Let The Practice of Walking Help Reduce Stress

Walk To Relieve Stress

Our focus for the  Walking Challenge is to allow the nature of moving your body well to help you get in better shape and therefore better health. Today’s topic is Let The Practice of Walking Help Reduce Stress. 

Emotional stress can put a large toll on your mind and body. People often don’t realize how much stress can affect everything from their mental health to the food choices they make, their digestion, and their overall health. 

It is important to be aware of the stress you are living with. Once you realize the stress, take a breath and without adding more stress, decide what options you have within you to reduce it and walking might be one of the options for you.

Your Walk Today: 36 Minutes
Today’s Tip: Relieve Stress

Check Out Some Possible Options To Relieve Stress By Walking

Walk More Outdoors

During the walking challenge, we have discussed walking outdoors and today we simply want to remind you to practice getting outdoors for your daily walk to help you enjoy the benefits of reducing stress. 

This can be going on a hike, walking by the beach or around a local lake, taking your dogs for a walk in your neighbourhood, or walking to a nearby festival or farmer’s market. Just get outside and do some walking.

In 2018, I walked about 3 million steps in 12 months and most of those steps were outside. Getting outside is a great thing to do for your mind, body and soul. 

Walking outdoors will help improve your mood and this alone helps reduce stress and if you can walk in the morning it not only feels good, but it helps with your sleep at night.

“Research shows that regular walking actually modifies your nervous system so much that you’ll experience a decrease in anger and hostility,” she says, especially when you're going for a stroll through some greenery or soaking in a bit of sunlight. This can be particularly helpful during the colder months when seasonal depression spikes. (source: Here )

Take it Easy

Use walking as a form of self-care and a way to relax, not as your main form of fitness. If your walking routine is a rigorous speed-walking workout, it isn’t going to help you relax much. 

People often become almost obsessed with their fitness routine early on, even if they are just walking. This can lead to many unnecessary challenges you might not want to experience, like walking longer and harder than you intended, and instead of helping with your stress, making it worse.

I noticed early on in my walking that this was me. Now to be clear your walking speed can tell how fast you are ageing (go here for more info on this topic) and this is not what we are talking about with this tip. 

For me, it was about noticing that my speed was an indicator of my level of stress that day and when I allowed myself to notice this and simply slow down slightly my walk for that day was far less stressful.

Allow yourself to stop thinking about walking as a form of fitness or a way to lose weight, and instead enjoy your time walking as a form of self-care that is meant to help you relieve stress.

Use Breathing Exercises

You can also do breathing exercises and mindfulness as you are walking. We wrote about mindful walking yesterday - https://wendybottrell.weebly.com/blog/the-power-of-mindful-walking-for-your-best-walk-today 

Many people find that their walking routine becomes like a short therapy session, where they are able to clear their minds and be present in the moment. It is like a form of meditation, where you really focus more on being mindful during the entire experience.

For breathing exercises, it is really easy to do while you are walking. What you want to do is focus only on your breathing. Inhale and exhale slowly, paying attention to how you feel and what you hear every time your intake a breath. This helps to relax you while you are walking and can get you into a meditative headspace.

“As you walk, time your breathing to your steps.” (How To Eat, Move and Be Healthy – Paul Chek) Breath in for the count of 4 steps, hold breathe for the count of 1 step and breathe out for the count of 4 steps. Allow yourself to get in the rhythm of your breathing as you walk.

Use Walking as Your Form of Self-Care

As we mentioned before, think about walking as a way to practice joy in self-care. Walking helps to release endorphins and is amazing for your mental health as much as your physical health. Walking every day for at least a few minutes, whether you prefer walking alone or with friends or family is a wonderful way to relieve stress.

We enjoy getting out in the neighbourhood for a lovely morning walk however getting out on the hiking trails really makes our hearts sing and brings joy to our lives.

Share the places you enjoy walking to relieve stress. 

We appreciate that it never seems as if there are enough hours in the day, but it is so important to make a conscious decision to practice moving well, finding a new path today and we believe that walking is the most accessible form of exercise on the planet. Taking care of your mind, body and emotional needs will help you be able to live your best life.

You are your best advocate; if you are not moving well each day, it is easy to get burned out by all of life's demands. Taking some time each day for yourself to get outside and walk can have a profound impact on your well-being. Physical fitness and moving well begin and ends with you!

We would appreciate hearing from you. Will you accept today's challenge? Share any ideas or comments below.

Be sure to get in touch with us and let us know how we can help you.

Enjoy today’s walk! 

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