Here, our Community Walking Lead, Carole Pollard outlines some of her top tips for keeping your walks going through the Greater Manchester weather:
Motivate and inspire
There are so many mental and physical benefits of moving outside, whatever the weather.
Why not share these with your group members to motivate them to join you, even on colder and rainy days?
You could do this in a WhatsApp group chat before each walk.
Communicate
It’s important to let your group members know in advance about changes to arrangements due to bad weather and ensuring they feel comfortable with the plans.
Be practical
Remind your group members about the weather forecast before a walk helps them to come prepared with whatever they need to enjoy your walk, whether that’s a raincoat, hat, or gloves.
You could even think about setting up a clothing bank at your organisation to lend these items to any group members who don’t have them.
Set the mood
Create a sense of accountability and togetherness among your group members keeps people coming to your walks and keeps the energy levels and morale high, even during bad weather.
Be flexible
If the weather’s really bad, you might need to think flexibly to keep your walks going.
You could connect with an alternative indoor venue you could use, like a local leisure centre or community space or switch to offering shorter, more frequent walks instead of longer ones.
