I'm Dr Ed.
Today we're going to do a slightly different practice.
Mindful walking.
10 minutes of learning to bring full awareness to movement.
Most of the time,
Walking is automatic.
Your body knows the routine.
Your mind is somewhere else entirely.
This practice is about being present for each step.
For this meditation,
You'll need a space to walk,
Ideally 10-20 paces in a straight line.
It can be indoors or outdoors.
A hallway works fine.
A room where you can walk back and forth.
You'll be walking much slower than usual.
If anyone sees you,
They'll think you might look a bit odd.
But that's fine.
Let's begin.
So,
Stand at one end of your walking space.
Have your feet about a hip width apart,
Your arms by your sides or hands clasped gently in front.
Whatever feels natural.
Take a moment to feel your feet on the ground.
The pressure,
The contact,
The support.
Take three deeper breaths in and out through your nose.
In and out.
In and out.
In and out.
Now,
Let your breath return to its natural rhythm.
You're about to walk,
But not in the way you usually walk.
You're going to walk very slowly,
Deliberately,
With full awareness of each component of movement.
Shift your weight onto your left foot.
Notice what it feels like.
The pressure increasing on the left.
The right foot becoming lighter.
Now,
Begin to lift your right heel.
Slowly,
Very slowly.
Feel the heel lifting.
The ball of the foot still in contact.
The toes still touching the ground.
Continue lifting the entire right foot,
Now off the ground.
Notice the sensation of lifting.
Notice the left leg supporting your full weight.
Move the right foot forward,
Slowly through the air.
Notice the movement,
The muscles working,
The foot travelling through space.
Place the right heel down.
Feel it make contact.
Then the ball of the foot,
Then the toes.
Shift your weight onto the right foot.
Notice the transition,
The weight of moving from left to right.
Now,
Lift the heel on the left,
Slowly,
Deliberately,
With full awareness.
Now,
Continue walking in this way,
Lifting,
Moving,
Placing,
Shifting,
Each step broken down into its components.
Your mind will wonder that's guaranteed.
You'll suddenly realise you've walked several steps without any awareness at all.
When that happens,
Just notice and bring your attention back to the next step.
What does it feel like to lift your foot?
What muscles are working?
Where do you feel the effort?
What does it feel like when your foot moves through the air?
Lightness,
The movement,
The space.
What does it feel like when your foot makes contact with the ground?
Heel first,
Then the ball,
Then the toes.
The pressure,
The texture of the surface beneath you.
What does it feel like to shift your weight,
The transition,
The balance,
The support?
Keep walking,
Slowly,
Deliberately.
Now,
I want to add something.
At the end of each step,
When both feet are on the ground,
Just pause,
Just for a moment.
Stand,
Breathe,
Notice,
Then begin the next step.
This pause is important.
It's the space between one action and the next,
And in that space,
You can choose.
You can be present,
And you're not on automatic pilot.
Lift,
Move,
Place,
Shift,
Pause.
Lift,
Move,
Place,
Shift,
Pause.
When you reach the end of your walking space,
Just stop completely,
And stand for a moment.
Breathe,
Turn around,
Slowly,
Mindfully,
And walk back in the other direction.
Continue this practice,
Walking slowly,
Pausing between steps,
Noticing when your mind wanders,
And coming back.
You might feel restless during this exercise.
Your mind might say,
This is boring,
This is pointless.
I could be doing something useful.
That's normal.
Just notice those thoughts.
You might feel an urge to speed up,
To walk normally,
To be done with this.
That's normal too.
This restlessness,
The urge to be doing something else,
This is what drives you every day.
The inability just to be here,
Doing this one thing.
The addiction to rushing,
Productivity,
The next task.
This practice is training in something radical.
Being present,
Right here,
Right now.
Even when it's boring,
Even when it's uncomfortable.
Keep walking,
Slowly,
Deliberately,
Step by step.
And when your mind wanders,
Just bring it back.
When you speed up,
Slow down.
When you forget to pause,
Then pause.
As you continue walking,
Expand your awareness beyond just your feet.
Notice your whole body walking.
Your legs,
Your hips,
Your torso,
Your arms swinging slightly,
Your head balanced on your spine.
Your breath,
Still flowing in and out.
But the majority of your attention is on the walking.
The lifting,
The moving,
The placing,
The pausing.
We're going to come back to the normal world now.
But just take a few more steps.
When you're ready,
Come to a stop.
And just stand,
Feel your feet on the ground,
Feel your breath,
Feel your body standing here.
You've just spent 10 minutes walking,
Something you do every day,
Dozens of times,
Without any awareness.
But not this time.
This time,
You were present.
And this is the practice,
Bringing full awareness to ordinary activities.
When you can be present for walking,
You can be present for anything.
This is how you step off the hamster wheel.
Not by stopping,
But by being present whilst moving.
The pause between stimulus and response.
The space where you can choose.
Take that with you.
It's always with you.
Thank you for practicing.
