Breathwalking - Mindfullness While You Walk

It's a well-known fact that meditation and deep breathing are excellent stress relievers. It's also a given that walking is a fantastic way to relieve stress. Now think about combining those two activities and you have "moving meditation". It's a great way to combine the time you'd like to spend being in mindful meditation with walking for both exercise and stress relief.

In Breathwalking you concentrate on taking full and even breaths instead of your normal shallow breaths. And you breathe in rhythm with your steps. There are a couple of different techniques you can use.

The first is called Waves. You breathe in continuously for a count of 4 - taking a step with each count. Then you exhale continuously for a count of 4 - taking a step with each count.

The other method is called Stairs. It's the same 4 count principle, but this time you take four individual breaths in for each count, then 4 individual exhales for the next four counts. Try to breathe in through your mouth and exhale through your nose.

Even a short walk of only 10 or 15 minutes is enough to gain benefits from Breathwalking. You'll find yourself more relaxed and focused and your body will do a better job with digestion and sleep.

Another surprising benefit is that it becomes a brain booster. Charles Francis, author of Mindfullness Meditation Made Simple, says this in his book:

If done properly, the effects of meditation are immediate, as you may be more calm, focused and steady in your emotions, and have greater control over a racing mind.

Research has shown that meditation can encourage the brain to grow new cells and also shrink the gray matter in the center of the brain that causes fear and anxiety.

And the benefits of Breathwalking continue even after your walk is complete. A study in Psychological Science showed that using this helpful mindful moving meditation could help you make smarter decisions. And who couldn't benefit from improving your decision-making skills?

If you enjoy writing short fiction stories (less than 1,000 words) I'd love to have you join me on Narrative. Don't abandon STEEM - there's room in your life for both! Here's a link directly to my page featuring Flash Fiction:

Join me on Narrative

Get in on the ground floor and see what it's all about. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the comments.