Good news for commuters: you could be accidentally walking the equivalent of a marathon every single fortnight.
New research undertaken by Macmillan Cancer Support found that one in nine commuters walks for around 40 minutes every day as part of their total commute.
This time spent walking is the equivalent to covering a distance of 2.6 miles, which adds up to a whopping 26 miles – the distance covered in a marathon – every fortnight.
The study included travelling to and from transport as part of the distance covered, as well as walking between trains, climbing up escalators and hitting the stairs, showing that it all adds up.
“Many people dream of being able to do a marathon and this shows commuters are actually much more active than they may realise,” Lisa Shorter, Macmillan Cancer Support's national events manager, told The Telegraph.
Happily, the UK’s average commuter isn’t far behind the 3.5 million who do manage to walk a marathon every fortnight.
The study found that the typical person spends 28 minutes on foot, including 12 minutes of walking, 8 minutes of standing, 5 minutes of climbing either stairs or escalators and 3 minutes of running (we’ve all been there).
The charity, which surveyed 1,221 people for the study, also said the results show how unaware people are of the health benefit of their daily commute.
“If workers can do a marathon every fortnight without even realising it, we can't wait to see what they can do when they set themselves a goal,” Shorter added.
Images: iStock
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