How to Mess Up a Perfectly Good Walk

I’ve come across so much recently about the benefits of the simple act of walking. So many of the people I follow online these days swear by its creative, reflective and restorative benefits.

It occurred to me that some thoughts on the fine art of a good walk might be in keeping with the theme of LifeUntucked. So here goes. Let me know what you think.

Walking generates my best ideas and I simply feel a lot better after a good walk.

I remember one of my first mentors back in the corporate world was my boss’ boss. His answer to so many problems was, “Go take a walk.” It’s true… Frustrated? Go take a walk. Stressed? Go take a walk. Can’t figure it out? Go for a walk.

I rejected Nick’s advice because I was convinced that everyone else would think I was goofing off (including my direct boss). After all, if you’re not working… you’re not working, right?

So, in my infinite twenty-something wisdom, I rejected what may have been the single best piece of advice I had been given, for a defensible, albeit ironic reason…

Eventually, years later… no, decades later, I started the practice of taking a walk whenever I was stressed, stuck, bored, ticked-off, or just grinding along and needed a break. (It also would help when technology wasn’t being cooperative).

A walk is a simple act that has some real magic of its own. Many of the great poets and writers knew this. Think Frost, Thoreau, Emerson.

In as little as 10 – 30 minutes a day. Taking a walk is one of the easiest ways we have available to feel better, spawn great ideas, and improve our health.

Sally Augustin, Ph.D. writes in Psychology Today, “Walking in nature or where we can see it has the added benefit of restoring our mental energy.”

Here’s how to do it right.

What? I need instructions on how to take a walk?

Apparently, you do… apparently, we all do.

• In its simplest and purest form, start with a stroll. Just go for a nice, slow, relaxing, restorative… stroll. No schedule, no goals, no agenda. Just a stroll.
• It’s best outdoors, unless you have no other choice. Find a park, your favorite street, or some trails. But, outdoors is the main ingredient.
• Take note of your surroundings. Connect, learn to notice, look for something new each time.
• Listen, breathe, fill your lungs a few times. Don’t forget to look up. There’s a sky with birds and planes up there.
• Let your head clear as you settle into your stride.
• Notice the rhythm of your breathing, the rhythm of your steps. This can have a meditative effect.
• You’re going for that automatic, unconscious and unregulated step after step.
• Your mind will naturally find a reflective state and quiet its wandering as you walk.
• I’m convinced a big part of it is getting away from the noise. Even if it’s just different noise. That’s why a brisk walk along a busy city street will still spark many of the benefits of a nice walk in a park.

  

• Walking spawns my best ideas. The kind of thinking that likely would never have occurred inside in my office.
• Finally, if for no other reason, I simply feel a lot better after a good walk.

In her WiseBread.com post, “25 Reasons Why You Should Take a Walk,” Tara Struyk has a great line… “It’s when I’m walking that I get a great idea, or realize that the one I thought was great is actually pretty lame.” But go ahead, let the ideas pop. Good and less than good. Kick them all around.

Now for some “don’ts,” and they do make a difference… because this is where you can mess it all up.

Leave your music behind. I know, I know… I love my tunes too. No podcasts… No audiobooks… No devices… These are great for the commute, great for exercise, but not so great for a walk.

Here’s why. A good walk is freedom from distraction. Those great ideas come when you clear your head and get away from the familiar buzz of the office. Or the buzz of anything for that matter. We need a break from the noise.

Try to walk without devices or monitors. If you’re also walking for the exercise, try to wait until you get back to check your numbers. I admit, it absolutely drove me crazy one day when I left without my phone and couldn’t “log” my two-mile walk. It felt like it didn’t happen… that’s insanity! I guess I needed that endorphin hit from counting all those steps.

Walking reduces stress, cheers you up and increases self-esteem.

Really? Self-esteem? How?

You know how runners love to brag about “runner’s high”? They act as if they’re the only ones who experience this. A post on the Cleveland Clinic website reports that walking provides a release of endorphins as well. I’m thinking it must be in a gentler, “without the big rush” sort of way.

They go on to say that you’ll be full of pride at your accomplishment, which helps increase your self-esteem. You’ll respect yourself more. I’m going to say that’s a stretch… but who knows, I did read it on the internet!

Always remember that sage advice… “Go take a walk!”

You really do come back calmer, cooler, and more collected. And, with a good idea or two to boot.

Let me know what you think. What advice do you have for the art of the walk?