The Subtle Power of the Walk

Geriatric Punk

7:29p, 1/25/24

I'm 45. My hips and knees don't like running anymore. I like to hike, but don't go nearly as often (or as consistently) as I would like. As many of you can relate, mid-life with kids and a family to support isn't gentle on the psyche. But, I learned something remarkable over the last 3-4 months: walking is medicine.

We adopted a dog over the summer. He needs to be walked at least twice a day or he destroys the house. I work from home and started walking him 2 miles in the morning and another mile at night. Every. Day. Three months later, I'm down 15 lbs without even trying. The time during our walks is meditative and soothes the anxiety that has taken up residence in every corner of my body. It never feels like a chore, which means I don't put it off like my other active outlets.

I'm not sure who out there needs to hear this (if anyone), but if you're in a rut, if you're stressed out of your head, if you need to lower your heartrate and loosen the waistband a bit...put in some earbuds, put on a podcast, and go for stroll. Cheers, everyone.

Life's an endless party, not a pushcart.

Tailgate88

10:48p, 1/25/24

In reply to Geriatric Punk

Could not agree more. I walk my dogs every morning and if we miss it for some reason all of us are out of sorts. (Freezing weather and downpours, I'm looking at you. )

Fresh air, some good exercise and a positive podcast are a great way to start the day!

befitter

7:22a, 1/26/24

Ditto. I started walking my dogs every morning for 2 miles a couple of years ago listening to a book on audible. The benefits are numerous.

Hoosegow

8:13a, 1/26/24

All of my family that I know who lived into their late 80s and 90s had one thing in common. They all walked just about every day. My mom's dad - every day - lived to his mid 90s and died of pancreatic cancer. My grandfather on my dad's side had one of the first by-passes in the early 80s started walking everyday after the surgery. He walked just about every day. My uncle (not blood), lived to his 90's - walked every day until he broke his hip. Died within a year of that. My dad's brother is 84 this year and is in great shape - walks every day.

I'm now in my 50s. Besides everything else I do, I try to walk at least 3X a week. I wear a weighted vest now to get a little resistance training in.

Walking is great. At work, when I'm frustrated, ticked off, etc., I'll put my hard hat on and walk all over the place. Clears my head and keeps me out of trouble.

CC09LawAg

8:31a, 1/26/24

In reply to Geriatric Punk

I agree with this 100%. It was the first thing I did when I started to turn my health around. A 30 minute, non-negotiable walk every day.

I will tell anyone who will listen how important it is and how quickly it can change so many facets of your life. It's one simple, easy to integrate habit that can lead to the desire to do more.

And it is very meditative. I find myself involuntarily thinking about whatever is stressing me out the most, and I have 30 minutes to mull it over with no interruptions. Even if I don't find a solution, just knowing that I dedicated time to the problem helps put me at ease.

CC09LawAg

8:34a, 1/26/24

In reply to Hoosegow

Man that weighted vest is no joke. I got one recently and only added 20 pounds and that first walk was an eye opener. I'm getting accustomed to it. Definitely like the added challenge.

GeorgiAg

8:36a, 1/26/24

In reply to CC09LawAg

Walking meditation is a legit buddhist practice. Not that you have to subscribe to buddhism to practice meditative walking.

I miss my walks with my dogs. I can't wait for the time change.

CC09LawAg

8:39a, 1/26/24

In reply to GeorgiAg

Read that as "legit bullsh**" practice" at first and I thought, well OK man that is just your opinion.

Need to get more coffee in my system.

GeorgiAg

9:08a, 1/26/24

In reply to CC09LawAg

CC09LawAg said:
Read that as "legit bullsh**" practice" at first and I thought, well OK man that is just your opinion.

Need to get more coffee in my system.

Haha. I'm hooked on meditation and I love doing it during cardio. I've watched a bunch of youtube videos and other stuff on meditation. I have several that stuck with me, but the one I use most - especially with walking and running is to focus on the breath exhale and count each breath up to 10 and back down to zero and repeat. For running, the exhale focus is the mouth and for walking or sitting it is the tip of the nose if I'm not out of breath. The mind wanders always, but I bring it back to focus on the point of exhale and counting. What's crazy is that sometimes, I find my count up to like 20 or so before I realize I'm completely lost in thought and stressing out too much over whatever and have to start over at 1.

The other is to have a mental image of two wicker baskets in front of me with lids. Focus on the exhale. When the mind wanders on whatever as it always does, I acknowledge the thought and put it in one of the baskets - the left is the unhelpful thought basket and the right is the helpful thought basket. The thought goes in the basket, the lid closes and I return to focusing on the exhale.

The third I found helpful is a mental image of sitting on a bench on a bluff on a river bank (it's our family vacation home for me but any similar mental image would work). When thoughts intrude on the breath as they always do, they are boats traveling down the river. You have found yourself in the boat on the river with the thought, you acknowledge it, but then you return to your quiet bluff and visualize that boat traveling away from you down the river as you return focus on breath.

The first one requires the least mental effort during physical exertion so I do that running and cycling all the time.

Geriatric Punk

10:54a, 1/26/24

In reply to Hoosegow

Hoosegow said:
All of my family that I know who lived into their late 80s and 90s had one thing in common. They all walked just about every day. My mom's dad - every day - lived to his mid 90s and died of pancreatic cancer. My grandfather on my dad's side had one of the first by-passes in the early 80s started walking everyday after the surgery. He walked just about every day. My uncle (not blood), lived to his 90's - walked every day until he broke his hip. Died within a year of that. My dad's brother is 84 this year and is in great shape - walks every day.

I'm now in my 50s. Besides everything else I do, I try to walk at least 3X a week. I wear a weighted vest now to get a little resistance training in.

Walking is great. At work, when I'm frustrated, ticked off, etc., I'll put my hard hat on and walk all over the place. Clears my head and keeps me out of trouble.

Life's an endless party, not a pushcart.

True Anomaly

8:52a, 1/27/24

Love walking! It's my preferred way to burn calories. If I want to lose weight, I decrease my food and increase my average steps for the day

20 years ago, I would grab a Discman and headphones and still walk. Once wireless earbuds hit the market it made it so much easier

bam02

11:16a, 1/27/24

I always hated walking for exercise until recently. I just thought it was kind of pointless. I always liked to just get my exercise in with short intense sessions.

For some reason, one day I decided to put my wife's weighted vest on and go for a walk. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I've been doing it ever since. Great way to get outside and relieve some stress while getting in Some exercise.

double aught

11:41a, 1/27/24

One of the many benefits of having a dog.

The occasional walk without headphones in is good too. Even more calming to me. Sounds of nature and all that.

aggiederelict

12:47p, 1/27/24

Walking is for sure medicine as much as almost any activity that is outside that gets you moving. One of the benefits i have seen in my neighborhood since a fair amount of my neighbors work from home is seeing people being more active to help relief stress and break up the day.

I do it frequently at my office since it is in a neighborhood. It clears my mind and is a great thing to do after lunch to jumpstart digestion. Less fatigue post meal and less likely to reach for caffeine in the afternoon.

BadMoonRisin

4:57p, 1/29/24

I was having a pretty ****ty day today. Coming up on almost a year unemployed after being laid off last Feb, an anniversary I'd rather not remember.

Read OP and decided to take my pup for a walk since it was nice out. It's amazing how much it has helped. Yet another interview Wednesday. Lucky number 38.

F4GIB71

6:04p, 1/29/24

I ran for years but the knees said no more. Switched to walking and took me a year to quit thinking it was too passive. Been several years now. One thing that keeps me going has always been setting a goal for regularity and recording it to keep myself honest. I retired in 2018 and set a goal of averaging 100 miles per month. I typically walk 4 most days and 5 on Sundays. This goal gives me flexibility for weather or some other conflict but have exceeded my goal ever since.

I have significant DDD issues. Sitting or standing very long causes pain but my daily walk is great for me both physically and mentally. I hate having to miss a day.

Southlake

10:07p, 1/29/24

I run or walk every day. The walk is more contemplative. The run is more physical.

RC_57

4:18a, 1/30/24

My wife likes to go for walks but her "ostrich legs" sometimes get going and I have to speed up my stride to keep pace.

So when y'all "walk" is it a leisurely one or brisk or what?

Hoosegow

6:54a, 1/30/24

I have a 40 pound vest on and I go as brisk as possible doing that. Hills kick my butt so I have to slow down after climbing to catch my breath.

Where do y'all generally walk? I have two parks in New Braunfel I enjoy. Will walk around the neighborhood if time is an issue.

Fischer Park - https://newbraunfels.gov/3379/Fischer-Park

County Line Memorial trail - https://comaltrails.org/trails/county-line-memorial-trail/

I want to try Panther Canyon but traffic in the afternoon is horrendous.

Ragoo

7:13a, 1/30/24

In reply to Hoosegow

Park by the train/pool in Landa park. Walk on the back side of wurstfest along the golf course. Cross the train tracks and along the river up to prince Solms park. Do the loop down to the tennis courts and back up then turn right towards the square then back to landa.

bam02

7:21a, 1/30/24

I am in SA and do a lot in the neighborhood but that's usually just two miles or so. I frequently drive to Hardberger Park (5 minute drive) or one of the parking lots along the Salado Creek trails near the house. Then I usually do about 4 miles.

I'm also just trying to get more walking in throughout the day (parking farther away, etc.)

Sometimes in a pinch I'll make the block around my neighborhood (Deerfield) but I don't trust the drivers along Bitters. I get a little nervous on the sidewalks as people fly by at 50MPH along that windy road.

Claude!

7:49a, 1/30/24

Dog and I walk every day, weather permitting. Generally a mile or two on weekday mornings and between 3-4 miles on weekends. I need to look into a weighted vest.

CC09LawAg

8:23a, 1/30/24

In reply to RC_57

I walk in my neighborhood and it has some decent elevation changes throughout. I am not powerwalking but I'm not meandering. It's faster than I would walk in a grocery store but I'm not changing my normal stride, if that makes sense. The route I do takes me almost exactly 30 minutes every time I do it, so I've just stuck to that.

I have added a weight vest and it has definitely increased my heart rate. I am enjoying it.

Pahdz

8:29a, 1/30/24

What vests are you guys using? Would like to pick one up.

I'm usually walking at a decent enough clip to keep some slack in the leash with my dog.

bam02

8:39a, 1/30/24

In reply to Pahdz

I use the Condor Sentry. I like it a lot for the price. Wife has a 5.11 and it's nicer but not worth triple the price.

Also… I really like the Yes4All contoured plates on Amazon. The curved edges do make a difference in comfort level.

CC09LawAg

8:40a, 1/30/24

In reply to Pahdz

I got this one: Rogue Plate Carrier | Rogue Fitness

I got the pair of 10 pound weights. It's definitely noticeable, I will probably get the 20s at some point but for where I'm at the 10 is good.

It fits comfortably and snug, no movement or jostling around, and the weights are very secured. I did purchase the shoulder pads and I'm pretty sure it would dig into my shoulders and cause some pain after awhile without them.

aggiederelict

12:35p, 1/30/24

In reply to CC09LawAg

I prefer ruckscaks so you offset the weight on your hips. Feels easier on my spine.

Ghost of Bisbee

12:28a, 1/31/24

Rucking! Recently got into this but like others said, I use a pack with waist straps to keep weight off my shoulders because that ****s up my back.

I use a Gregory Zulu 45. Packed it with 20 pounds and took it out this past weekend on an 10+ mile hike. Afterwards, I noticed torn skin on my waist where my waist straps/belt were too tight. Gonna have to watch for that next time

What good rucking weights do you recommend?

I'm also in search of a good rucking calorie burn calculator that takes elevation into account.

RC_57

5:56a, 1/31/24

In reply to CC09LawAg

Thanks for the reply CC

bam02

6:43a, 1/31/24

In reply to Ghost of Bisbee

I don't think there are any very good calculators specifically for rucking. I have searched some forums on Reddit and also a Facebook group. No one has found anything.

BassCowboy33

6:53a, 1/31/24

Huge into walking. Having an Aussie helps. I'm over 70 days breaking my 10,000 step goal. Major role in dropping 15 lbs.

Geriatric Punk

9:36a, 1/31/24

In reply to BadMoonRisin

Good luck, my dude. Hope you land something soon.

Life's an endless party, not a pushcart.

Geriatric Punk

9:36a, 1/31/24

In reply to BassCowboy33

BassCowboy33 said:
Huge into walking. Having an Aussie helps. I'm over 70 days breaking my 10,000 step goal. Major role in dropping 15 lbs.

Those are some impressive numbers. Well done.

Life's an endless party, not a pushcart.

Geriatric Punk

9:41a, 1/31/24

I've always looked down on the people I see walking/hiking with weight vests, but I fully get it now. Wisdom...it only comes with age/experience. Y'all have got me looking at them now.

Life's an endless party, not a pushcart.

BassCowboy33

9:52a, 1/31/24

In reply to Geriatric Punk

Geriatric Punk said:
BassCowboy33 said:
Huge into walking. Having an Aussie helps. I'm over 70 days breaking my 10,000 step goal. Major role in dropping 15 lbs.
Those are some impressive numbers. Well done.

I'm helped out by (1) Having an active dog (2) Living near The Beltline in Atlanta (a giant set of inner-city trails and parks) and (3) Moving a bunch for my job.