Healthy Communities - Promoting Physical Activity

About Physical Activity Programs

In 2005, the Washington legislature passed Chapter 360, Laws of 2005 (ESSB 5186) relating to the promotion of physical activity. Regular physical activity is essential to maintaining good health and reducing the rates of chronic disease. Providing opportunities for walking, biking, horseback riding, and other regular forms of exercise is best accomplished through collaboration between the private sector and local, state, and institutional policymakers. This page focuses on programs to encourage physical activity. Some jurisditions are participating in the national Let's Move Iniatiative. Other pages in MRSC's Building Healthy Communities series provide information on land use and transportation approaches to promoting physical activity.

References

Example Comprehensive Plan Policies to Support Physically Active Communities (), Washington State Office of Community Trade and Economic Development (now Department of Commerce), 09/2007
Nutrition and Physical Activity, Washington State Department of Health
Pathways to Health Living (), National Park Service Brochure
Physical Activity Policy Research Network (PAPRN), Saint Louis University School of Public Health, Prevention Research Center - The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention created PAPRN in October of 2004 to study the effectiveness of health policies related to increasing physical activity in communities.
Planning for Bicycling and Walking: 2005 Amendments to the Growth Management Act (), Washington State Department of Transportation, Washington State Department of Community, Trade, and Economic Development (now Department of Commerce), and Washington State Department of Health, 08/2005
Physical Activity for Everyone, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Resources for Recreational Opportunities

Bicycle Friendly Community, League of American Bicyclists Bicycle Friendly Community
- A Step by Step Guide to Turn Your Town into a Bicycle Friendly Community
Community Health and Trail Programs, National Trails Training Partnership, hosted by American Trails
Healthy Communities: Trails and Greenways Promote Physical Activity () - National Park Service Fact Sheet
Healthy Youth, Center for Disease Control and Prevention
Hearts N'Parks Program, supported by the National Heart, Lung, Blood Institute (NHLBI) and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA)
Library Yoga, by Jessica B. Mulholland, Governing, 03/2011 - Alternate Web Page Title: Libraries Now Offering Books and Workouts
Promoting Physical Activity in Parks and Communities (announcement) (), National Park Service - Through its Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program, the National Park Service has launched a nationwide initiative to encourage healthful outdoor physical activity in national parks and local communities and to demonstrate practical approaches for public land managers and community leaders who want to encourage active lifestyles.
Physical Activity, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Physical Activity Planning Handbook (), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2002
National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity (NCPPA)
Step Up to Health: It Starts in Parks, National Recreation and Park Association
Washington State Physical Activity and Nutrition Program (), Washington State Department of Health
Associations

Local Government Programs - General Recreation

Issaquah entered into joint projects with the King County Health Department to further promote walking/hiking opportunities in the Issaquah area in a key endeavor to highlight its unique/special characteristics. See Walking Maps on Parks and Recreation Maps and Brochures page.
King County
- Physical Activity In King County, Public Health
Kitsap Health District Physical Activity
Discover Port Townsend: Walking, Bicycling & Transit Guide Map (), 2002 AWC Municipal Achievement Awards Entry
Spokane Health District Physical Activity
Tacoma-Pierce County Public Health Physical Activity and Nutrition

Walking Programs and Opportunities

General

Walk This Way, by Rachel Roberts, Parks and Recreation, 11/2007 - Starting a walking program only takes a few easy steps (Available through MRSC Library Loan)
Walking in Washington, Washington State Department of Transportation
Walking to Public Transit: Steps to Help Meet Physical Activity Recommendations (), by Lilah M. Besser, MSPH, Andrew L. Dannenberg, MD, MPH, American Journal of Preventive Medicine (29(4):273-280), 2005 - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Walkable Communities - Walkable Communities, Inc. is a Florida non-profit corporation
Walking - Government of Western Australia Department for Planning and Infrastructure's walking program
Walk San Diego

Washington Local Government

Lake Forest Park City Parks Open Spaces and Walking Routes () - 2002 AWC Municipal Achievement Awards Entry
Kent Bicycling and Walking - Includes guides
Kirkland Neighborhood Walks
Tumwater Parks & Recreation Department Tumwater Walking Club () - 2002 AWC Municipal Achievement Awards Entry

Walking Advocacy Groups

Feet First, Puget Sound Pedestrian Advocacy
Olympia Parks and Sidewalks Measure, 2003 - Via Walkinginfo.org - About Walkable Olympia Neighborhoods and Olympians for a Livable Community 2003 campaign
Walk San Francisco

Relationship of Safety and Physical Activity

Access to Safe Parks Helps Increase Physical Activity Among Teenagers (), by Susan H. Babey, E. Richard Brown, and Theresa A. Hastert, UCLA Health Policy Research Brief, 12/2005
Neighborhood Safety and the Prevalence of Physical Inactivity -- Selected States, 1996, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 02/26/1999
Promoting Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety, MRSC