Put Your Best Foot Forward

Early January is a time full of promise and expectation. It can be uncomfortable time when individuals recognise that they have spent and perhaps eaten too much.

Walking can be one of the most accessible ways of getting in shape. The website walking.org quotes the World Health Organisation as saying that: "A walker loses weight, lowers cholesterol, reduces conditions associated with hypertension, slows aging and the decline of aerobic capacity, increases strength, flexibility and balance, strengthens bones and increases stamina."

There are times when using a car versus heading out on foot is sensible, i.e. when you are going to undertake a weekly shop at the supermarket. There are times when walking is a good alternative - both cost wise and environmentally. Take sightseeing, for example.

Some of the most attractive parts of our towns and cities, like the Shambles in York, are only accessible to pedestrians. Similarly, many parts of London and Edinburgh are best explored on foot.

There are five Walk Talk Tours of London. Each audio tour guide is downloadable in MP3 format and comes complete with a free tour plan for listeners to print out.

Each London audio tour guide is available in French, German and Spanish.

Each walking tour is composed of commentary points. Listeners hear about a particular attraction and then receive instructions on how to reach the next commentary point.

Buy one Walk Talk Tour and get the second free by entering the code BI123 in the shopping basket.

You can follow Walk Talk Tours on Twitter at @WalkTalkTours.

I took the photograph (top) from Trafalgar Square looking down Whitehall, the equestrain statue of King Charles I, is in the foreground.