Walking is an easy way for a lot of people to stay active, but the hot temperatures of summer have hit Utah, making it more challenging to walk outside.
Recognizing the heat and other factors, Layton Hills Mall has launched its Mall Walkers Club, inviting and encouraging people to walk around the mall as a way to stay active despite the heat outside.
“This partnership removes common barriers that may otherwise exist with venues for physical activity, including cost and weather,” said Glady Larsen, marketing and community engagement manager at the Layton shopping mall.
The program is put on in partnership with Utah State University Extension in Davis County.
Thursday was the kickoff event for the club, which will meet every third Thursday.
“I feel safer because there’s always somebody here, security or the stores are open or whatever, and it’s cooler,” walker Andrea Kitajo said during a break.
Judy Smith walks around Layton Hills Mall at the same time the Walk the Hills Mall Walkers Club is happening in Layton on Thursday, July 17, 2025. Smith has been walking at the mall five times a week for years. The mall opens early to accommodate walkers. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
Kitajo said she came to Thursday’s event to hopefully meet people she could go mall walking with in the future, which she was able to do.
On Thursday, Kitajo met and walked with John Maclean, who said he wanted to start mall walking as a way to help him lose weight.
Larsen said the goal of the initiative is to “foster consistent wellness habits and strengthen community ties.”
What are the benefits of walking?
Emma Parkhurst, Utah State University Extension associate professor of health and wellness, walks with her daughter Lila Parkhurst at the end of the Walk the Hills Mall Walkers Club event at Layton Hills Mall in Layton on Thursday, July 17, 2025. Parkhurst leads the event and offers micro education talking points about health and wellness. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
Emma Parkhurst, a health and wellness assistant professor for USU Extension in Davis County, said that when she was younger she would go to the mall often. Now, the mall walkers club is a fun way to come back.
“So it’s a great way to bring the people back to the mall, stay active, socialize, and they’re just encouraging people to stay active,” she said.
Parkhurst shared that walking has a number of benefits, including strengthening bones and reducing blood pressure, stress, anxiety and depression.
“It boosts your mood. And all of these benefits can be double if you are doing it with other people. So socializing is a great way to get your brain working as well,” Parkhurst said.
She added that walking gets more oxygen into people’s blood and their brains as well, giving people a little bit more “thinking power.”
Courtney Call and Sharlie Robertson pause from walking to talk to Gladyris Larsen, Layton Hills Mall marketing manager, about the Walk the Hills Mall Walkers Club event at Layton Hills Mall in Layton on Thursday, July 17, 2025. Call and Robertson came to the mall to walk but were unaware of the event. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
“It’s kind of combining all those things together, and we can see a lot of increases in our general wellness,” Parkhurst said.
Paula Scott, who works with Parkhurst at USU extension, said she wanted to come to the mall walkers event because she knows how important it is to stay physically active.
“As I age, I find that movement, staying active, being physically active, is so very important,” she said. “It’s really important for mental health and I realize that now more that I’m aging.”