Discover your healthy side with the Discovery 702 Walk the Talk

Entries have opened for the 2011 Discovery 702 Walk the Talk and organisers are expecting 50 000 participants to sign up for Joburg’s biggest mass participation event.

“For the last few years we have seen up to 55 000 walkers coming together to walk through the streets of our city,” said Pheladi Gwangwa, Talk Radio 702 station manager. “These walkers are from diverse backgrounds, they come through in all shapes, sizes and physical abilities, but they share a common commitment to getting moving and getting together.”

The walk offers something for every level of fitness, from the 5km and 8km events which attract a lot of large corporate groups and families, including kids in prams and sometimes, even their dogs. For the more competitive there is a 15km and a 30km option which offer prize money and a challenging route around the city of Joburg.

“Walk the Talk is all about fun and family engagement which ties in directly with our core purpose of making people healthier and enhancing and protecting their lives,” said Jody Foster, Discovery head of sponsorship.

Discovery Vitality members receive 3 000 points for entering the 5km and 8km events or 5 000 points for the 15km and 30km events.

As always, R10 from every 5km and 8km entry will go towards charity and half of these proceeds will go towards the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation which uses sport as a tool to bring about social change. Laureus runs a number of projects around South Africa, and the money from Walk the Talk goes to the Johannesburg Cubs. The Cubs is a team of talented cricketers from disadvantaged backgrounds who are coached in both cricket and life skills.

Laureus ambassadors – all sports men and women who are, or were, at the top of the fields – join in the action on the day and accept a sizable donation at the end of the event.

Proudly hosted by the City of Joburg, the event is more committed than ever to being environmentally responsible. This year, in addition to recycling the waste gerenated by the event, the organisers are activley looking to reduce the waste caused by the event.

One of their biggest focuses is to reduce paperwaste through entry forms. “In the past, up to 80% of the entries have been manually submitted – and each entry is 4 pages, so that’s approximately 160 000 pages,” said Gwangwa. “This year we have created an online entry system that is simpler and cheaper to use than the manual entry forms and we encourage entrants who have access to the internet to visit www.walkthetalk.co.za to enter – and do your bit for the environment.

Furthermore, the organisers are sensitive to the impact an event of this size has on the neighbourhood it operates in. and in 2011, the other half of the charity proceeds will go towards uplifting a community initiative in the Greenside/Emmarentia/Parkview area.

The Discovery 702 Walk the Talk encourages a healthy lifestyle, and this year two new partners have come on board to further promote good health. Pick n Pay is the official food supplier for the event and participants will find an array of healthy, delicious meals on offer from Pick n Pay in the public catering area at the finish.
Hush Puppies is the official footwear partner as they have launched a new Body Shoe range, specifically designed for walking.

Extensive research has resulted in the design of a range of shoes that incoporate various technologies tailored to walking. Check out www.hushpuppies.co.za for details of the Body Shoe range.
Those interested in participating can visit www.walkthetalk.co.za and enter before 31 May 2011 to stand a chance to win a R25 000 voucher from Pick n Pay.

Walkers can also follow the event on our Discovery 702 Walk the Talk facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/#!/Discovery702WalktheTalk