GAITHERSBURG, MD – When Penny Johnson-Knowles learned recently that she has diabetes, she wanted to find a way to both manage the disease and stay fit. Walking was her solution.
But she didn’t want to do it alone. So she asked co-workers at Sodexo, a food service and facilities management company headquartered in suburban Washington, to spend part of their lunch hour walking with her on the trail behind her company building.
Wednesday’s National Start! Walking Day gave Johnson-Knowles the chance to kick-start that plan. The American Heart Association created the idea to encourage Americans to get more exercise. Start Walking Day events were staged around the country in communities, on college campuses and at workplaces.
Walking events were
Close to 100 employees at Sodexo left their office chairs for half an hour to stroll outside with Johnson-Knowles. Sodexo Chief Operating Officer Patrick Connolly said he hopes that his company’s Gaithersburg office will raise $2 million for the American Heart Association’s effort.
One of Johnson-Knowles’ colleagues, Deidra Agbro, was excited about the walk.
“Most of our jobs are a sit-down position,” Agbro said. “We need to get out, stretch and get our heart pumping.”
Patty MacEwan, the senior director of the Start! Program in the Washington area, said walking is the most accessible form of exercise. Fewer individuals are likely to stop walking as a form of exercise than running or biking.
“It has the lowest drop-out rate,” she said.
And Johnson-Knowles said the benefits of setting aside the time to walk each day will not only help her manage her diabetes, but the quality of her life.
“You don’t realize…how much 30 minutes will do,” she said. “It’s for your personal health, the health care situation, saving money, being there for your kids, encouraging your kids to do it. … It’s just community involvement.”
The American Heart Association will hold another walking event — National Walk Day — on Nov. 6.