May 2016 - Walking For Fitness (WFF) is a group of 30+ residents, ranging in ages from early 50s to late 80s. WFF team walkers make a strong effort to walk daily, but if not daily, at least six days a week. WFF team walkers walk around their Chula Vista neighborhoods during unscheduled walk days. On scheduled days for walking they meet at Norman Park Senior Center and the group walks around Downtown Chula Vista, and most Thursdays, the group meets at the J Street Marina Park or Plaza Bonita or locations suggested in advance by team walkers for off-site walking.
Each team walker has a different daily or weekly average for walking. Contributing factors are physical strength, endurance, overall health, and even life occurrences, such as family visiting from out of town. The program's goal is to increase steps by 2,000 from a base point. For example, there is a Coach who began the program walking 8,000 steps per day, while his wife's weekly goal was 1,800 steps. After six months, the Coach increased his steps 50% and his wife increased her weekly steps more than 200%.
Team walkers are open to walking indoors or outdoors, such as shopping centers, parks, golf courses, trails, city streets, and have begun organizing off-site walks on scheduled walk days, such as to the Tijuana Estuary and Balboa Park. A group of WFF team walkers participated in an early-morning neighborhood walk around a local school for the purpose of increasing visibility, hoping to encourage parents to walk children to school.
Many WFF team walkers note an increase in strength, energy, confidence, balance, but more importantly, the distraction found in group walking, the companionship shared with fellow walkers and a sense of security knowing you are with a group.
To learn more or get involved please email Juan Ramirez - [email protected]
