Olive’s enthusiasm for walking is contagious. She sometimes even breaks into a run. “Being a mature age walker, I prefer to stick to paths. I love walking with the grand kids around the area and finding parks for them to play at. Also taking a paved shortcut to see where we come out is always fun. I love exploring my neighbourhood by walking, seeing kangaroos, enjoying sunrises and sunsets.”
“My favourite thing about walking is the friendships that I’ve made. Nothing nicer than to walk and talk. Actually, sometimes I walk and just listen, which is great. It’s good therapy. It’s so satisfying to walk and know that you made a difference to someone’s day.”
You don’t always think of a city as being a great place to walk. But if there are many safe, shaded, wide pathways, then it can be a real pleasure. “I love to walk a 10km loop around Brisbane city taking in the sights of South Bank, Kangaroo Point Cliffs, The Story Bridge, Eagle Street and Queen Street Mall. There’s always something interesting to see and it is just beautiful.” She also loves to walk at the many diverse offering of wetlands, esplanades, bush and mountain trails.
Olive also encourages others to be active through her Keep Active Brisbane Facebook group and she regularly attends parkrun where people can meet every weekend to walk or run. “I’d love to see councils promote parkrun and start walking groups in their areas to help with fitness, weight loss and mental health.”
