I used to think that walking was not worthy to be called exercise. Exercise was running, or taking stadium stairs two at a time or doing push-ups. It really wasn’t until I got pregnant with Dutch that I was forced to swallow my exercise pride and then discovered this free, glorious activity that is a simple walk. Now, I am addicted to walking.
At our home in McMinnville, we lived in the perfect walking neighborhood. Rolling hills, beautiful homes, and hardly any traffic. I could do any number of loops or hills depending upon my energy level or time available. When we moved (just one mile away), it was even better. We were still connected to the same neighborhood but then was able to extend my walks to include new subdivisions and a path along the golf course. I walked throughout my whole pregnancy and felt great. The last four days of pregnancy (in December) it was freezing cold and raining, but I was bound and determined to keep walking. Those last days I can’t say walking was fun, with an aching back and sharp pains in my abdomen and a seven-pound baby resting and bouncing on my bladder. Walks had to be kept to forty-minutes or less because that’s the longest stretch I could go between pee breaks. But really, walking kept me sane. I loved the time to pray, think, or just dream. In silence. A walk alone must be in silence. The thought of listening to an i-pod while walking is like talking on a cell phone during a prayer meeting–it’s just wrong. For me, the silence is 1/2 of the beauty of the walk.
Of course I love walking with people too. For some reason it’s always easier to talk when you’re walking. Jeff and I can sit down and stare at each other for 15 minutes but the minute we zip up our jackets, strap Dutch in the stroller, and head out into the cool air, we seem to wake up and carry on forever. The same is true with friends. And I think what I especially love about walking is that silence is ok. I actually love silence, but hate the awkwardness that it seems to create, so I love how walking creates an environment for fellowship without the pressure of non-stop chatter.
But most of all for me, walking benefits my mind, heart, and body. For obvious reasons, walking benefits my body. I love that no matter how crappy I feel, I can always muster up the energy for a walk. Billy Blanks and Denise Austin can seem like a bit much sometimes, but I can always find the courage to lace up my sneakers and do a few laps on the driveway. For me, walking is even more beneficial than running. When I do a lot of running, my knees and hips hurt something terrible (I sound so old! I’m only 27!), but walking makes my body feel so good without pain. I also notice that when I run a lot, my thighs bulk up (my body default, in any given situation is just to bulk up my thighs), but with walking that doesn’t happen. This, to me, is a miracle. Walking requires no equipment, save a decent pair of shoes, and is absolutely free! No membership fees! The only major deterrent sometimes is the rain, but usually if I keep my eye out, I can find a break in even the steadiest downpour, and sneak in at least 30 minutes or so.
Walking also benefits my heart. When I walk, I can commune with God better than anywhere else. I can’t grab my computer and check my email, the phone can’t ring and interrupt my thoughts, and I can’t get distracted by some chore. Even when I have Dutch with me, he is so content to swing his legs and talk and point at the trees, I have the freedom to let my heart rest and lift up my prayers to God. I also have an opportunity to be silent before Him. Instead of constantly yacking on and on about my needs, in the quiet of my walk I can just be still and know that He is.
Lastly, walking benefits my mind. I love to think. I love to let my mind go from one topic and see how it naturally goes on and on and on until I’m somewhere way out in left field contemplating things. We are so constantly busy and stimulated in our minds, we rarely have time to just be. I read once a man was telling an older wise woman about all that he does, memorizing scripture when he brushed his teeth, reading the paper while he ate his breakfast, “reading” books on tape while he drove in the car. Her response was, “But when do you think?!” Walking is when I think.
So, when we moved from my ideal walking neighborhood out into the boonies, I was a little devestated. It sounds ridiculous but really the single hardest thing about being out there was the fact that I couldn’t do my daily walks because we lived on a dangerous, windy country road. So, I pouted about it for four months and was miserable because I needed my daily walk. I felt trapped. I felt under-exercised, under-rested, under-thought, and under-prayed. I missed the fresh air but I am incapable of going outside and just sitting, because that feels like doing nothing and I am no good at doing nothing. SO, finally, I walked a loop, out my parents’ driveway, out to the main road, then down the driveway, all the way to the river and back to the house. It took me 10 minutes, walking at a quick clip. So, I decided that doing four laps wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world, and started doing that. From shoe-lace tied to shoe-lace untied is 45 minutes, and that includes getting Dutch zipped into his jacket and his hat pulled down over his ears. And you know what? I love it. I have grown to absolutely love it. It’s not the walking I loved back in McMinnville, but it’s walking just the same and it’s beautiful. The road had a good hill that gets my heart-rate up, and at the bottom we can stop for a moment and watch the raging river while I point out birds and trees and rapids to Dutch. He loves the fresh air and somehow it seems I can tell that it’s good for him too.
So for Thanksgiving we are in Bend, visiting Jeff’s mom. I wasn’t sure what the walking situation was like, but Thanksgiving morning, I announced I was going for a walk, and Jeff sweetly said he’d join me. To my delight Janie informed us there was a 3-mile loop around the house, along a gravel road and back on the main highway. So, we’ve walked it each morning of our stay here. This morning, Jeff was gone so I walked it alone. It was in the mid-teens so my face was so cold it stung, but as I turned the mid-way corner, the sun shown in my front and I could feel my cheeks begin to thaw. In the icy cold, diamonds of frost glittered all along the road in the sunlight. I inhaled deeply and looked up at the perfectly blue sky, marveling at how glorious the world is. I thought for a moment of all the people waiting in line at department stores across the nation, taking advantage of Black Friday discounts, and had to smile. I felt as though somehow I’d discovered a magnificent secret that none of them knew. The real joy was right here, in this walk. In this freezing, silent, sunlight walk. I walked with my face upturned to the sky, holding my arms out to the side (until my hands started to freeze then I had to shove them back in my pockets!), marveling at this sweet moment. Don’t get me wrong, I later chose to brave the crowds for the sake of a 20% discount on clothes for Dutch at Carter’s, but for that moment, that morning, no discount in the world could have pulled me away from my glorious morning walk.
So I say to you–try it! Take a walk! Bundle up your baby and tie up your laces. Leave the i-pod and cell phone at home (unless you enjoy those things–then take them!), and enjoy the magic of a long walk. And for those of you who still don’t think it’s real exercise, Billy Blanks will still be waiting for you when you get home.