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met the criteria for depression after exercising three times a week in a supervised group setting.

This is only very slightly less than the 47% of patients who no longer met the criteria for depression after taking anti-depressants.

And a study done at the University of Pittsburgh found that postmenopausal women who had walked regularly for more than a decade, avoided heart disease, falls, hospitalization and surgeries far more successfully than their inactive peers.

Studies show that Brits only walk an average of 5,117 steps a day whereas Japanese take 7,168 steps and Australians take 9,695. Considering that researchers say 10,000 steps a day is the ideal, and taking less than 5,000 steps each day is considered sedentary, it looks like your average Brit needs to pick up the pace.

Interestingly, walking sideways burns 78

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percent more calories than walking forward as lateral motion takes extra effort by putting your body to work in unfamiliar ways. I must admit if I’m walking Yogi along the canal of an evening, I often walk sideways to maximise the benefit of the walk – and that might explain those funny looks I get, even when I’m not barefoot!

Shockingly, it takes, on average, 1 hour and 43 minutes of walking to burn off a 540-calorie Big Mac – so you may want to think twice about having fries with that!

And whilst I have written a lot about dogs being Man’s best friend recently, according to Hippocrates, ‘walking is the best medicine.’ So, no wonder walking with my two best friends is the best tonic!