Walk to Yourself: Take Strides to Manage your Self Talk and Personal Wellbeing

By Stephanie Nelson

Let Walking Be Thy Medicine.
Walking is the antidote in our arsenal to cope with everyday stresses and minor anxieties. Putting one foot in front of the other has exponential benefits. Like deep breathing, meditation, and mindfulness, walking can help focus the 'monkey mind' and curb that discouraging inner voice insisting, "Life sucks and then you die."

• Walking stimulates healthy endorphins and beneficial biochemical reactions that may extend longevity.
• Manifest your best life by taking this path to positive mind-body integration.
• Increase physical endurance, heart health, muscle condition, and mental acuity.
• Enhance your brain's ability to change your outlook on life by walking regularly.

The author shares her personal challenges and ultimate metamorphosis from a sedentary slug to an ambulatory advocate. Learn walking techniques to improve your physical and psychological condition. Walking regularly keeps the body in motion. Without regular movement, we gradually lose our capacity for engagement, enjoyment, and energy to meet life's challenges and joys. Optimize your new habit with meditation, manifestation, meal timing, intermittent fasting, and various walking techniques.

Walking is one exercise that almost anyone can do. It doesn't cost extra, it is relatively easy, and it's possible to start now. Take strides to a happier, healthier you!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hi-Tex Publishing
• Release date: Aug 5, 2023
• ISBN: 9798854335461

Stephanie Nelson

Stephanie Nelson is a writer, editor, world traveler, and global communications executive who lives and works from her home in the metropolitan area of Houston, Texas. As an animal lover and wildlife watcher, Stephanie first discovered the delights of daily walks with her dogs and dad, who encouraged her to go on walks with him as he dealt with a health issue. Working from home since Covid, Stephanie finds time throughout the day to use her treadmill, stand up and move at her elevated desk, and take her dogs out for walks, morning and evening, even during the long hot summers. The dogs enjoy the opportunity to spot squirrels, critters, and rabbits around the creeks and parks in the area. This is Stephanie’s first book and will not be her last.

Book preview

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to my parents, who encouraged me to write, walk, work, travel, and explore the world.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This book would not have come together without inspiration from my father, age 87, a retired geological and petroleum engineer who spent his life expanding energy production through ingenious inventions, original applications, and out-of-the-box thinking. He not only encouraged me to walk every single day, which we did together with our dogs for years. But he also inspired me to write, knowing that I had spent my career ghost-writing bylined articles and corporate content that gave others credit on topics that appealed to engineers and business experts rather than my own interests.

In writing and publishing his first book, an autobiography that my mother painstakingly edited, both parents encouraged me to branch out and write my own first book.

My mother, age 86, was a writer before she had our family of three children and raised us overseas. My dad’s career led us to North Africa, Europe, and eventually Texas. My two brothers, David and Robert, along with my two dogs, Pawlie and Pumpkin, were also key in kicking my walking habit into high gear. They all make my walks fun and interesting. Together to this day, we discover nature trails, shady new paths, and a variety of interesting wildlife (mostly squirrels).

Walking with family, friends and pets over the years has been a memorable, enjoyable pastime that has also improved my strength, physical health, mental clarity, creativity, longevity and quality of life.

This book is in no way a substitute for professional medical or psychological advice. I am not a doctor or psychotherapist; I’m just a fellow human who enjoys the benefits of a daily walking routine, sharing some of the knowledge and experiences I’ve gained along the way. I sincerely hope this book will inspire you too to take up the habit of walking.

PREFACE

Walking can appear easy, but not everyone finds it that way. It may be difficult or even impossible for some people due to mobility issues. Some people might live in areas simply unsafe for an evening stroll, while others have suffered trauma or injury that inhibits them from enjoying any kind of activity that takes them outside the safety of their own homes.

Some of us have domestic obligations that restrict our freedom, while others may live in areas where the weather makes exposure uncomfortable or dangerous. In such cases, I sincerely hope you can find a physical outlet that helps calm your mind, dispel any possible anxiety, and focus your attention on the beauty of the moment, keeping your mood positive while maintaining your physical well-being.

This book focuses on walking, but if you are unable to walk, feel free to substitute any regular movement or exercise regime that gets you going; I believe it is the movement in routine physical activity, above all, that produces the overall feeling of well-being and outcome of better health.

My goal in writing this book is to encourage you to take your first steps on this journey toward a better, healthier lifestyle, no matter what current challenges you may face. In fact, if your challenges seem to be getting the better of you, take a walk. Walking has personally been helpful in lifting my mood, dispelling negative thoughts, and redirecting the negative self-talk that sometimes seems relentless. Walking (and aerobic exercise in general) has been shown to help reduce anxiety and depression. The title of this book says it all; instead of talking to yourself, try walking to yourself. Use the physical act of walking to induce calm and mindfulness, to subdue the running internal commentary that floods the mind with unnecessary worries, anxieties, self-criticism, and more.

Walking is a physical form of meditation. In my experience, it reduces the nagging self-talk. We all tend to plague ourselves with imagined slights and pent-up emotions like anger, frustration, annoyance, pettiness and self-criticism. These impact our mood if we dwell on them long enough and if we keep them in mind for too long. The simple act of walking helps in replacing negative self-talk with positive, affirmative feelings that energize, motivate, and improve our thought processes and, ultimately, our approach to life. The popular podcaster, Mel Robbins, advises, Look in the mirror and give yourself a ‘high-five’ every morning. I would follow the high-five with a morning walk, before or after coffee, and take the dogs along too.

I enjoy walking my two dogs every day. It keeps me active while working at a desk job from home most days of the week. Finding time twice daily to get off my sedentary butt, positioned for hours in front of the computer, has now become a regular habit that I enjoy. I even invested in a small under-desk treadmill to keep the momentum going in between meetings, so I have a reason to stand and walk slowly during regular mini-breaks.

Since I live in a suburb with lots of trees, small lakes, and paved walking routes, this habit has become addictive (in a good way). You, too, can develop the healthy habit of walking, no matter where you live, using this book as your aid and inspiration. And even if you live in a high-rise apartment or a place where walking is not possible or safe, taking a break to walk in place is almost as good as a real walk outdoors.

Many people are also using apps like Aura and Calm to help them re-focus their minds and re-energize their day. I would advise adding physical activity of any type – yoga, stretching, weightlifting, or walking in place – as all of them are helpful.

Another important tool that I find really helpful, though others may differ, is a step-measuring wearable such as a Fitbit® or Garmin® device – but your cell phone has apps too that can measure the steps you take as you walk, as long as you keep it with you. Plug in some earphones with music or podcasts that you enjoy, and you’re on your way!

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

A behavior that is repeated regularly becomes part of your lifestyle. It evolves over time into something that you don't have to think about or exert much effort to perform. Most of our lives are full of auto-pilot activities—automatic, unchecked, and essentially unconscious periods in which we eat, sleep, wake, go to work, and manage routine tasks. So, doing them right doesn't require much thought or effort. For instance, if you always fasten your seatbelt when you get into a car, you probably don't think about it much; you just do it. This is an auto-pilot habit and, therefore, part of your routine lifestyle.

A healthy lifestyle is a way of living that encourages health and wellness in daily activities. Developing habits such as working out, eating a balanced diet, getting enough sleep, and spending quality time with friends or family can form your daily routine with practice.

Repetition of healthy choices establishes them as habits—reinforcing a healthy lifestyle. Obviously, significant lifestyle choices don't always revolve around physical health. However, we often make poor choices in the foods we eat, the company we keep, and the lazy, sedentary inactivity characterizing our days. Some people find it helpful to keep a journal so they can track their thoughts and feelings as they make gradual improvements in attaining healthy habits.

Being fit and healthy should be a lifestyle choice. Leading a happy, stable, and prosperous life by cultivating healthier habits is a worthy goal for us all. But today’s digital age seems to encourage us to constantly plan and use shortcuts to get things done faster.

Hacking our tasks may be helpful in the short run, but shorting ourselves on physical activity over time can lead to various diseases and disability. Staying physically active is a marker of fitness, but it does not necessarily imply excellent health; overall, health involves a combination of physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

Many factors influence quality of life, but scientists are discovering more and more connections between physical activity and emotional and psychological well-being. The implication is that regular physical performance in sustainable exercise habits can serve as a basic antidote to mental anxieties, stress, and emotional instability.

We should consciously make healthier choices like walking to improve our outlook, mental acuity, and emotional state. Your life can improve even if you make small lifestyle improvements, and the key lies in making the changes routine, on autopilot, so you repeat them on a daily basis. You can't call yourself a dancer if you don't dance for a certain amount of time each day.

Healthy habits like walking may be hard to establish at first, but sticking to it yields results. Overcoming resistance requires mental adjustment and some degree of self-control. Whether your goals are related to improving your fitness levels, increasing strength, reducing body weight, stabilizing emotional and mental wellness, or all of the above, the simple act of walking is part of the recipe to help you reach them.

Why walking? Walking is regarded as an ideal workout for its long list of benefits. It requires no additional expense, it is easy to do for many, it’s lower in risk than other more strenuous sports so the likelihood of injury is lower; walking is also practical and something most of us do every day. You don’t have to join a gym, wear special protective gear, or compete in a team sport to do a walk. For most, the ability to put one foot in front of the other is universal. We are all unique, in any case, but walking is a common denominator we share broadly.

Walking provides relief from socially and emotionally stressful situations. Regular walkers enjoy numerous health benefits, including:

Stronger bones and muscles

Better sleep – every 20 minutes of walking contributes to longer, deeper and more restful sleep

Sustainably happier moods

Reduced risks for obesity and cardiovascular disease

Moreover, frequent brisk walking can offer many of the same aerobic benefits as light jogging or slow running. Regular walking is good for our lymphatic and immunological systems in addition to stimulating fat-burning and weight-loss benefits. Walking has also been demonstrated to:

Increase longevity

Reduce blood-sugar levels

Delay mental decline

Lower the risk of dementia

Help elderly people maintain their independence for longer

Walking has been linked to various positive health outcomes, in addition to reducing your chance of acquiring diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.

Exercising regularly also helps you in losing weight and can also make you feel better about yourself in other ways.

Walking for at least half an hour on most days of the week is an excellent way to improve or maintain your overall health. When it comes to daily exercise, even if you can't commit to 30 consecutive minutes, remember that any amount is better than none, and you can resume walking any time throughout your day. Also, taking your walk with a pal or two might instantly elevate it to the level of a pleasurable outing.

CHAPTER 2: THE FORGOTTEN PACE

From my research, American states like Texas rank relatively low on the physical-activity scale. Most American farmers focus on conforming to government requirements rather than growing nutritious, delicious food. To meet the rising demand, farmers are injecting chemicals and spraying insecticides to develop massive crops and cattle.

Many farmers operate on the edge of compliance with federal laws and so don't produce for nutritional value. As a result, modern food has a lower nutrient density per calorie, meaning modern Americans must consume more calories to achieve the same nutrient density as their forebears. When you consider that these meals also have a higher sugar and trans-fat content, it's easier to see why obesity is becoming a major problem in the United States.

Americans were born with a penchant for ease. They learn to make do with whatever food is on hand rather than waiting for the best season. In the United States, people generally consume highly processed meals, including fast food and frozen dinners, which account for the vast bulk of the population's daily caloric intake.

Everyday foods such as breakfast cereals go through a lot of processing, so they can be transported in large volumes without going bad and sold anywhere across the country or even to some countries overseas. Americans have difficulty losing weight, even when they eat less, likely due in large part to the generous abundance of processed foods, fats, and sugars in their diets.

While health outcomes are generally better in Europe and other parts of the world, even some European nations suffer from diets high in unhealthy carbohydrates, sugars, fats, salts, etc. Nonetheless, legislation in Europe remains more stringent than in the United States when it comes to ensuring the safety and natural integrity of food.

The European market does not tolerate mass-produced, processed food as much as we do in the USA. They prohibit genetically modified organism (GMO) foods, also known as engineered foods. Italians eat artichokes when they're in season, but they're not generally available