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http://www.railstotrails.org/trailblog/?author=Elissa+Southward
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Posts by Elissa Southward

Five Great Trail Activities and Their Health Benefits

Posted 01/27/20 by Suzanne Matyas, Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Encouraging Trail Use, Facts and FIgures, Health and Active Living, Healthy Aging, Trail Use Tips, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?, Winter Uses

When it comes to being physically active, trails provide a wide range of outdoor activities to keep us motivated year-round. Each activity has unique pluses; the key is to find one that’s right for you! Here are five fitness-forward trail activities that will help you embrace a healthy lifestyle and have a ton of fun in the process.

Photo CC One Planet Adventure

Five Health Tips for a Happier Holiday

Posted 12/17/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Health and Active Living, How-to, Winter Uses

Use these five fun tips from RTC to make sure you're healthy, high energy and happy during the holiday season. And remember, there's no place like a trail for the holidays...

Photo © Bike&Walk Montclair

So Simple, So Good: New Jersey Community Puts Play at the Heart of Local Health Initiative

Posted 10/27/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Health Organizations, New Jersey, Schools and Young People

In Montclair, N.J., an initiative called Eat. Play. Live...Better is having an important impact in encouraging people to be more active in their daily lives, and to make healthy eating choices.

Photo CC Mark Stosberg via Flickr

Tackling Obesity Head On: Hospitals and Trail Groups Team Up to Fight Obesity

Posted 09/24/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Health Organizations, Pennsylvania, Success Stories

Health leaders in Pennsylvania acknowledge the importance of increasing physical activity in the fight against obesity, and in the Philadelphia region, they are tackling the issue head on.

Photo CC Five Rivers MetroParks via Flickr

Don't Take the Road Toward Health This Summer. Take the Trail!

Posted 07/23/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Champions, Encouraging Trail Use, State and Federal Programs, Tennessee

Walking is a great (and free!) way to get outdoors and get some exercise! Walking is associated with reductions in risk of dementia, type 2 diabetes, obesity, cancer (breast and colon in particular) and cardiovascular disease. Furthermore, being outdoors and around greenery can help with concentration and stress recovery, and sunlight on the skin leads to vitamin D production, which helps fight off cancer, osteoporosis and heart attacks.

Photo CC Rudi Riet via Flickr

Get Out On the Trail in Celebration of Great Outdoors America Week!

Posted 06/20/14 by Elissa Southward in Trail Use, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Community Events, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living

June 23 to 26, 2014, is Great Outdoors America Week in Washington, D.C.! As one of the largest annual conservation and outdoor-focused events in the District, Great Outdoors America Week, or GO Week for short, brings together hundreds of diverse organizations and activists to meet with lawmakers and government reps. and advocate for an outdoor way of life. Throughout the week, many organizations also take the opportunity to hold events that raise awareness of, and celebrate, nature and the outdoors.

Photo CC cursedthing via Flickr

Biking, Walking Projects to Help Make Rochester, Minn., International Wellness Community

Posted 04/09/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness, Success Stories | Tagged with Health Organizations, Minnesota, Trail Communities

Recently, Jay Walljasper published an article in the Minnesota Post about the city of Rochester’s plan to target overall wellness through collaborative efforts with the Mayo Clinic, the state of Minnesota and Olmsted County.

Photo CC Bike Texas via Flickr

International Report Calls for Greater Investment in Cycling-Friendly Infrastructure, Policies

Posted 03/25/14 by Elissa Southward in Policy | Tagged with Products of Good Policy, Transportation and Health

At the end of last year, the International Transport Forum (ITF) Working Group on Cycling Safety released a report titled, "Cycling, Health and Safety." This report has put forth that the positive benefits of cycling (e.g., increased physical activity, impact on mortality and chronic disease, reduction in carbon emissions from motorized transportation) far outweigh the risks (e.g., crash injury risk to cyclists, health reduction from breathing in polluted air in an urban environment).

Photos © Chickaro Martin

D.C. Fitness Expert Gets Kids Fit Through Fun

Posted 02/17/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Capital Trails Coalition, District Of Columbia, Schools and Young People, Urban Pathways, Why Use Trails?

Chickaro Martin and RTC recently teamed up to work with students at D.C. Prep School on ways they can incorporate the Metropolitan Branch Trail—which runs right by their playground—into their play time and daily routines.

A relaxed bicycle ride on the beach | Photo courtesy Kim Seng, CC by 2.0

Top 7 Reasons Happy Hearts = Healthy Hearts

Posted 02/14/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Health and Active Living, Why Use Trails?

In celebration of Valentine’s Day, we'd like to take the opportunity to focus on emotional heart health, which recently has been proven and recognized as having a profound impact on physical heart health in a number of different ways…for example, did you know…?

Tomorrow Is National Wear Red Day

Posted 02/06/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Health Organizations

As American Heart Month continues this February, RTC wanted to let you know about National Wear Red Day®, which takes place tomorrow, Feb. 7, 2014. On this special day (always the first Friday each February), both the American Heart Association and President Barack Obama are encouraging everyone to wear red to raise awareness of the fight against female heart disease.

Get Heart Healthy This February on America's Trails

Posted 01/31/14 by Elissa Southward in Health and Wellness | Tagged with Why Use Trails?

Here at Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, we understand the undeniably important connection between our nation’s vast trail systems and our nation’s heart health. And it’s this connection that has inspired us to join and help lead this conversation, this February and year-round, to fight for healthier communities across America.

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