Dig out your coats and rediscover the daily walks in Sheffield

Autumn may be chilly and damp, but our parks and woodlands are beautiful at the moment,” says Anna Lowe, advocate of the Move More scheme for the currently Tier 3 Outdoor City.
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“It’s actually a wonderful time of year to get out and get battered by the elements.” she added.

As the new lockdown measures fold round South Yorkshire, it’s time to find our coats and hats and rediscover the daily walks, rides and runs we were all taking in the balmy days of spring, say Anna and her colleagues.“We might think we can’t do a lot right now, but what we can do is exercise in the outdoors,” says Jo Pearce, lead for Physical Activity and Sport at Sheffield Council.

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“You and up to five mates can still go out and exercise in the free gym on our doorstep. Our parks and green spaces are going to be our lifeline right now.”The current regulations allow groups of six to meet outside for a walk and chat, or to ride and run with a small group of friends. But the advice is to minimise unnecessary travel, and to stay within Tier 3 South Yorkshire, which excludes rides through the Hope Valley, and runs along Froggatt Edge.

Runner heading out onto Houndkirk Moor under T3 lockdownRunner heading out onto Houndkirk Moor under T3 lockdown
Runner heading out onto Houndkirk Moor under T3 lockdown

Since the city boundary is in a bog a few hundred yards east, Stanage Edge is also out of bounds, although northern Sheffielders have a good chunk of the Dark Peak available, while easterners can happily stray into Rotherham, but not Eckington.“We still have Blackamoor and Burbage,” cries runner Jo Pearce.“And Lady Canning’s, Wharncliffe and Parkwood Springs,” cheers mountain biker Anna Lowe.Magda Boo from Sheffield's public health team says there are two main reasons why people should continue to get active outside as the pandemic hangs on to us for the autumn and winter .“Firstly it’s important not to use public transport if you can avoid it and to walk and cycle instead. We don’t want everyone jumping in their cars and air quality deteriorating.”Research published this week suggests tiny particles in the air, often from motor vehicles in cities, aggravates the effects of Covid 19 such that air pollution could be linked to 6,000 Covid deaths in the UK, so far.“And secondly it’s good for your physical and mental health,” adds Magda.

“It helps you get your 150 minutes of exercise a week, and to not to feel trapped by the four walls of your house. Lots of studies now show that getting out and seeing nature and the seasons changing is good for your mental health.”Nur Ali from ShipShape started a group for women to walk in Sharrow and Millhouses earlier this year, where young girls enthused older family members to get outside.

“Women were anxious about coming out of their homes, and we became worried about their wellbeing and the impact this would have on their mental health,” Nur says.

“They were so excited to come and join the group.

Anna Lowe on Froggatt Edge in SeptemberAnna Lowe on Froggatt Edge in September
Anna Lowe on Froggatt Edge in September
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"We had 18 women from diverse backgrounds who came together and joined walks in the park.”Both Sheffield universities will be publishing new research about local people’s attitudes to the outdoors during lockdown, and initial results show how important the city’s 947 publicly accessible green spaces are to Sheffielders.

83 per cent of respondents to the University’s surveys said spending time in Sheffield’s green spaces helped them cope with the pandemic.

A flat dwelling respondent to the Hallam survey said: “Monument Gardens and Norfolk Park have been a godsend during the first weeks of lockdown.

"It’s amazing how the green spaces link up different areas of the city.”Magda Boo said transmission is hard for the virus outdoors, but not impossible, and she advises two metres plus as the safe social distance, since you’ll have a higher risk if a closer than two metres friend catches the virus, and will have to isolate.Our local authorities are in talks about possibly softening advice about visiting cross border countryside (but not Tier 2 cafes, shops and houses) since three metres from your mates on a wet and windy moorland is a pretty safe Covid environment, but at present the advice to stay in South Yorkshire stands.“Try and stay local,” says Magda. “There’s enough local green space for everyone.”

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