How to Walk: Engage Your Toes
Look, we’ve been walking most of our lives without thinking about it. Yet, as a Physical Therapist specializing in hip and knee pain, I became aware that the root cause of our pain is biomechanical — how we move and how we walk. (Side note: Joint replacements of the hip and knee are projected to increase about 35% per year over the next 10 years). So, are we walking wrong? And if so, why?
Written by Guest Author, Rich Waldron
How to walk! Wait, what? I’ve been walking since I was a year old… Did I forget how to walk?
Look, we’ve been walking most of our lives without thinking about it. Yet, as a Physical Therapist specializing in hip and knee pain, I became aware that the root cause of our pain is biomechanical — how we move and how we walk. (Side note: Joint replacements of the hip and knee are projected to increase about 35% per year over the next 10 years!).
So, are we walking wrong? And if so, why?
Start with the book Born to Run. It’s a funny story about Caballo Blanco; but to me, it’s a science book — a biomechanical walker’s user manual. For some unspecified reason, with the running boom of the 1970s, running (and walking) shoe design created a cushy heel tapering down to a flat toe (like a high-heeled running or walking shoe). This encouraged and emphasized a heel strike as the main component of the walking or running stride, i.e. what my lead or front leg is doing.
What was de-emphasized was the rest of the stride — and to me the more important part, i.e. what’s happening on the back end or what my trail leg is doing. I always imagined instructions sounded like, “Heel strike left, heel strike right, heel left, heel right.” This method of walking or running sends a massive force (7-9x body weight) driving up into the knee and hip joints — the cartilage. Every time you strike with your heel, it’s like hitting your hip and knee with a sledgehammer!
So, what’s a better thought or instruction? Think, “Big toe push right, big toe push left, big toe right, big toe left.” Now, what’s happening? By emphasizing the big toe push off, walkers and runners tend to lean forward more (nose over toes). Rather than a force driving into the hip and knee joints, the big glute muscles (our main engine for walking and running), and partly the thigh muscles (quads and hammies) and calf muscles, absorb the work… that’s what they are there for!
Next time you’re walking, repeat this mantra: “Push off with the right big toe… Now, the left… Now, the right!” Be ready, your muscles will be sore — but that’s what they’re there for.
Rich Waldron, PT is, amongst many things, a private practice Physical Therapist living in Northern California, who specialized in biomechanical knee and hip problems.
Just Breathe
Breathing is one of the most powerful tools we have for hosting mindfulness and well-being. When we focus on our breath as we walk, it can help us to bring our attention to the present moment and to release any tension or stress that we may be holding in our bodies. I love that. Simple. Breathe.
Focusing on the breath as you walk
Breathing is one of the most powerful tools we have for hosting mindfulness and well-being. When we focus on our breath as we walk, it can help us to bring our attention to the present moment and to release any tension or stress that we may be holding in our bodies. I love that. Simple. Breathe.
One way to use breath as a mindfulness tool when walking is to focus on the sensation of the air moving in and out of your nostrils or your chest. This can help to anchor your attention in the present moment and release any thoughts that may be distracting you from your walk.
Another way to use breath while walking is to release tension or stress in the body. For example, you can take a deep breath in and then exhale slowly, imagining that you are releasing any tension or stress that you may be holding in your shoulders or jaw. This can be a very effective way to promote a sense of calm and relaxation. I have just started to do this at the start of every walk, so that I begin in a place of peace. In all honesty, it doesn’t always work — but I find it is always worth a try!
You can also use different types of breath to promote different states of mind and body. For example, alternate nostril breathing is a yoga breath technique which can balance the left and right sides of the brain, and can bring clarity, reduce stress and anxiety, and promote a sense of inner balance. Box breathing is a technique that is said to help reduce anxiety and promote a sense of calm and focus. I love box breathing. I use it all the time, and not just on my walks. The other day, I was in a traffic jam and could feel a sense of frustration bubbling up. Bingo, box breathing. Frustration diluted.
Walking with the power of breath can be a great tool for promoting mindfulness, well-being, and relaxation. The absolutely wonderful thing about various breathing tools is that they are available to us all the time, everywhere.
The three techniques I have been using most recently are box breathing, deep sigh breathing, and bubble breathing. Click on our how-to’s below, then go for a walk and try them out. Notice how you feel before and after. Send us a note at @thismorningwalk HERE in the comments. We would love to hear from you.
Libby DeLana is an award-winning executive creative director, designer/art director by trade, who has spent her career in the ad world. Click here to get your copy of Libby’s first published book, Do Walk. You can connect with Libby on Instagram @thismorningwalk and @parkhere.
CONSERVATION
Every day, I walk. Every day, I am in an ecosystem. Each walk, I am healed/nourished/inspired by that place. Lately, I have been feeling a need to do the same for that place. To be more curious about it, heal it, nourish it, care for it. We are in a profound relationship.
Good Morning, WalkStars.
I’ve been thinking a lot about how our #ThisMorningWalk practice could be a tool for conservation after reading Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer. This book has had a very profound impact on my life and my MorningWalk practice.
Every day, I walk. Every day, I am in an ecosystem. Each walk, I am healed/nourished/inspired by that place. Lately, I have been feeling a need to do the same for that place. To be more curious about it, heal it, nourish it, care for it. We are in a profound relationship.
“Because the relationship between self and the world is reciprocal, it is not a question of first getting enlightened or saved and then acting. As we work to heal the earth, the earth heals us.”
— Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
By continuing to learn about my surroundings, I am developing a more compassionate holistic understanding of where I walk: an environment that deserves my respect, understanding, and love. As I walk, I am paying more attention to all the trees, all the birds, all the insects, the entirety of the ecosystem.
“The trees act not as individuals, but somehow as a collective. Exactly how they do this, we don’t yet know. But what we see is the power of unity. What happens to one happens to us all. We can starve together or feast together.”
— Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
Rather than using only science writings to learn about trees (and other living beings), I/we need to remember the fact that there is so much we can learn FROM trees themselves. I need to listen to them, stand still, and pay attention to the lessons. I think I often simply walk through their house and don’t stop to say hello or stop and listen. Now don’t get me wrong, I may not literally be stopping at each grove or redwood cathedral, but I will pay more attention.
Lesson One: find a way to work together. If trees can find ways to work collectively without moving or talking, us humans have no excuse.
The course of actions needed to heal the Earth and combat climate change will not happen on behalf of individuals; it requires the work of strong communities moving towards a shared goal. Kimmerer says it is our collective responsibility, and I agree. The Earth has given so much. It’s our turn to give back.
“To love a place is not enough. We must find ways to heal it.”
— Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
“Knowing that you love the earth changes you, activates you to defend and protect and celebrate. But when you feel that the earth loves you in return, that feeling transforms the relationship from a one-way street into a sacred bond.”
— Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
Libby DeLana is an award-winning executive creative director, designer/art director by trade, who has spent her career in the ad world. Click here to get your copy of Libby’s first published book, Do Walk. You can connect with Libby on Instagram @thismorningwalk and @parkhere.
HARMONY / BALANCE
I hear a lot of discussion about the quest for balance. I don’t think there is a place called balance. Life is in constant flux, so balance can only be temporary; therefore, seeking it as a desired end state is impossible. I think what I seek is not balance, but harmony.
Today’s ThisMorningWalk inquiry: the difference between harmony and balance. I know, I know it’s a bit esoteric. Why not simply think about toast with jam or butter? Butter, btw.
I hear a lot of discussion about the quest for balance. I don’t think there is a place called balance. Life is in constant flux, so balance can only be temporary; therefore, seeking it as a desired end state is impossible.
I always look to the natural world for clues; tides come in and go out, seasons are constantly shifting, creatures are on the move, life and death rolls in and out, storms come and go. I think what I seek is not balance, but harmony.
In fact, when I was in pursuit of balance, I think I created more frustration and disappointment for myself. So, I am shifting my language to be seeking harmony in my life, not balance. Harmony instead feels softer, generous, inclusive, and beautiful. Think how beautiful the sound of harmony in music is.
So as we approach the end of the year, I am walking into harmony, with harmony, seeking harmony.
har·mo·ny
/ˈhärmənē/
a consistent, orderly, or pleasing arrangement of parts; congruity.
bal·ance
/ˈbaləns/
Verb
keep or put (something) in a steady position so that it does not fall
Noun
a condition in which different elements are equal
Harmony is beautiful.
Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
— Mahatma Gandhi
Libby DeLana is an award-winning executive creative director, designer/art director by trade, who has spent her career in the ad world. Click here to get your copy of Libby’s first published book, Do Walk. You can connect with Libby on Instagram @thismorningwalk and @parkhere.
A Path of One's Own
Lately, I’ve had almost an insatiable appetite to travel, to move, go somewhere and get outside of my daily routine and my comfort zone, in an effort to find my way again after a recent layoff and the uncertainty of where I will land next. Taking to the road, either by car or by foot, provides me with the insight and clarity I require to move forward with a renewed sense of direction and purpose…
Written by Guest Author, Wanda Weller
Libby and I met 10 years ago at an incredible event, held at a glorious biodynamic winery in Northern California, that has quite significantly shaped both of our lives ever since. We have walked many miles together since that first encounter, sharing the peaks and valleys of our own journeys, supporting each other along the way and, I imagine, will continue to do so until our final days.
It is in the spirit of one's own journey, supported and given strength by the love and wisdom of dear friends, like Libby, that I share this.
Lately, I’ve had almost an insatiable appetite to travel, to move, go somewhere, and get outside of my daily routine and my comfort zone, in an effort to find my way again after a recent layoff and the uncertainty of where I will land next.
Taking to the road, either by car or by foot, provides me with the insight and clarity I require to move forward with a renewed sense of direction and purpose. And this recent turn of events has been no different in activating my wanderlust.
What I find interesting in the forward motion to somewhere, is that for me, a road trip is an amazing way to see the broad-stroke of the beautiful, unfolding landscape before me, but it’s when I stop and begin to walk the land and have a more intimate connection and sense of place, that the magic of awareness and inquiry really begins to settle in.
Almost as soon as I learned of my being laid off, I went for a walk in the deep forested park in the Pacific Northwest, close to my home, in search of some answers. For me, the forest has always provided me with a healing space, bathing me with an energy that feels comforting, wise, and deeply nourishing, all at once.
When I’m struggling with the “what now?” I know I need to get outside in order to reach deep inside for some answers. It’s time to head to the local park and get on my favorite trail, where I can trust in the familiarity of a path I have walked many times before, providing me with the confidence of knowing where I am (literally) so that I can get lost in my thoughts and be guided toward the discovery of where my next journey will take me.
What I discovered for myself on that particular day, in the safety of the giant Douglas Firs and Oregon White Oaks, was the strong voice inside telling me to go south, to the desert, and get access to the wide open, vulnerable, and unforgiving land, walk for as long as it takes, and listen to what is being offered. I called Libby, sharing my insights and she, without hesitation, enthusiastically encouraged me to GO!
And with that, I packed up my car and pointed it south towards the Mojave Desert, a place I have been to many times over the years and where I have experienced some of my most profound insights, which have provided me with guidance and perspective during other times of big transition and uncertainty.
Admittedly, I don’t always have to “go away” to find the healing benefits in my walking practice, but lately it has felt necessary and essential to include that as part of my journey, allowing for time to reflect, check in, and be more present wherever I am.
There is a clarity through motion, a grace in quieting the mind and finding the natural rhythm with one’s step, the breath and the environment, that will always provide the answers we are seeking. We just have to slow down long enough to listen.
And while the road trip that took me to the Desert from the Pacific Northwest is now behind me, the journey forward, it seems, has only just begun, with more clarity and intention, unfolding one step at a time, down the path that was always meant for me.
What I learned along the way:
Change is inevitable. How we choose to respond to change is entirely up to us, so choose consciously.
As hard as it can be sometimes, trust the process forward and your own capacity to evolve.
When the universe delivers a sign or a helping hand, have gratitude, and more will come your way.
Get rid of the noise that keeps you stuck in negativity (news, apps, alcohol, the past) and fill up on things that empower you, inspire you, and excite you.
Surround yourself with a group of people you love and trust.
Take a walk, take a road trip, just take time for yourself, and get really comfortable with your own company.
And always take the scenic route.
With over 30 years of professional design experience in the fashion and product design industry, Wanda Weller is a leader in Sustainable Design through education, design and commerce, and events. She led the product design, textile, and graphic design teams at Patagonia for almost 10 years. She created a successful, sustainable, lifestyle boutique in Ojai, California, and also founded an Organic Home Textile Company with the mission of “Radical Transparency”, delivering certified and verified products that are both environmentally and socially sustainable. Follow Wanda at @greencenturymodern.