Tag Archives: Walking

The Dangers of Texting and Walking

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If you text while crossing the road, you might not make it to the other side. That’s because pedestrians who text or talk on their phones are less cautious and walk more slowly than undistracted walkers, according to a new study published in the journal Injury Prevention.

Researchers monitored 1,102 walkers at 20 different intersections in Seattle, Washington. They found that one out of every three people used their phones to talk, listen to music, or text while they crossed the street. On average, music listeners walked slightly faster than undistracted pedestrians, but texters took 18 percent longer to cross the street. Moreover, the texters were nearly four times more likely to disobey traffic signals, cross mid-intersection, or walk without looking both ways—an obvious recipe for disaster. Worse yet: Women were twice as likely as men to exhibit at least one unsafe crossing behavior.

Not surprisingly, previous studies have found that while people know it’s dangerous to walk or drive while using a phone, they continue to do it. No wonder the Centers for Disease Control estimate that 4,000 pedestrians are killed every year, and another 60,000 are injured.

One surefire way to enhance your roadside safety is to power down while you’re in transit. But if imminent danger alone doesn’t convince you to keep your phone in your pocket, maybe this will: it’s rude to talk or text while you walk. To minimize insult to injury, ask yourself these questions before you next use your phone on the go:

1. “Is someone walking behind me?”
When your eyes are on your screen, your feet move more slowly, and you’re more likely to collide with or hold up the person behind you. “Any time you are inconveniencing, slowing down, or nearly bumping into someone else as a result of an activity conducted for your own convenience, you are, in fact, being rude,” says Thomas Farley, author of Modern Manners: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Social Graces and the blog, What Manners Most. In crowded areas, find a side street that’s less congested before you text or talk.

2. “Can I express myself clearly right now?”
While you’re walking, your mind is more likely to be focused on your destination than the person you are communicating with. Not only can a thoughtless text misconstrue your message, but a text laced with typos shows you just don’t care, says Farley. Instead of pounding out of a message on the go, think about what you’d like to say while you walk, and write it out later.

3. “Should I call instead of text?”
While text messages are the perfect medium for sending brief notes (“C u there @ 6?”) it’s best to discuss complex matters on the phone, says Farley. Unlike writing a text message, making a phone call leaves your eyes free to focus on the road and other obstacles (like moving people). That said, don’t assume that your friend is free to talk whenever you are. Using the instructions above, send a quick text to ask if she has time to chat, and arrange to call her at a convenient time—ideally when you’re not in transit.

4. “Can I wait to make this call?”
Avoid phone conversations when you’re standing shoulder-to-shoulder with strangers; unless your news is relevant to all, your voice is an unwelcome distraction. If your call can wait–and most calls can, says Farley—but your message is urgent, text it instead: Veer away from pedestrian and road traffic. Then stop walking, and switch off your phone keyboard sounds, and text away.

photo: Baerbel Schmidt/Digital Vision/Thinkstock

More from WH:
WTF Does His Text Message Mean?
The Depressing Truth About Your Smartphone
Are You Allergic to Your Smartphone?

Look Better Naked: Buy the book to learn how to look (and feel!) your very best.

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The Exercise You Can Do Until You’re 71 (Hint: It’s Not Walking)

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Want to be fit enough to have reason to use our best sex position finder well into your 70s? Then there’s one kind of workout you should be practicing today, tomorrow, and fifty years from now: Yoga.

Just ask Martha Stewart (yes, that Martha Stewart), who practiced her poses amid many fans in Grand Central’s Vanderbilt Hall in New York City this morning to kick off her American Made celebration honoring new business owners and artisans who’ve followed in her footsteps to make careers out of their passions. Stewart, who is 71 years old, says she hits the yoga mat as often as possible. After all, she says her stay-young secret is, “Exercise, exercise, exercise. And diet, diet, diet.”

Martha Stewart says "Om" with her long-time yoga instructor James Murphy of the Iyengar Yoga Institute of New York

As it happens, Stewart may be onto something with her yoga practice (which, for the record, is pretty damn near perfect). She typically gravitates toward Iyengar yoga, which emphasizes precision and alignment, as opposed to higher-intensity Vinyasa or power yoga, which could do wonders for women in their 30s and 40s, but may lead to injury once existing conditions such as weak muscles, brittle bones, or wrist, shoulder, or lower back issues set in as we age, says Kathryn Budig, Women’s Health yoga expert.

While your practice may—and should—evolve as you age, one thing’s for sure: the benefits of yoga are life-long. Here, three reasons to “om” your way to better health, starting now.

You’ll smile more
It’s no secret that doing any kind of exercise can elevate your mood, but a 2010 study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine found that those who did three 60-minute yoga sessions a week for 12-weeks saw greater improvements in their mood and anxiety, compared to subjects who participated in a metabolically-matched walking program. The next time a rainy day or bad mood leaves you lacking motivation to tackle the great outdoors by foot, stay in. Pop in a yoga DVD and you might find that you feel better.

You’ll eat more healthy foods
In a 2009 Australian study published in the journal Qualitative Health Research, obese women who participated in a 12-week yoga program reported consuming less food, eating at a slower pace, and making all-around better food choices throughout the study. Because yoga emphasizes the mind-body connection, performing pose sequences can result in you consciously treating your body better even off the mat, perhaps helping you eat more mindfully. And that’s a good thing, considering that the average middle-aged women gains a little more than a pound a year, according to the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health survey of over 8,000 women between the ages of 45 and 55, published in Obesity in 2005. Jump on the yoga bandwagon to help keep the scale numbers stable over time. (Need a quick fix? Try one of these six one-day diet solutions.)

You’ll kick chronic pain to the curb
If schlepping your mat, calming your mind, and stretching your bod sound to you like a pain in the ass, listen up: A 2008 study published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine found that yoga can actually help to alleviate chronic pain—at least in the lower back. Compared to chronic lower back pain suffers who participated in a week-long physical exercise regimen, those who participated in a seven-day yoga-based lifestyle program (including poses, breathing exercises, meditation, some schooling on the philosophies of yoga—the whole shebang) more effectively reduced pain-related disabilities and improved spinal flexibility. Now, about those sex positions…

photo: Janie Airey/Lifesize/Thinkstock

More from WH:
Fit Celebrities’ Workouts
The Best Yoga Exercises for Women
Yoga for Athletes
Look Better Naked Workout

Look Better Naked: Buy the book to learn how to look (and feel!) your very best.

 

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