- [Narrator] MindfulnessExercises.com.
Walking meditation.
(bell chiming) (water flowing)
Today, we'll be practicing a walking meditation.
First, find a place for your mindful walking practice.
It's simplest to start wherever you are right now,
but if you'd like to though,
you can take this recording with you
to a park or somewhere else you'd like to be.
Find a place to walk that allows you
to listen safely to these instructions.
Perhaps a smooth path without traffic.
Before you start walking,
take a moment and notice yourself standing.
Feel your feet on the ground.
Notice how you're standing.
Just as we do with sitting meditation,
invite your spine to lengthen
and your shoulders to soften.
Stand in a way that feels upright, relaxed, and present
and bring attention to your breathing,
taking a deep breath in through the nose,
and a long slow breath out through the mouth.
(deep breathing)
Notice where you are right now,
what sensations you're experiencing in your body.
What do you see in front of you?
Perhaps you can notice specific colors, shapes, lights.
What sounds do you hear?
Can you feel warmth or coolness?
Is there a breeze, or is the air still?
What sensations do you notice in your body as you stand?
And now, consciously begin walking
at whatever pace feels right to you.
Can you notice the physical sensations of lifting your foot?
The sensations of your foot making contact with the ground?
Continue walking for a few minutes,
just focusing on the very particular experience
of each foot making contact with the ground
from the heel to the arch, to your toes.
If it helps, you can say to yourself, "contact"
as your foot touches the ground.
Contact, contact, contact.
And begin to widen the focus of your awareness over time
to include the experience of your whole body walking,
seeing what it feels like for the body
to be moving in this way.
What are the range of sensations that you're experiencing?
And while still being aware of your body,
expand your awareness even further.
Include the range of everything that you're experiencing
in your environment around you,
from sights and sounds to smells and sensations.
Can you be fully aware and present of walking
in the middle of this very dynamic moving experience?
Continue walking in this way as long as you'd like.
You may try alternating your focus
from the contact of your feet on the ground
to being aware of your whole body
to being aware of the wider environment around you.
Or simply pausing to appreciate something in your path.
When you're ready to finish, just come back
to standing still with both feet
flat on the ground side by side.
Noticing your posture,
noticing your breathing,
feeling the weight of your body on the ground
and finishing with a full deep breath in through the nose,
and a long slow breath out through the mouth.
(bell chiming)