A Simple Walk is Good for Your Health

According to the health experts and anyone living a Hygge lifestyle, a simple walk is good for your health. Today’s walk was more than a health lesson.

If you are following my 30 days of Hygge challenge, welcome back! If you are wondering what is Hygge life, you aren’t alone. I hadn’t heard of this lifestyle until recently. It intrigued me so much that I set a life goal for this year to do the research and discover the benefits of Hygge.

It’s Day 23 of my 30 days of Hygge challenge and today I was challenged to take a walk. Seems simple, right?

I woke up later than normal this morning. It was my day off and the steady beat of rain soothed my soul. I cuddled into bed with my Kindle and read. It was very Hyggelig (cozy and comfortable).

Even my husband encouraged my relaxing start to the day by bringing me a coffee. As I read my book, taking in the aroma of my coffee I didn’t want my day to change. I could spend the entire day in one of my Hyggekrog‘s and enjoy my day off.

Later in the morning, the rain let up and I decided to get some fresh air. I love the smell of the air after it rains.

Dressed in my comfy clothes, I put my coffee in my favorite glass to-go cup and headed outside for a walk. The warmth of the coffee warmed my hands through the glass mug. The birds were singing and the colors around me were brilliant.

I pulled out my Kindle and started to read while I was walking. After all, the book was a good spot and I had trouble putting it down.

Then I heard the birds singing.

It was then I decided to put the book away and enjoy the moments around me. It took a while to slow down the busy mom’s brain though.

I spent the next few moments intentionally looking at the landscaping of the yards, the tree canopy over the streets in my neighborhood, and listening to the birds singing. When I was tasked to take the walk I thought it might be more about Hygge being active, after all a simple walk is good for your health.

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The Health Website for Victoria, Australia summed up the health benefits of simply walking:

increased cardiovascular and pulmonary (heart and lung) fitness
reduced risk of heart disease and stroke
improved management of conditions such as hypertension (high blood pressure), high cholesterol, joint, and muscular pain or stiffness, and diabetes
stronger bones and improved balance
increased muscle strength and endurance
reduced body fat

This makes logical sense and I’ve seen it firsthand. After improving my gut health, walking was a simple way for me to become active again. I’ve started losing weight just by walking and improving my gut health.

There is much more to walking than just the benefits of your physical health.

What about your mental health?

What about using walking to improve your mindfulness?

Remember my walk from today? I initially wanted to read while walking. That would mean ignoring nature around me. After the book was put away my brain flashed through all of my worries, and the long list of things needed to be done. I still wasn’t relaxing or enjoying the walk. I was distracted.

When practicing mindfulness, you need to intentionally choose to be present in each moment. As I made this choice, I started to notice my thoughts slowing down. My eyes captured more beauty around me. On the way home, I discovered a single daisy growing in the middle of a neighbors yard. It was all alone. Surviving.

Today’s task was Hygge, but it also reminded me to be more mindful of what’s around me. If I hadn’t made the simple decisions today I wouldn’t have seen the daisy. Daisy’s are my favorite flower. I’m not sure why maybe it’s their simple beauty. Maybe it is a reminder of the wild Brown-Eyed Susans at my grandparents’ farm. That alone is very hyggelig for me.

A simple walk is good for your health, both physically and mentally. My challenge to you is to take that walk today, even a short one, and enjoy the nature around you. Find beauty in your surroundings, joy in the sounds you hear, and slow your busy mom brain down for just a moment or two.