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Keep Walking, Definitely Keep Walking

Walking is good for what goes on in our heads as well as our health.

As the fear of illness has gripped our world and the advice we’ve received about what's safe for us to do has varied, you may not be walking as much. The indoor strolling you may have done at work, for instance, has probably been impossible recently, and touring around your neighborhood one more time on foot may seem like a revolting idea. But keep walking.

Definitely keep walking.

Neuroscience research has shown that when we walk, indoors or outside, all sorts of good things happen inside our heads.

The fact that we’re walking around can make us healthier, and when we’re healthier our cognitive processes work more effectively. Even a walk that’s not long enough or strenuous enough to really work some inches off of our often tubby tummies can help with our circulation and prevent blood from pooling in our feet, for example.

Studies have shown that walking does, directly, amp up our brain’s ability to understand and effectively deal with our world. For example, we think more clearly while walking and our memory function, in particular, improves when we’re walking at our own pace.

Walking also boosts our mood, which means we get along better with those around us, for instance.

As compelling as walking’s effects on our mood are, its implications for how we solve problems and resolve outstanding issues are just as significant. After we’ve taken a walk, even inside, on or off a treadmill, we are more creative, which is often handy, whether we’re developing an advertising campaign or trying to determine what to do with our hair.

When we have the opportunity to walk with someone, social bonds build between us and our walk-mate. Those social links can lead to friendships or improved performance among teammates, or both, or other outcomes that benefit our societies, at a macro or micro level.

As we craft a new way of living in the months ahead, getting along with others, clear thinking, and creativity are going to smooth the process of moving from now into a more positive future.

Whether we walk inside or outside, in nature or not, the benefits of walking are notable. If the weather outside is too miserable, take advantage of any opportunity to walk inside.

Note that moving through nature is often more strenuous than inside walking (and therefore has even more positive health effects for most of us), and it also annihilates stress levels and mentally refreshes us after we’ve worn down our cognitive processing power via focused thinking.

Neuroscience makes it clear that walking from place to place, inside or outside, whenever we can, is good for what goes on in our heads as well as our health. Put on your walking shoes and get a move on, whenever you can.

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