Walking Meditation
Sitting meditation is really hard for a lot of people.
Focusing on your breath while your thoughts run rampant can create more stress for people, rather than relieving their stress.
We also do so much sitting in general that sitting during meditation can become uncomfortable physically as well as mentally.
Walking meditation is a wonderful solution to both of these problems, especially if you don’t overthink it, focus on being present wherever you are, and don’t worry about “meditating right”.
I just finished a meditation course that was both really helpful and unhelpful. They taught many useful techniques that helped me to establish a regular practice but they also spent part of every lesson focusing on what other meditation styles were doing wrong.
After more than 25 years of studying and practicing multiple forms of meditation, there is one thing I know for sure:
There is no wrong way to meditate. It if feels good to you and you find it helpful, it is right and it is “good” meditation.
Walking meditation works for a lot of people because again, there is no wrong way to do it.
You can walk in the woods, on a beach, on a bike path, on a road, anywhere.
You can stop when you want, go when you want.
You can even sit if you find a place that moves you and you want to spend more time there.
It really doesn’t matter where you walk but many people find it easier to get into a peaceful state when they’re walking in a less chaotic environment, like the woods or a quiet residential street versus on a busy, high-traffic street (if you can’t, or don’t want to walk in nature).
Nature has a way of quieting our minds and spirits so try to notice whatever parts of it are available to you. It can be as simple as feeling the sun on your face or watching the breeze rustle the leaves of a tree. You can go more deeply and listen to the sounds around you as you walk, hearing the variety and depth of them.
Use all of your senses. We are in our heads so much that we sometimes forget to see what’s right in front of us, let alone hear, feel, and smell our surroundings.
Some people use words (“joy, love, ease”) or a sound (“om”) to focus on, which also can help move away from the random mind chatter.
Have fun with it and just breath long, cleansing breaths through your nose as you move. Noticing the feeling of breathing in and out is meditative in itself, and can also be relaxing.
Action Steps:
Take a walk at some point today and do your best to breathe deeply, look, hear, and feel whatever is happening in the moments of your walk.
It can be as short or as long as you want, just try to give yourself this small gift of stress-relief and don’t worry about “doing it right”.
