The temperature outside is a lovely 24 C / 76 F, fantastic weather for a walk! As I am now back in Austin, Texas visiting my parents this walk is different than wandering big cities aimlessly for hours! They have a really nice walking/ biking trail behind their home that is part of a grassy trail that goes for more than 6 miles. It encompasses several parks and a dam. I usually do about 3.5 miles roundtrip. People are very friendly here so many times they will say hello to you as you pass by.
I thought I would outline what I focus on internally while I do my walks
Firstly, I love my almost barefoot sneakers. They have nice wide room for my toes. And they have barely any heel so my whole foot is making contact with the trail.
Feet face forward.
Heel strikes first.
Belly relaxed – so I’m not sucking in or up. I let the belly be dynamic, I don’t hold it in one position.
Pelvis in Neutral – ASIS and Pubic symphysis are not aiming toward the floor or toward the ceiling (no tucking or tipping) – just on the same plane.
Arms reciprocally swinging. What is that? opposite arm to opposite leg. They swing..
I try to keep my ribs pretty soft – which to me means that I don’t thrust my ribs forward but aim for them to be as neutral as possible (lower ribs over ASIS bones).
I try to keep my focus to the horizon and not so much down – funny that I find myself looking down and I notice my dad does too! We copy the habits we most see. (Although he claims he finds loose change this way!) But remember the head is heavy, so keep it propped on your spine.
This probably seems like a lot to think about! And I do have an obsessive mind. I do it dynamically. As I am walking I will just check in and see if all these things are as described.. sometimes I might look down to check my feet because all of a sudden i notice my knee is bothering me a bit – so i check my feet and i check my pelvis.
I make sure to really breathe deeply on occasion and be grateful that I can enjoy long walks.
How was your last walk?