Blog Post by Lucy Collins
“Walking is the only exercise you don't have to be good at to enjoy." - Mark Twain
Often in this fast pace society, we feel as if we don’t have enough time to get out and move our bodies, or that exercise has to be intense in order to ‘count’. The truth is, walking is one of the most beneficial forms of movement not only for fitness, but also for our mental health, immunity, bone strength and many other factors.
In this blog post we explore the incredible health benefits of walking, and how it could support so much for you in your life.
All organisms that move require a brain. According to Shane O’Mara, author of ‘In Praise of Walking’: We are ‘minds in motion’, he says: “Walking upright makes our minds mobile, and our mobile brains have marched to the far horizons of our planet.”
I personally love the image of us human beings walking through evolution, because that is quite literally what we have been doing; we are never static and always in motion.
O’Mara says “We need to make walking a natural, habitual part of our everyday lives. Although walking arises from our deep, evolutionary past, it is our future too: for walking will do you all the good that you now know it does.”
Often in the western world we have become so used to the fast-paced momentum of modern life, that we neglect opportunities of walking to places for perhaps alternative quicker/easier modes of transport. The way in which we work in most jobs requires us to be more stationary than we have ever been before, with many of us working from home/in and office environment and behind a computer for 5 days a week on average for 8-10 hours a day.
It is widely understood that aiming to do 10,000 steps (on average) a day is good for us, and due to Kansas Medical journal, this is since it can “significantly improve overall health by reducing the risk of chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers, while also promoting mental well-being and potentially aiding in weight management”. Having a ‘steps per day goal’ (which may not be 10,000 for you, but finding perhaps a more attainable goal) can also support us in that by hitting our personal target and getting a well earned dopamine release, adding to the mix of positive neurotransmitters already flowing from movement in the body.
Studies show that regular walking mobilises changes in the structure of our brain that can increase volume in the areas associated with learning and memory. In a world where memory and learning if often stifled due to the constant exposure of social media, apps and the individualistic realities that exists inside out phones, we could all definitely do with a dose of walking. In fact, in the US, UK and Canada walking is now prescribed by doctors for a whole host of different conditions and symptoms, and in Canada ‘park prescriptions’ are programmes which allow doctors to prescribe forest walks for patients who are struggling.
Walking allows us to shake out of old ruminations and negative thought loops, and opens us to new possibilities of how we think. Walking ‘sets our thoughts free’, as O’Mara describes it. The ability to let our thoughts flow while wandering across the earths landscape has been long appreciated by poets and writers, but it is only now that the scientific understanding of brain functioning is catching up.
Some of the benefits of walking include:
-It boosts your immune function. Walking can help protect you from things like the flu and colds; a study done by Harvard Medicine of over 1,000 men and women found “that those who walked at least 20 minutes a day, for 5 days a week, had 43% fewer sick days than those who exercised once a week or less. And if they did get sick, it was for a shorter duration, and their symptoms were milder.”
- It eases joint pain. Several studies have found that walking reduces arthritis-related pain, and that walking five to six miles a week can even prevent arthritis from forming in the first place. Walking also protects the joints — especially the knees and hips, which are most susceptible to osteoarthritis — by lubricating them and strengthening the muscles that support them.
- It helps those of us with a sweet tooth! A pair of studies from the University of Exeter found that a 15-minute walk can curb cravings for chocolate and even reduce the amount of chocolate you eat in stressful situations. And the latest research confirms that walking can reduce cravings and intake of a variety of sugary snacks.
Movement in nature releases stuck energy and emotions in our bodies and helps us move through emotional states, allowing emotions to move through us, and genuinely resulting in us being able to solve problems. The Nervous system cannot stay dysregulated and in fight, flight or freeze whilst we’re moving, and the gentle movement of walking allows a feeling of safety in the body, which allows us to overcome obstacles, become more resilient and feel more ready for challenges we may face. The phrase ‘walk it off’ has a literal meaning, in that if you are stressed or angry, walking can release stored energy and burn off the cortisol your body is releasing, so that rather than staying stuck and ruminating, you can move forwards.
It has also been shown that remarkably, and perhaps counter-intuitively, walking can support those with fatigue. Energy cells need movement to recover, feeling lethargic can often be a repression of an emotional state such as anger or grief, and because of this, movement allows you to release these emotional states and reenergises you. It is only recommended to start walking again when experiencing fatigue in small steps, (and with support from a health professional) and it can be very useful using positive visualisations of walking your body in as much detail as possible, before taking those physical steps in reality. The brain does not know the difference between imagination and reality, so this can allow your body to get ready for movement, before experiencing it physically.
Carolyn Ccott Kortge, author of ‘The Spirited Walker’ and cancer survivor who credits walking to a great deal of her recovery, describes walking as:
“A profound tool of healing. When spirits droop and footsteps falter, walking awakens the healing powers of the human spirit, literally, with chemicals that change the way you feel...Whether the wound is physical, emotional, professional, or spiritual, a walk can ease the grip of hard times, delivering an antidote to despair. But each step requires an act of faith...When I catch my thoughts ploughing through fears and doubts or unanswered questions as I walk, I've developed the habit of responding politely but firmly… Thank you, but not now. Right now, I am here and I am walking. Then I return to awareness of my breath or my footsteps. It's a practice that allows me to acknowledge my lively thought processes and then choose to redirect my focus.”
I resonate with this beautiful description of the power of walking on so many levels, particularly as learning to acknowledge and reject unhelpful thoughts with a regulated nervous system (whilst walking in this case) can be hugely supportive in changing old beliefs, thought patterns and unwanted behaviour using the brain’s neuroplasticity.
It is also true that walking can induce a state of trance through it is repetitive and predictable nature, allowing a state of flow to support us in finding solutions to things, bringing greater awareness to the present moment, the world around us and our own powerful resources.
If you are interested in finding our more about working with me and how hypnotherapy sessions could help support you, contact me today to find out more: lucy.collins@groundedchoicehypnotherapy.com
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