Topic · Walking
Walking meditation.
The same practice with the body moving. Good for people who can't sit still or who walk daily anyway.
What walking meditation is
Walking meditation is mindfulness with the body moving. The anchor is your steps instead of your breath. You walk slowly, pay attention to each foot landing and lifting, and when your mind wanders you return to the walking. That’s it.
The practice is older than chair meditation in most contemplative traditions. Walking was the default; sitting was a variant. If sitting doesn’t work for you, walking probably will.
How to do it
- Pick a path. A hallway, a quiet sidewalk, a track. You’ll walk slower than usual.
- Walk slowly. Slower than feels comfortable at first. The point isn’t to get somewhere.
- Notice each step. Lifting, moving, landing. Heel, ball, toe.
- When your mind wanders, return to the steps. Same as breath meditation, just with a different anchor.
- Walk for the length of the practice. Ten to thirty minutes. Then stop and stand for a moment before going about your day.
When walking works better than sitting
If you’ve tried sitting meditation and bounced because it felt physically uncomfortable, walking is worth trying. Same with restlessness, ADHD, recovery from a back injury, or just the experience of “I can’t sit for ten minutes without fidgeting.”
Walking meditation also folds into existing daily walks. The trick is to pick a stretch (the first block, the path through the park) and treat it as the practice while you walk it. The rest of the walk can be normal walking.
Walking practices in the app
Walking meditation is mindfulness with the body moving. Try one in the browser. The rest are in the app.
Plays in your browser. No account required.
A note about Custom Meditation
Custom Meditation is mindfulness-only and built for stationary practice. For walking, the library practices above are the right tool.
Learn more →
Common questions
How slowly do I have to walk?
Slower than normal. About half-speed is a good calibration. For some practices, much slower (one step per breath).
Can I do walking meditation on a treadmill?
Yes, but the open sky version is better. The eyes and the rhythm of the body need a real environment to settle into.
Headphones or no headphones?
Headphones for guided walking. No headphones if you're on a busy street and need to hear traffic.
Can I do walking meditation in a busy park?
Yes. The wandering attention is part of the practice. Notice the distraction, return to the walking.