How Living Near Green Spaces Improves Health

Via Children and Nature Network.  Photo Credit: Federico Stevanin

A 2008 study from the UK found that people who lived near parks and greenery had better mental and physical health outcomes than those in areas with little or no access to green spaces.  Those with access to green spaces had lower rates of heart disease.  Living near green spaces increases the likelihood that one will exercise and take time to unwind.  Those on low incomes tend to be in poorer health than those of higher incomes.  However, the study shows that green spaces buffer health differences between income groups.  People of lower income who lived near green spaces reported health outcomes similar to those of people with higher incomes.  Previous studies suggest that just 5 minutes of exercise in green spaces helps to improve mental health and mood.  Even more motivation to go walking in all the trails Port Coquitlam has to offer!

How to Help Communties Through Service Learning

Via TED

Emily Pilloton, founder of Project H Design, moved to rural Bertie County, North Carolina to help create a service based learning course for the local high school. Service learning provides students with the opportunity to apply course knowledge to real life though hands-on experience. Pilloton's course teaches principles of design and puts these skills to use through community projects. For one project, students created a "Learning Landscape" that combines physical activity and math. The class researches the needs of the community before building and constructs projects with users in mind. We have written about service learning before here.

Will There Be a Bike Share Program in Port Coquitlam, Too?

Via City of Vancouver

Recently, Vancouver residents saw a demonstration of a bike share program from Montreal called Bixi.  Bike stations located all across Montreal provide the public with affordable rental bikes for short trips usually between 5 and 30 minutes in length.  Bike share programs help calm traffic and boost physical activity.  Vancouver city officials are planning to create a similar program here in the Lower Mainland.  Problems with other systems that must be solved include theft, damage, and cycling safety in the city.  Cycling is a great way to stay fit, keep active, and improve health.  Let's hope Port Coquitlam jumps on the bandwagon, too!  We already have bike lanes!

How to Make Exercise Fun

The Fun Theory is a Swedish group who believe that something as "simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behavior for the better."  If the stairs were this fun, no one would take the escalator.

How to Build Exercise into Your Day: Cycling

Building cycling paths in a community is a sure way to motivate people to embrace daily exercise.  Cycling, walking, rollerblading, and running improve heart and lung health and aid in weight loss when combined with a healthy diet.

In 2007, the City of Port Coquitlam adopted a "Master Pedestrian and Bicycle Plan".  Since then, cycling paths, bike-accessible crossing signals, signed cycling routes, and multi-use paths have been built to encourage residents to use alternate forms of transportation.

Cycling safely to and from school, work, and the grocery store helps to improve fitness.  Building physical activity into your day increases the chances that you will stick with your plan.

Click here to plan your daily route using non-motorized transit.