CHRIS TITLEY finds that keeping fit is as easy as putting one foot in front of the other - even just doing a turn round Clifton Moor.

IF you were stuck in a traffic queue in Clifton Moor last Tuesday lunchtime, you might have spotted a group of people perambulating along the pavement. They're probably going to the shops, you might have mused. Or to a matinee film showing at Warner Village. Or perhaps for a spot of lunch at the Flying Legends pub.

Wrong on all counts. They were, in fact, going nowhere in particular - and loving every minute. And as they tripped around the suburban streets, they were proving that you do not need a leafy country lane to go for a stroll. Walking is something you can enjoy anywhere, even in a place designed for the car like Clifton Moor.

And that is the message of York's Walking For Health initiative. It is the ultimate exercise: easy, fun and free. And to make a start, all you have to do is get out of your chair.

Like most activities, walking is more enjoyable when done with others. So the movers behind Walking For Health - York council, Age Concern and the Selby and York Primary Care Trust (PCT) - have used a Countryside Agency grant to set up group walks in York suburbs.

The one at Clifton Moor is led by Muriel Pickett. On Tuesday she set off, as she always does, from outside the Tower Court Surgery, Oakdale Road, but where she takes her band of merry walkers varies from week to week.

This time, the route took in a lakeside stroll, Beaverdyke, Green Lane, Shipton Road, Eastholme Drive and "a little path beside the library that people don't tend to notice".

It was a beautiful, sunny, early spring day, perfect for wildlife spotting. But Muriel, 65, always a keen walker, does not only step out in fair weather. She has cancelled just once over the winter months, when the pavements were so frosty there would have been more skidding than walking.

"The walks are geared for people who don't walk very much," she explained. "It's not a race. It's to get out for some exercise in the open air and socialise with other people. When they have got used to walking, they can do more."

All sorts of people take part in the hour-long walks, from pensioners to young mums wheeling buggies to those who want some human company while taking the dog for a walk.

The main aim of Walking For Health is to establish a series of walks in York for people who will benefit from becoming more physically active on a regular basis.

Michele Taylor, of the Selby and York PCT, officially took over as co-ordinator of the scheme today. She wants to add to two already up and walking - in Acomb as well as Clifton Moor - and is looking to recruit volunteer walk leaders in areas across the city. Anyone interested can contact her: details below.

"The main reasons for the scheme are for people to meet other people, to get out and get active, and have fun," said Michele, who is also an aerobics instructor.

"The great thing about walking is you don't have to buy anything, there's no equipment involved, so it's an ideal form of exercise that anybody can do."

Walks go from Acomb Medical Practice, 199 Acomb Road, York on alternate Tuesdays at 11.30am and Wednesdays at 12.30 pm; and from The Tower Court Health Centre, Oakdale Road, Clifton Moor, York on Tuesdays at 1.30pm. All welcome, just remember to wear warm comfortable clothing, flat soled shoes and take a drink.

If you would like to become a walk leader, contact Michele Taylor, walking scheme co-ordinator, at The Selby and York PCT, 37 Monkgate, York, YO31 7PB or ring (01904) 663300 or 623142.

Meanwhile, a series of walks and reflections celebrating the spirit of the North York Moors has been arranged.

The events have been organised both to commemorate the inspiring qualities of the North York Moors National Park, and to mark peoples' gratitude for the health and pastoral care carried out by Holy Rood House in Thirsk over the last decade.

Music, drama and spiritual reflection will take place at different moorland crosses across the National Park, 'Holyrood' being the old English term for the cross.

Seven free events on consecutive Sundays leading up to Easter, starting on March 9, have been organised. Everyone is welcome.

For more details, see the newly issued leaflets available at local shops, libraries and tourist information centres or visit the North York Moors website at www.moors.uk.net

Updated: 08:46 Saturday, March 01, 2003