Saturday, May 24, 2008

Normally I think of walking meditation as being something we do quite slowly and in a fairly small place. But here's an approach that combines mindfulness with walking for exercise. The following excerpt is from an article by Barbara Williamson:
Basic guidelines for walking meditation:

* Walk in an area that you are familiar and comfortable with.
* Your goal is to walk for a 20 minute time period (or more if you wish). In the beginning, if that is too long for you, then you may want to begin with a 5 minute period and gradually work your way up to a 20 minute time period.
* Start walking with a relaxed posture.
* Focus on the sensations in your feet as they lift off the ground and touch the ground.
* Relax your arms.
* As you walk, keep your focus about 3 to 6 feet in front of you.

In conclusion, mindful walking is a practice that is easy to implement into your daily exercise regiment. Not only will you be helping your body out, but you will be taking your exercise program up a notch by improving your mind and spirit.
Anything can be done as a meditation if we are conscious of staying utterly in the moment while we're doing it.

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