Let’s start by dispelling this old notion that if you’re not in pain, nothing significant is happening!
My doctorate research and dissertation was on the benefits of Mindful Walking on a variety of well-being measures. One of the deterrents for engaging in exercise is the discomfort that results from exerting ourselves. This is only a problem if you are ‘Mindless’ with your engagement in exercise. At the heart of Mindful Walking is a moment-to-moment awareness of what you are doing, how your body responds to what you are doing, and then choosing your next actions accordingly. For example, you decide to take a walk but are unsure how far or fast you should go. Rather than “pushing” ourselves, trying to match other’s goals, or adhering to some “should” rule…what would it be like to ease in to an activity with the idea (i.e., just a theory) that what I’m about to do is going to work for me. In other words, being in balance with the give and take of the activity, such as feeling like you had just enough to give the challenge placed before you. This is exactly what mindful movement (e.g., mindful walking) tries to achieve. When we are realistic with the challenges we place in our path and allow reasonable time to complete them we build Self-Efficacy, which is the belief we can be successful in a domain (e.g., exercise). When we set our goals unrealistically ambitious we undermine our sense of self-efficacy, and this is at the heart of success or failure!
In addition, the attention to current moment experience during Mindful Walking allows one to notice training benefits across time (e.g., less breathless, more energy, less pain), and this increases motivation to continue exercise in the future.
Below are two 30-minute guided Mindful Walking audios that will help you learn to listen and respond to your body’s signals so you can more accurately met your realistic goals. Let’s set ourselves up for success by pushing when it is time to push and honoring when it is time to go easy or take a break.