Does where you live promote healthy well-being...or pulling into the drive-thru?

I recently spent a week in a town totally different from my own (and I'm not just talking about politics). Instead of my usual urban experience of walking more than half a mile to the subway and always having to forgo cute shoes for comfort, I got to step outside the front door and hop into a car. My clothes could be ill-matched for the weather, my heels could be sky-high, and it didn't matter. I knew no matter where we were going there would only be the task of walking from the car. It was perfect for a vacation.

But my trip to a drive-everywhere town got me thinking about all the sorts of communities like this. So many Americans live places where either the culture doesn't support walking (bad sidewalks, extreme weather, cultural expectations) or their homes are just too far from anything to walk to. Makes it kind of hard to pop out for a coffee or decide to walk to dinner. Sure, you can still "go walking" purely for aerobic exercise in a loop that leads you back where you started. But what about that holistic vision of getting to incorporate more exercise into your everyday routine? Is that realistic for most people given the kinds of communities we live in?

And then I stumbled across an article in AARP magazine (hey, Bruce Springsteen was on the cover) about how healthy the people on the tiny Greek island of Ikaria are. The article cited the usual suspects: low stress, optimism, a plant based diet, and walking everywhere (their plentiful hot springs probably don't hurt either). I'm fascinated by the idea that there are certain places to live that can better support a healthy, happy life through infra-structure and culture. Right now, I'm even reading a book about Scandinavian well-being that encouraged me to take my workout off the treadmill and into the park yesterday. So I guess that worked. But what about healthy patterns that will stick with us long after we finish reading a book? The descriptions of wild Scandinavian vistas where law makes it kosher to traipse on skiis across private property, had me scratching my head. My choices are: walk to the park, or drive an hour to a large national park. Not quite the same as a city with hundreds of miles of trails, lakes, and natural space for the community.

When we read about places that are healthier than our own, is it really possible to apply those principles back home? How do we begin to change the culture of a place to better support health and well-being?