has the lowest dropout rate of any form of exercise.

On this day, the American Heart Association will issue a nationwide call to action for Americans to adopt a healthy lifestyle. And we need your help.

Here’s why we must encourage Americans to live a healthier lifestyle:

• Heart disease is still the No. 1 killer of Americans age 20 and over.
• This means your audience - mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, friends and coworkers - are being affected at an alarming rate.
• Heart disease will kill one in three Americans, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Almost 80% of cardio events may be prevented through lifestyle modifications.

You can help us fight heart disease, and here’s how:

On Wednesday, April 4th, encourage the conversation around walking as a form of exercise.

Speaking Points:

• Seventy percent of Americans do not get enough exercise.
• Statistics show that 1 in 2 men, and 1 in 3 women are at risk for heart disease, and research shows that poor lifestyle is a major contributor.
• Eighty percent of cardiac events may be prevented if Americans make the right choices for their hearts, involving diet, exercise and abstinence from smoking.
• Almost 65 percent of American adults are overweight or obese.
• Less than one percent of the population meets American Heart Association criteria for ideal cardiovascular health.
• The workplace can play a key role in health and wellness. Americans work 164 more hours a year than two decades ago, and sedentary jobs have increased 83 percent since 1950.
• Health problems cost corporate America nearly $226 billion annually in productivity losses.
• Walking is the simplest and cheapest form of exercise and has the lowest dropout rate for any exercise program.
• We encourage everyone to get out and take a walk on April 4th for National Walking Day.

·         Viewers can visit www.heart.org/myheartmylife for more information.