If you know anything about me, you know two things: I love going for a good walk, and I am down to try literally any wellness trend you throw my way. And now that the birds are chirping and the weather is finally getting warmer, the urge to frolic around my city and try new things has gotten stronger and stronger. So, naturally, when I heard about an emerging wellness trend that combines yoga and walking, you know I was all for giving it a try. Enter: walking yoga.
Yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like: a blend of yoga movements and hot girl walks. Walking yoga is essentially meant to transform your standard walk into one that prioritizes intentional movements for an all-around meditative experience. It encourages you to focus on your breathing and connect with your surroundings, all while incorporating a flow of standing yoga poses. (Warrior pose girls, WYA?)
But if I’m being honest, I’ve never been one to enjoy yoga. I don’t know if it’s because I’m impatient, have too much energy to sit still, or am just not flexible at all. Either way, this trend has taught me that I’m better off sticking to my normal, hot girl walks. But for those still curious about giving it a try, let me properly introduce you to it.
What is walking yoga?
As mentioned, walking yoga is exactly what you’d think it’d be: performing yoga movements while walking. It prioritizes syncing your steps with your breath, and pausing now and then to hold yoga poses such as twists, stretches, and side bends.
Adding yoga-inspired movements into your hot girl walks has a ton of benefits — such as improving your posture, reducing stress and anxiety, creating better breathing habits, improving your balance and body awareness, and reducing any stiffness you might have.
Unlike power walking and running, walking yoga encourages you to focus on the quality of movement rather than speed or strength. While it’s certainly not the same as a high-energy workout such as HIIT or even Pilates, it still counts as a moderate cardiovascular exercise by keeping your heart rate elevated.
Really, you can perform walking yoga anywhere you want (except maybe a treadmill, unless you want to end up on the floor). However, the most meditative experience would come from a walk outdoors — whether this be on your favourite walking trail or simply in your backyard. Personally, I opted for my neighborhood sidewalk.
So, I Tried Walking Yoga for myself.
I spent almost a week doing walking yoga, and honestly? It wasn’t all that bad. Instead of carving out specific times throughout the week to do it, I did it whenever I was on my way to the bus stop to get to work, which is about a ten-minute walk straight down my street. While it definitely took some getting used to (especially with all my neighbors conveniently being around when I was doing it), I could definitely see why some people might enjoy it.
There’s definitely value in slowing down — especially with something that many people tend to rush: walking. As someone who almost always misses the bus and has to practically run down the street, I made sure to leave early so I wouldn’t have to rush through these yoga movements. In slowing down, I realized I definitely felt more relaxed when I got to work and in a better mood. There were also a couple of times I did it on my way back from work, which helped me come into a calmer headspace after a rushed and stressful shift.
For the poses, I opted for simple beginner movements, such as mountain pose, warrior pose, and tree pose. I only did about five or six movements per walk, prioritizing more of a slow and intentional walk than the yoga poses themselves. (What can I say? I don’t love yoga!)
Fitness looks different to everyone. And, if you’re an antsy person who has tried yoga before and doesn’t like it, walking yoga probably won’t change your mind.
And, honestly? I’m a speedwalker at heart. No matter where I’m walking, I always tend to think about the destination more than I think about the journey (if you catch my cliche). Even when I have nowhere to be, and I’m simply walking along the river near my apartment, I still tend to walk fast. To me, walking is more about releasing my energy than it is about controlling it — and that’s OK.
As much as I’d like to sit here and say I’ll start incorporating walking yoga into my routine, I just know I won’t. Fitness looks different to everyone. And, if you’re an antsy person who has tried yoga before and doesn’t like it, walking yoga probably won’t change your mind.
Of course, all that to say, there’s no harm in simply trying it. Incorporating it into your wellness routine can look different to everyone, and you don’t have to put pressure on yourself to do it every day. In fact, that was a big reason I made sure to practice it at convenient times for myself — so I wouldn’t feel any pressure to do it the “right” way.
Just because walking yoga isn’t for me doesn’t mean it isn’t for you. I say give it a try — at your own pace and convenience — to really see if it’s something that works for you. And if it is — great! And if it’s not, just enjoy those hot girl walks for what they are, bestie.