physical challenge with mental focus and community spirit. At the Toledo Boat House, every stroke propels you toward better health and unbreakable bonds on the water. Beyond the Oar Looking ahead, the Boat House community is gearing up for regatta season, exploring partnerships with local businesses for sponsorships, and expanding learn-to-row clinics. For readers curious about other ways to boost health through sport, consider: • Volunteering at regattas to experience the rowing world from shore • Trying indoor rowing machines for a winter-proof cardio workout • Hosting corporate wellness outings on the river to build teamwork in new settings Your next adventure in health and wellness could begin with a single stroke. Dive in! Glass City Regatta The Glass City Regatta returns for its 3rd consecutive year on September 20, welcoming competitors of all ages ranging from high school, collegiate, and master (adult) rowers. Last year the regatta hosted 28 clubs with over 1000 seats fi lled to race down the Maumee and this year we are anticipating to see a growth in participants. The course will take competitors to the marshalling area near the Glass City River Wall murals at the ADM grain silos and race a 4,019 meter course towards the lake. Passing many Toledo staples such as Owens Corning, Promenade Park, Imagination Station, and the newly constructed pickleball facility with the course ending just past the Great Lakes museum. “Toledo has a rich history in rowing and hosting our own regatta allows us to showcase not only the rowing community in the city but also invite others to experience our robust and developing downtown. The Toledo Metroparks have been great collaborators with the rowing club since their expansion of ownership of International Park and always makes sure we have what we need to succeed.” says Glass City Regatta Chair Cat Sprague. Artwork by Vivian Liu PUBLIC HEALTH The Real Cities That Never Sleep Are in Ohio By Vivian Liu Originally published in Midstory.org on July 17, 2025 In 2025, Toledo, Cincinnati and Cleveland made it onto the list of the 10 most sleep-deprived cities in the U.S., making Ohio the state with the most cities to earn the title. But why are Ohioans getting so little sleep? Originally published in Midstory.org on July 17, 2025 An analysis done by Innerbody — using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Numbeo — places three Ohio cities in the top 10 most sleep-deprived cities in the United States: Toledo in fourth, Cincinnati in fi fth and Cleveland in ninth. Ohio is the only state with multiple cities in the top 10. What exactly is it about Ohio’s cities that induces so much sleeplessness? Innerbody’s ranking examined fi ve factors that affect sleep: obesity, mental well-being, binge drinking, noise and light pollution and leisuretime physical activity. Cincinnati ranks 13th for frequent mental distress and 16th for obesity among major U.S. cities, while Toledo comes in at second for frequent mental distress and fourth for obesity. There isn’t a singular factor infl uencing Toledoans’ mental wellbeing, according to Elijah Jones, the director of programs and services for the Mental Health & Recovery Services Board of Lucas County. Jones’s list of stressors included limited housing stock, increasing rent prices, unemployment, gun violence, youth safety, homelessness and potential cuts to welfare services. Page 15 Ohio’s housing prices have increased by 58% from 2017 to 2022, and Toledo’s 2022 poverty rate and violent crime rate were more than double the national average. Mental health issues can form a cycle with insomnia to worsen sleeping issues and reduce sleep duration. Jones said Toledo’s mental health infrastructure experiences a heavier workload than other Ohio cities because of the relative lack of resources in the surrounding, more rural counties. “While our problems might not be completely unique, I think … we might be experiencing more than what we see per population…in other areas,” Jones said. Another stressor Jones mentioned — and one that has also been linked to physical health — is Toledo’s public transit and walkability. Car dependency and the lack of walkability have been correlated respectively with higher body mass index (BMI) and higher likelihood of obesity, even after adjusting for self-selection. This in turn is “directly proportional to sleep disordered breathing,” according to a study led by Shazia Jehan at the New York University Langone Medical Center. Toledo was assigned a walkability score of 46.4 out of 100 by Walkscore, which assesses the walkability and transit access of cities across the United States by looking at the routes to amenities. This places the city in the “car-dependent” category. Households in Toledo own two cars on average, with residents driving an average of 20 minutes to get to work. “While we do have public transportation, it’s not the most effective or effi cient,” Jones said. It’s not just Toledo that experiences walkability and transit issues in Ohio — Walkscore gave Cleveland a walkability score of 57.1 and Cincinnati a walkability score of 49. Both have a transit score of 44. Efforts to improve Ohio city residents’ physical and mental health, and thus their sleep, are underway. Cincinnati is working to improve its transit system by introducing a Bus Rapid Transit system, and Cleveland’s community recently introduced the Cleveland Parks and Recreation Plan, which aims to boost equitable walking access to parks. Toledo is investing $53 million into the Connecting Toledo Neighborhoods to Opportunity project to improve infrastructure and connectivity in the Uptown, Junction and Englewood neighborhoods. Jones said there is no singular strategy for improving Toledoans’ mental wellbeing and sleep. “There are a number of stressors people experience that impact their overall well-being … the strategies to improve mental well-being, and consequently sleep, are multifaceted as well,” Jones said.
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