The Power of Going for a Walk
This is a fairly new concept to me. I stumbled upon it accidentally while on a hike in Sedona, Arizona. The hike happened to be at a time where I couldn’t focus on what my next step professionally was going to be. I had all these ideas swirling around in my head but no clarity on where to start, which one to go forward with, how to even get things going and the big one, if I start it will anyone even give a shit?
As I was walking through nature, no music or podcast to distract me, my mind was still swirling with these thoughts but slowly things seemed to be falling in place. By the end of the hike I surprisingly found myself with a very rough plan I had developed and I vividly remember thinking how invigorating the experience was.
Fast forward a couple weeks when I was back home and working on this new gameplan I had when ideas and plans seemed to get jumbled up again. I decided to try going for a walk, this time on the beach. Oddly enough, I experienced the same outcome.
After this second experience, I decided to do some research and see if I was imagining this sense of clarity or if there was actually some science behind it and it turns out…there is!
Here are some of the highlights of what I found on the benefits of going for a walk:
Like any cardiovascular activity, walking gets the heart pumping which increases blood flow, reduces blood pressure and boosts energy. (Source)
Taking a walk has been shown to help focus thoughts. In a small study, post walk brain scans showed increased activity in the areas of the brain associated with focus and attention. (Source)
According to another study at Stanford, we are at our most creative while walking or shortly after. This is why Steve Jobs would often host walking meetings. (Source)
I kind of went down a rabbit hole on this one and there are many other benefits of walking but I will leave that for another post. Anytime I find myself mentally/creatively stuck I know exactly what I need to do, and I highly recommend a walk…especially outside and leave your music or podcasts at home.
