Hey friends,
Thanks for joining me today.
Often when we make the intention to do our meditation practice,
We prepare to sit in a comfortable upright position,
Right?
We make an intention to sit on our cushion,
To sit in a chair,
To sit on the floor in that comfortable upright position for our practice.
And there are a lot of benefits to this position.
You know,
It's incredibly comfortable to breathe in this upright position.
When you're sitting firm,
You know,
You're comfortable enough to relax but not so comfortable that you risk easily falling asleep.
But even with all the benefits of this position,
It's still not always what the body needs,
Is it?
Sometimes we might be super high energy and maybe it would be better in this situation to do a meditation practice lying down and invite more calming energies into the situation.
Or perhaps we're on the other end and you know,
We're lethargic,
We're tired and you know,
Maybe it would be in our best interest in this situation to stand up for our meditation practice.
Or even better,
Go on a walk.
That's what I'd like to explore with you today is a walking meditation.
I hope you read the title and knew what you were getting yourself into and you have a wide open space to roam available to you.
So let's get to it.
So we want to be safe for this practice.
We don't want to be walking around with our eyes closed but you also don't want a lot of distractions in your vision.
So let the gaze kind of rest on the ground before you as you walk.
We don't want to trip over anything.
We don't want to run into anything.
You don't necessarily have to be speed walking here.
You don't have to be walking super slowly.
Just find that natural gait,
That natural rhythm for you.
This will be different for everyone.
Okay,
You found that nice natural rhythm for you.
Now I want you to start syncing up the breath to each footfall.
So start an inhale and count each footfall throughout the inhale.
And then once you get to a comfortable top of the in breath,
Start counting again for the exhale.
Until you get to a comfortable bottom of that out breath.
And then start counting again through the in breath.
And then starting over counting through the out breath.
And find that comfortable number of steps that you can comfortably fit into one in breath.
And the comfortable amount of footsteps you can get into one out breath.
See if you can't make that out breath last two extra steps.
Inhale counting one,
Two,
Three,
Four.
Do whatever number you end up at.
And then starting over one,
Two,
Three.
Again to your comfortable number.
Trying to get a couple extra steps in the out breath than what you had for the in breath.
Feel that rhythm each footfall.
Feel that rhythm of the breath.
Maybe you weren't moving much before this walking meditation.
Maybe your heart rate has risen a little bit.
Maybe the breath needs to quicken a little bit.
Reevaluate that number you chose for how many footsteps you can get into an in breath.
And how many you can get into an out breath.
See if you need to adjust that number to make it more comfortable for you.
Or if you are fine where you are at just stick with it.
And we're going to add another element to this meditation.
It's seldom I do a meditation practice without finding some way to weave in some compassion to the practice.
So now spare a little bit of attention for the sensation of the footfall.
The sensation of the foot hitting the ground.
That impact.
Maybe there's an impact.
Maybe you're barefoot on grass and there's not much of an impact.
But just focus on that sensation.
That exact moment when the foot meets the ground.
And we practice a little mindful walking here.
Letting the awareness still dwell in the breath.
We're still counting those footsteps.
But we're sharing a little awareness for this sensation of the feet hitting the ground.
With each footfall,
With each individual contact with the earth.
Send a little compassion downward.
Down to the foot.
Let each footfall just be like a little pat on the earth.
Just each footfall send some compassion down into the earth.
The earth provides us with so much.
We put it through a lot.
Take this opportunity now to give a little bit back.
No matter how small.
Just a little compassion.
A little recognition.
A little gratitude for everything the earth does and provides us with.
Gratitude for this firm ground to have this practice on.
Continue in this way for a little longer.
In rhythm with the footsteps.
With each of those footsteps,
Dropping a little compassion down into the earth.
Letting the awareness still dwell in the breath.
Letting the awareness still dwell in the earth.
This is a simple practice and we'll keep it short.
At least on my end.
But if you've got some energy to work through yet,
Feel free to continue with your walk after I leave you.
I'd like to invite you to keep this practice in mind.
I know often we have a hard time fitting our meditation practice into our busy days.
This is just another tool,
Another technique,
An easy way to fit a meditation in somewhere where we might not necessarily think of it.
Use that time to find this practice.
To find some mindfulness.
To find some compassion.
Thank you for walking with me today.
I'll see you later.
