Our Mobile Health Centre, one of the practical tools of this year's campaign - definitely about action not just words!
For the privileged elite who read this Blog here's a link to our new Campaign website which will be publicised later this week ahead of the launch event on 8 May.
The website gives you everything you need to know about the campaign plus a host of useful links which cover:
● sourcing and preparing healthy, high quality, good value food
● finding ways to become more active
● getting the right support from health professionals to stay well.
Plus there's a page setting out what politicians, policy makers and health professionals can do to support us.
And here's another practical tool which will be available for users and carers from the Launch onwards...
A pedometer has three qualities which make it the diametric opposite to a rowing machine: it costs very little; you are actually likely to make use of it; and it makes you feel good rather than sitting in the corner unused and making you feel guilty and inadequate.
A quite ambitious target is to achieve 10,000 steps in a day but if you can't do that straightaway you can immediately start measuring and celebrating what you can achieve and build up from there.
My hot tip for car drivers is to park for free outside the city centre and walk in. If it takes 25 minutes to walk in and 25 back you will do about 5,000 steps and save yourself a few pounds from the exorbitant parking charge to buy some healthy food - perhaps new season UK asparagus or a nice lean lamb steak (both on offer at Tesco this week) - and have a second helping because you have done the exercise!
I know the nearest places to park free in Swansea (Brunswick Street) and Cardiff (Gordon Road) - not very far out actually and big savings - but Carmarthen is a swine: the Council seems to have tracked down all my favourite places and slapped a half hour limit on them. Best bet is to park at Tesco and walk in (but you are supposed to buy something at Tesco of course - see above for some ideas).
