This is an ongoing entry about walking. It is 2024. I started these entries a couple of years back. Referring to the previous entries will inform your understanding of this entry. Walking Part I August 13, 2022
I made a follow-up 2023 entry that described my evolving thinking around a walking-every-day lifestyle routine. Walking Part II - April 22, 2023
It will be a HOT Summer Day today. I woke up at 6:00 am to walk, ostensibly. I looked at my phone and saw that the outdoor temperature was in the mid-60s. I thought, “A perfect day to walk and get my half hour in.” I thought, YES, and I could have the whole Sunday to pursue my interests (Father’s Day - although it is unlikely I will get any calls to wish me a Happy Father’s Day because this has never been part of our family culture).
I was still tired while in bed and found myself conflicted between:
1. Getting up and walking
versus
2. Returning to sleep.
I rolled over and returned to sleep. I got up at 10AM this morning. It felt great, but a slight nagging thought remained in my mind, “I probably should have walked this morning.” I told myself, “OK, it's Father’s Day, I got a very long sleep period (I probably needed it).”
“I will walk at 9 pm tonight.”
but
It will be hot (approx 77 degrees and stuffy air)
a bother to do it.
SO BE IT.
Then, I thought
“Hey, it’s Father’s Day
I’ve earned a Day Off.
I’ll wrestle with this conflict.
I’ll probably do it.
Why?
Why should I walk for 30 minutes every day?
I haven’t been able to walk daily, sometimes for good reasons (smog), so why do it today?
I don’t inherently enjoy walking every day.
The conditions outside are not great for walking today, too hot.
I’m not sure that I’ve been benefitting from walking physiologically.
My blood pressure is still high
My metabolic measures are still in the range where I take a few medications to control it.
It takes 30 minutes out of my day, 7 days a week, which is 210 minutes a week, 840 minutes (or roughly 14 hours a month).
My knees hurt, due probably to chronic and progressive arthritis and other knee-related conditions at 67+ years.
Why walk?
Self-questioning usually prompts me to dive deeper into my psyche—beyond the superficial, but not too deep, mind you, but deep enough to where time stands still for me; that is, I begin examining my “values, beliefs, and perceptions and my inherent POV.”
Diving Deep, I’m usually attuned to my current feeling state. This, for me, is moderately deep. I’m still aware of my surroundings and of others. When I dive deeply into my psyche, I generally lose touch with these.
There are instances that cause me to do this regularly, usually when I’m engaged in an art project:
Or when I have a core conflict that’s bothering me. Walking versus Not Walking on a particular day does not move me to deepen my thought process.
Still, it has been an ongoing conflict since I started walking about two years ago. I can eliminate it by going out and walking. Then it’s done, at least for the day.
I anticipate when I will walk and why I’m doing this repetitious behavior daily. That I will (or will not) walk causes me to focus on the act/effort of walking mentally because I don’t inherently want/desire/enjoy walking. This then brings out my thoughts, feelings, and emotions of conflict. This is my day-to-day personal experience.
I’m slowing everything down, my thoughts, reactions, and feelings, to write all this out because it happens almost instantaneously.
But, hey, I’m a psychologist/practicing therapist. I see clients 25+ per week, I’ve trained myself (sometimes without knowing it) to think, feel, and act this way.
I didn’t “contemplate” at such a high degree when I was younger. I didn’t listen to the voices of my psyche, including my values, actual desires, and wants. I wasn’t aware I had the power to stop myself, think about things, and then move deliberately afterwards. I wasn’t able, I believe, to suspend my judgments and just think about something with an open mind. Now I do.
Back in the day—I acted. Then, afterward, I would contemplate (either affirm myself or feel regret). I don’t just act much anymore, for good or bad. Maybe it's aging. Maybe it's so much therapy. Maybe it's maturing. It’s hard to say. Am I happier because of it?
Not really. I might say I am “less happy.” This statement probably deserves another blog entry. But I’m different than I was 45 years ago. I’m incredibly different (not even the same person) I was 30 years ago. I can’t even recognize who I was at 30 years. Is this progress?
Who knows. It is change, big change.
Back to walking.
Why am I set on Walking every day? I don’t like doing it.
I said to myself I would do it.
Looking back, I’m glad I’ve done it because I generally feel better afterward.
Why?
Honestly, I’m not sure. But I do have a theory. Here it is.
Bob Hill’s Theory of Walking for Positive Mental Health
Human beings are creatures of movement. Our body moves internally and externally. Even in a state of total rest, our body moves metabolically. Our heart continues to beat; blood flowing, and everything moving. Death is when movement, or at least as best we can know what human movement is, stops. As creatures of movement, paradoxically, in our 1st World’s technologically advanced society, we are encouraged toward sedentariness. We do everything to prohibit movement (sitting at a computer, watching television, punching keys on our cell phones). We enjoy being still. It’s relaxing. But WHY is it so inherently rewarding to stop/be still?
Because being relaxed/stopped is juxtaposed with movement, we feel the difference between effortful movement (this could be cognitive movement as well) and being still. Stillness is NOT non-movement; it is regenerative movement. We regenerate when we are still—up to a point. If we are still too long, we deteriorate, atrophy, wither, shrink, shrivel, decline, and deteriorate. We are creatures of movement; “moving” is what we do. Moving is who we are. We fear long-term non-movement (think wheelchair).
Walking is programmed physical movement. Our brain works better when we physically move and rest shortly after programmed movement. Our mental health improves when we move, depression/anxiety is primarily a metabolic disorder (internal processes of neurology and endocrinology). Without movement, these processes are vulnerable to dysregulation. Underlying movement-related physiological substrates undergird optimal mental health (via the brain as the beneficiary of cardiological, metabolic, and neurological processes). I can provide an entire library of research that has documented this POV. The brain manifests this benefit through optimized mental balancing (or mental health).
I won’t continue, but my theory is reasonably elaborate. I’ve elaborated enough to assure myself and encourage myself that Walking Today makes sense to do even though I don’t want to walk today.
When I link walking to my theory, I’m persuaded to walk. My deep dive has served its purpose for now. This is how I keep my motivation to walk daily. So…
I will probably walk today.