There’s a reason I keep coming back to the topic of going for a walk.
It’s exercise, and it can be easy. It doesn’t have to be for very long, and it doesn’t have to be very fast.
And in the United States, we don’t walk enough. TIME magazine recently shared walking data from around the world; the study followed 700,000 people in 46 countries.
Guess where the US ended up on that list?
Go on, guess. I’ll wait.
Got it yet?
30th. 30th out of 46 countries for average daily steps.
The average number of daily steps taken by Americans in the study was 4,774. I don’t know about you, but I don’t always get to that on a daily basis, and then there are days when I exceed that by a lot. So I know I can do more walking! (Parking further away from the store is one way, and I’m back to that habit most days.)
At the same time, any steps you take are more than you were taking when you were just sitting still. :)
It’s also a good time to get in some meditation. Um…huh? Think about it! If you’re out for a walk by yourself, or even with your dogs, or even with a companion, you can decide to be silent. To focus on breathing. To focus on how your feet feel as they hit the ground. How does your breathing change? Take your thoughts and bring them back to your body when you start contemplating the 99 things you need to do that day. Listen to the wind. Listen to the traffic. Listen to the birds. Listen to your heart. I went out for a brief walk this afternoon with my dogs and as my thoughts wandered, I kept coming back to focus on our movements, and being together, and being intentional about going out. Picking up poop wasn’t the most meditative moment, but overall it was a really good walk. :)
What are you going to do to walk more and try to bring the average number of steps up?
Cheers! Here’s to your health!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/danny-and-katherine-dreyer/walking-meditation_b_1790035.html
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Original post: 12/23/2015
I have my wine, it’s Wednesday, and it’s time for another #winewellnesswednesday! J So far I’ve talked about wine & water; the alliteration will (temporarily) stop after today’s topic, which is walking!
Yesterday, I decided to take advantage of moderately nicer weather and no precipitation (although a very grey day, at least at lunch) and take our dogs for a quick walk around the block. Twenty minutes and two laps of the block later, the dogs acted as though they were worn out, and I felt invigorated and ready to tackle the rest of the day. I’m glad I didn’t wait to go walking until Wednesday, considering how wet, cold, wild, and generally icky today’s weather is! Maybe I should be having mulled wine instead!
Walking! It’s good exercise, and if you’re not accustomed to exercising on a regular basis, it’s a great introduction to getting moving. I am accustomed to exercising regularly, and I still really enjoy going for walks. J Most of the time when we go places, we’ve started a new habit of parking a little farther away from the destination so we’ll get a little extra walking in when we run errands. Yes, I said most of the time. If it’s pouring down rain or if there’s a sub-zero windchill? Nope! I’m parking as close as I can get! Walking is also great for improving your mood and getting your energy revamped to dive into whatever comes next.
Call walking the gateway drug to more activity if you like; call it whatever you want if you get up & get going! Take headphones and listen to music or a podcast or a book. Take a friend and have a conversation. Take your dogs. Take a walk through a park, or around your neighborhood, or around the mall. Take a hike! (Walk on a treadmill if the weather is truly awful.) And take care of yourself by adding some movement to your day, or changing your routine to incorporate a little more walking.
Cheers! Here’s to your health! :)