Over years I’ve used walking as a way of getting out of house, of ‘warming up’ for more vigorous exercise and just to hang out with friends. This year, walking has turned into much more for me. Walking allows me to integrate mind, body, and spirit in a way that I’ve not experienced before. Athletes speak of being “in zone.” I see that I too am an athlete and that walking can be vigorous and can provide my body with movement it craves. Walking has allowed me to reclaim fitness goals that I had given up on. I think I’ve finally found something that I can be good at and stick with long term!

“Movement in body brings movement in mind. It is a natural alchemy. So many of us seek this kind of movement in our lives, a fusion of being and doing.”— Carolyn Scott Kortge from her book, The Spirited Walker

These days, our lives are set at an incredibly frantic pace. We have so much on our plates that we fear we'll never get everything done, and we wonder when we'll find time to do those things that bring us pleasure. Even when world seems to be spinning out of control, walking can restore our sense of inner peace. Time seems to expand, giving us a chance to slow down, to relax, to appreciate ourselves and our lives.

Even when we are 'just going out for a walk', we are hardly ever just walking. We carry our mind around with us when we walk, so we are usually absorbed in our own thoughts. I have come to see that sole work of walking has turned into soul work. I have even nicknamed some of my walks with particularly insightful friends ‘walk and talks’ where we process life together and use walking as a metaphor for moving forward in life.

And then there’s walking alone which frees us up for some internal dialogue. I’ve learned to turn off cell phone, take off headphones and stop drowning out natural world. When I allow myself to hear my own thoughts and resolve any internal conflicts, I am at peace in sanctuary of my mind. Moving meditation, or spiritual walking is a wonderful way of grounding ourselves in our own presence.

Both being aware of how we feel and listening to our self-talk serve a purpose. The inner compass provides us with a powerful feedback mechanism, similar to a navigational system on an airplane. It lets us know whether or not we are on course, how far off course we are, and how much correction we need to make in order to reach our intended destination (and to achieve our goals). Learning to use these tools, we learn art of coaching our self!