Holistic living is highly essential for overall success in life. As a life coach based in India and serving people internationally, I have always observed how by consciously winning one sector of life, you can productively affect other sectors of life as well.
Walking is one of the most common and globally accepted wellness exercises to stay healthy and fit. Almost all around the world, you can see people occupying gardens in the morning and evening, especially in tier 1 and tier 2 cities.
Many doctors, fitness experts, and life coaches also suggest walking, if you are not opting for any other physical discipline. However, if you walk the wrong way, it can turn out to be counterproductive.
In this article, I, Sahil Kumar Nagpal, a holistic life coach in India, will shed some light on the mistakes we make while walking.
1) Mistake That Affects Holistic Wellness
Almost all of us walk by just throwing our feet out. We always put our feet slightly pointing outwards. This is not natural.
It negatively affects our knee health and overall posture. Mostly, it goes unnoticed as it does not directly affect our fitness. However, in the long run, it can do damage.
Best practice is to gently and consciously put your every step in a straight line. The toes should always point forward.
2) Mistake That Affects Mental Wellness
This is a very general mistake. Not only while walking but also while sitting and standing, people commit this mistake. They slouch their back.
I have many times mentioned this, your body, that is your posture, body language, and facial expression, is a reflection of your subconscious mind. If you slouch, that means your mental state is not very powerful, in simple language.
By changing your posture, by keeping your spine erect, you can retain your energy level, and you can increase your confidence as well. There is a study done on posture, do check it out.
3) Mistake That Delays Healing
Walking itself is a very powerful healing process. But many of us make the mistake of walking fast. We think of losing fat or weight, and so we walk fast.
If you want to exercise your heart, if you want to burn fat, do a jog or do a pranayama. But if you want to make your walk into a holistic healing process, don’t walk fast. Instead, walk slowly.
Many of us put on headphones and disengage with our surroundings. Whenever you are walking in nature, walk slowly, listen to the sound of the birds, feel the wind on your skin, smell the flowers and the freshness of the earth, and watch the greenery around.
All of it will give a mental healing experience. It is a great stress buster. It opens up many dimensions. There are so many mental issues that you can solve just by doing this.
4) Mistake That Can Affect Your Heart Health
So many of us, after finishing our walk in the garden, directly hop into the car and go home. This is not good for the heart.
It is essential for your holistic wellness that your body cools down and your breath comes to normal before you leave the garden environment.
So, after you finish the walk, sit on the bench for a couple of minutes. This is a great time to meditate. If you have learnt meditation, you can do it. If you haven’t then do check out our digital guided meditations. If you don’t have anything, simply sit for a couple of minutes.
5) Mistake That Can Affect Your Fitness
After doing any strenuous exercise, it becomes very important to stretch that part. In this particular case of walking, we must stretch all our leg muscles and joints. We must also stretch our backs, especially our lower back.
You can do this when you are in the garden after finishing the walk, or you can also do it after reaching home.
A Holistic Conclusion
Walking is a great form of physical workout, but it can also become a holistic experience. It can also become a healing experience.
In my life coaching programs, I often teach people different forms of walking meditation. Such meditation has profound effects on physical, mental, and spiritual well-being.
