Walking Meditation - An Orientation Practice to Regulate the Nervous System and Find Ease in the Chaos

Transcript

Welcome back to the Mystic Roots podcast. In this week's episode, I'm actually taking you guys with me outside. We're gonna go on a little walk together. So if you're not currently able to go outside, pause this episode, come back to it later. Otherwise, grab your things, get your sneakers on, get your boots on, and let's head out into the city.

So if you don't know, recently I moved from the country to which was very quiet and very peaceful, into a bigger city, which is not quiet and not peaceful. There's a whole lot of noise, there's traffic, there's construction, there's way more chaos. And so one of the things that I've been doing to help myself stay settle and adjust to this new, um, more, more interactive environment is to work on an orientation practice.

And I do this outside in the city. So if you tuned in for episode one, you've already experienced an orientation practice. This is a practice that is really, really beneficial for helping you build a foundation for your nervous system. Um, it's an excellent way to connect with yourself. and to help your, your nervous system feel nourished.

So we're going to go outside and do this practice because we're going outside. You may hear some sounds that you don't normally hear. You may hear some cars or some wind or some construction. We're really immersing ourselves in the elements. Um, all right, when you're ready, let's go.  So starting this practice outside, just begin by walking and walk at whatever pace. 

for you. So  it may be a day where you feel like walking a little bit faster. Maybe your natural rhythm is a little bit slower. Really just trust that you can move at whatever pace feels good to you.  And then I'll invite you to tune into your breath. You don't have to change your breath.  Just notice how your breath is as you begin your walk. 

Once you've gotten a sense of how your breath is, how your pace is.  Then you can start to notice your feet against the earth.  So noticing as the weight shifts from right to left,  noticing how it feels when your feet connect down to the ground beneath you.  Perhaps that invites in some curiosity up through the rest of your body. 

What else do you become aware of? 

Once you've got an opportunity or you've had the opportunity to  really notice how your internal system is and how your feet are connecting to the ground,  then you can start to take in your surroundings.  Noticing what you notice as you walk.  Maybe you're noticing different  trees.  Noticing the shapes of the trees. 

the texture of the tree bark.  Maybe you're noticing the sidewalk,  the colors of the sidewalk,  any cracks in the sidewalk.  Maybe you're noticing buildings.  What is the siding of the buildings around you like?  What's the texture of those buildings like? 

Noticing whatever is around you. 

Let your eyes scan back and forth,  side to side, your head can move.  Taking in whatever is in your current surroundings. 

And then begin to take in any noises.  What noises are  in your current surroundings?  So maybe it's cars passing by.  Maybe it's wind rustling the trees.  Maybe it's the crunch of leaves beneath your feet.  Just take a moment to observe with your eyes.  Senses.  What sounds do you hear? 

And then again, notice your visual field.  What's around you? What can you see  when you let your head move gently side to side?  Where does your attention want to go?  What are you drawn to?  What do you focus on? 

And now I'll invite you to come back to your body.  What are you now aware of  in your physical body?  How is the quality of your breath? 

What's the pace of your walk?  Has it changed?  Anything else that you are aware of? 

And then once again, bring your awareness to your feet.  Noticing how the weight shifts right to left. 

Notice how the forces move from the ground up through your body. 

Notice how your feet connect to the earth beneath you.  My voice is going to trail off,  but you're welcome to continue this practice.