As the body is the vessel for our soul,
Walking well is essential.
I'm going to share with you a couple of stories which made me realise the importance of walking.
I was once promenading by the sea and my vision was captivated by the striking woman in front of me.
Her energy was compelling.
She walked with confidence and graciousness.
She had long grey hair which she wore with pride and she long linen skirt was dancing where body and the breeze with every step she took.
She looked so tall and composed.
When she turned I realised that what I thought was a lady in her 40s was in fact a lady in her 90s.
Her secret?
Walking well every day.
Another time I met a 95 year old man.
He stood in the queue in front of me.
Again he appeared so tall and his confidence was palpable.
I asked,
Excuse me,
Sir.
May I ask your secret to such youthful appearance?
He looked at me with a humble smile and replied,
Walking well my dear.
So whether you want to improve your gait or recovery from an injury,
Walking well is essential for your soul.
The aim is to achieve a walk so the someone walking behind you won't be able to guess your age.
You want to radiate youth and wellness.
The inner you will know exactly how to respond to this behaviour.
Being aware of how you stand and walk is the start of being more humane towards self which subsequently will project onto others.
Furthermore,
By learning to walk again you regain body-owership and presence.
All you need is the courage to move ahead.
As we grow and evolve so will our aches and pains and therefore a choice confronts you.
Curling within to be swallowed by uncertainty,
Panic and the loss of familiar,
In this case is the habitual unhealthy walk-gait that you might have acquired without even realising.
Or to stand still,
Place the best foot forward and participate in forming the future.
If you wish to curl within then do so but be compassionate towards yourself by acknowledging this feeling.
Sit in silence for a few minutes,
Exploring within in a non-judgmental way.
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Let's start.
For this exercise you can either sit or lay down and choose to either keep your eyes open or shut.
Let's start by taking a few breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth.
Do this a few times in through your nose and out through your mouth,
Allowing your outer breath to be longer than your in breath.
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Allow your body to relax,
Starting from your facial muscles to the neck and shoulders,
Down your arms,
Hands and fingers.
The torso is nice and soft and so is your belly.
Feel this wave of relaxation down to your pelvis.
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Your legs and knees are soft,
Down to your ankles and your feet.
Next,
Let's visualize the best version of you walking.
Next,
Let's visualize the best version of you walking.
Standing tall,
With feet feeling the ground,
And feet feeling the water.
Standing tall,
With feet feeling the ground beneath you.
Allow yourself to ground by visualizing a light,
Or a waterfall,
Or the root of a tree expanding from the base of your spine.
All the way to the center of the earth.
And feeling the energy from beneath you giving you the strength and optimism to place your best foot forward.
Feel the energy radiating all the way up your body now.
Your spine is feeling lengthened.
Now lift the chest.
Shoulders are nice and relaxed but open.
Lift the head now.
The chin is up.
And you're looking ahead knowing and trusting that your body will respond to your command.
With confidence you take the first step.
And without hesitation you take the second step.
Your arms are swinging back and forth as you begin to adopt a swagger that you never thought you had.
Enjoy this feeling and carry on walking like this down your favourite memory lane.
Looking ahead at the beauty surrounding you.
Feeling every step.
Hearing every sound around you.
Engaging with every smell.
Feeling proud and confident.
Now smile and trust your body can learn from here.
Carry on doing this visualisation as often as you can.
And when you feel ready,
Stand up.
Safety always comes first.
So if you feel that you need to,
Hold on to a chair,
Hold on to a walking stick,
To a wall or to the person next to you.
And with the feet feeling the ground beneath you,
Allow yourself to ground by visualising a light or a waterfall,
Or the root of a tree expanding from the base of your spine all the way to the centre of the earth.
And feeling the energy from beneath you giving you the strength and optimism to place your best foot forward.
Feel the energy radiating all the way up to your body now.
Your spine is feeling lengthened.
Now lift the chest.
Shoulders are nice and relaxed but open.
Lift the head now.
Chin is up ever so slightly and you're looking ahead knowing and trusting that your body will respond to your command.
With confidence you take the first step.
Nice and high.
Bend that knee.
Well done.
And without hesitation you take the second step.
Slowly but with confidence.
Your arms are swinging back and forth as you begin to adopt a swagger that you never thought you had.
Smile now and enjoy learning to walk again.
