I don’t have time to walk is like saying I don’t have time to breath. It is one of the biggest moments we celebrate with our children. If they can walk, it is going to be ok. Their brain body connection has grown to the point where they can stand, balance, and take their first steps. It is a joyous occasion. Then we gradually take it for granted. Never again do we celebrate it like those first steps.
Fast forward thirty years, and it is to be avoided when possible. Take the bus or car. Even stop in front of the house to reach in and get the mail from the box instead of walking to the mailbox. I see people lined up at an intersection after driving to to the bus stop with their kids. We begin teaching that walking is to be avoided at a very early age. Rushing because they are late and need to go to work. The silent car ride looking at the phone or listening to the radio instead of listening to each other and nature as you walk to the bus stop. A moment lost that will never come again.
We are doing a 5k walking challenge this month. Just think if it were a walk only for transportation challenge this month. Outlandish! Preposterous!. My feed would be filled with even more excuses than completions for sure. But wouldn’t it be great to see how many unnecessary trips we make in the car because we can. By nature we look to make life easier and it often costs us life itself.
Making time to walk is as easy as making time to brush your teeth or take a shower. If fact, if you add a new routine to an existing routine, it is much more likely to take hold. Add walking to your morning routine. How do you find that hour. It is right there in your procrastination time. There are 16 hours of wake time if you sleep 8 hours. Check your screen time which includes TV, phone, and non working computer time. I bet that you can move tasks to the morning from screen time to allow for a walk. If you do not sleep well, get up and walk first thing at daybreak. This will reset your circadian rhythm better than any sleep aid. You are likely to sleep well the next night. Give it a try.
Three-o, Sophie and I are going for our walk with a little bit more of running each day. This week we are walk/running 5 miles Monday through Friday. I walk for the first half mile then start to add bits of running to the walking. By the time it is Sophie’s turn, we are about 60% running and 40% walking. Slow but gradually picking up the pace. Get your walk in today