Walking & Thinking

Kant was a walker.

I usually walk the dog two miles a day and do think it helps thinking because…

• Increased Blood Flow: Walking gets your blood pumping, including blood flow to the brain. This enhanced circulation ensures that your brain receives more oxygen and nutrients, which can improve cognitive function.
• Stress Reduction: Walking can help reduce stress and anxiety levels. When you're less stressed, your mind can focus better and think more clearly. The rhythmic and repetitive nature of walking can also have a calming effect on the mind.
• Creative Thinking: Many people find that walking helps stimulate creative thinking. The combination of physical activity and being outdoors (if you're walking outdoors) can provide a change of scenery and break from routine, which can boost creativity and problem-solving abilities.
• Mindfulness and Reflection: Walking can serve as a form of mindfulness or meditation. As you walk, you may become more aware of your surroundings and your thoughts. This mindfulness can lead to increased self-reflection and a deeper understanding of your thoughts and ideas.
• Enhanced Connectivity: Walking can foster connectivity between different regions of the brain. Researchers have found that it can improve the connectivity of the default mode network (DMN), which is associated with introspection, daydreaming, and creative thinking.
• Break from Screen Time: In our increasingly digital world, taking a break from screens and technology by going for a walk can be refreshing. This screen-free time allows your brain to relax and recharge, potentially leading to improved cognitive performance afterward.
• Mood Enhancement: Physical activity, including walking, can release endorphins, which are natural mood lifters. A better mood can lead to clearer thinking and improved decision-making.
• Problem Solving: Walking can provide a conducive environment for problem-solving. As you walk, you can mull over challenges and come up with creative solutions. The rhythmic motion of walking can help your mind process information and generate ideas.
• Increased Dopamine Release: Walking can lead to the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with reward and motivation. This can make you feel more alert and motivated to engage in mental tasks.
• Improved Memory: Some studies suggest that physical activity, including walking, may improve memory and cognitive function, particularly in older adults.

Reply to Mikie I think the changing scenery, the rhythm of breathing and walking, and the relative lack of things to pay attention to in particular is what makes walking good for thinking. I share the habit! I've noticed that I tend to have more focused thoughts when walking.

It depends on whether one is walking alone, and where.
For me, any idle solitude is good for thinking about a specific subject. For solving practical problems, lying down with a beer and staring at the ceiling works pretty well. For working through a plot snag, I find a dark bedroom more conducive
When I lived in the city, I used to go for evening walks alone, composing songs, poems or letters. Love letters for preference. When I stayed at a hostel, I would walk around the strange neighbourhood, looking at houses and gardens, and imagine potential paintings. in the country, I just look at stuff, or sometimes look for forage, listen to birds and frogs and just let my mind wonder.

Reply to praxis

Wow— very well thought out and elaborate. Thanks Praxis!

Reply to Moliere

Definitely. I try to walk every day. The best thoughts come in the forest though. And I don’t always have access to it.

Reply to praxis Excellent. :fire:

Reply to praxis :up:

Quoting Mikie

What is it about walking that is so great for thought, creativity, reflection?

Don't know, I think repetitive activity and movement appeals to some people. English travel writer Bruce Chatwin described this phenomenon too - the notion walking away from illness and into new ideas features in Nicholas Shakespeare's excellent biography of Chatwin.

My God is the God of Walkers. If you walk hard enough, you probably don't need any other god.
- Bruce Chatwin

Personally, I don't find walking enjoyable or conducive to thought and I am virtually indifferent to nature. I walk a lot in the city and when I visit other cities and towns. If I can be distracted by interesting people and architecture, I don't notice that I am walking.

Perverse perhaps, but I find staff meetings and insufferable conferences a good place to zone out and start some creative thinking.

Quoting Tom Storm

Perverse perhaps, but I find staff meetings and insufferable conferences a good place to zone out and start some creative thinking.

Not so unusual. Math class had a similar effect on me, which is why to this day I struggle so with my tax return. At various kinds of work, too, there are tasks that promote intracranial activity: mixing earth in the garden; kneading bread dough or clay; polishing silver; mucking out a stable, stacking bricks - anything that's simple, physical and doesn't require concentration.

Quoting Mikie

Wow— very well thought out and elaborate. Thanks Praxis!

My personal assistant (ChatGPT) should actually be thanked for all the thinking and elaboration. :snicker:

Quoting Tom Storm

Personally, I don't find walking enjoyable or conducive to thought and I am virtually indifferent to nature. I walk a lot in the city and when I visit other cities and towns. If I can be distracted by interesting people and architecture, I don't notice that I am walking.

I love walking in cities and towns (most of my walking is there) but it's not to be distracted. I look about but there's something to the rhythm of it all that is conducive to thinking. It's just as much a part of nature as the woods, and at times our "home" is more terrifying and wonderous.

Quoting praxis

My personal assistant (ChatGPT) should actually be thanked for all the thinking and elaboration. :snicker:

Well damn you for that!

Just kidding. If that was really ChatGBT that’s pretty cool. Fooled me.