Thinking on My Feet: The small joy of putting one foot in front of the other

by Kate Humble

An ode to the life-changing magic of the simple act of walking.


'I've discovered that going for a daily walk has become as essential to me feeling good for the rest of the day as that first cup of tea. But I would argue that all I am doing is responding to a natural need we all have. Humans have always been migrants, the physiological urge to be nomadic is deep-rooted in all of us and perhaps because of that our brains are stimulated by walking. I solve all sorts of problems, formulate ideas, work things out to that gentle rhythm of self-propelled movement.' - Kate Humble


Thinking on My Feet tells the story of Kate's walking year - shining a light on the benefits of this simple activity. Kate's inspiring narrative not only records her walks (and runs) throughout a single year, but also charts her feelings and impressions throughout - capturing the perspectives that only a journey on foot allows - and shares the outcomes: a problem solved, a mood lifted, an idea or opportunity borne. As she explores the reasons why we walk, whether for creative energy, challenge and pleasure, or therapeutic benefits, Kate's reflections and insights will encourage, motivate and spur readers into action.


Also featured are Kate's walks with others who have discovered the magical, soothing effect of putting one foot in front of the other - the artist who walks to find inspiration for his next painting; the man who takes people battling with addiction to climb mountains; the woman who walked every footpath in Wales (3,700 miles) when she discovered she had cancer.


This book will inspire you to change your perspective by applying walking to your daily endeavours.

Genres: Nonfiction, Nature, Walking, Travel, Memoir, Biography, Natural History

304 pages, Paperback

Published July 2, 2019

Reviews

[Dee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book by kate humble was a nice little cosy read. Im not overly familiar with this lady or her books but i have of course heard of her.
So we arranged to read this for a local bookclub im involved in and i did enjoy this. She is very good at describing her surroundings and it all comes across as rather relaxed in the majority of parts.This does inspire you to walk in the changing seasons and take more notice in what is round our areas where nice walks may be found.
I love walking and even more so in these more rural areas. There is nothing like it. Good for the soul.
I did however find her a little too obsessed with walking and begin to wonder why it is she cant sit still for so long. With a hectic work life and walking it sounds all full on at times. Sometimes her attitude can come across a little (dare i say) rude as she seems a quite intolerable of a lot of things and wants to be on her own. Then spends a decent amount of time with friends or work colleagues. I was slightly confused.
It is a little hit or miss regarding that.i thoroughly enjoyed her mentioning of a woman called ursula who was walking to raise awareness for ovarian cancer and sam who is ex army with ptsd who ended up homelss. Both of these stories were so inspiring and i would definatly read ursula martins own book!

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Modern life seems to be more and more associated around screens, we spend hours looking at them avoiding exercise and making ourselves unhealthy. But the simple act of going for a walk away from your screen can have lots of benefits, especially if your walk takes in the natural world. Kate Humble is a big fan of walking, so much so that she ranks the importance of having that morning walk alongside her first cup of tea.

Her busy life of filming means that she is not always able to walk from her home in the Welsh Hills with her beloved dogs, but when she is away she takes every opportunity to get outside and see the are she is staying in.

Written in a diary form and set over the course of a year, she tells us of life’s ups and downs, the places that she travels to all over the world and most importantly the walks that she undertakes both long and short. These are often taken alone with her dog, Teg, or with groups of friends and their children and hounds. When she is away from home she doesn’t miss the opportunity to take a walk, as she has concluded that this is the best way to understand a new city or region as you pace its streets.

A cancelled assignment means that she has an opportunity to walk a long distance footpath close to home and spends nine days walking the Wye Valley Walk. She also meets people who have used walking as a form of coping with the trials and tribulations of life, from cancer survivors to a soldier recovering from PTSD and a guy who conducts therapy sessions whilst walking around Central Park.

Being a diary it deals with the mundane, she goes through the routines of home life, putting the washing in, squeezing in more things in than time allows, to the significant events that happen over the course of the book. But primarily this is a book about walking and Humble is a big advocate for that act of putting one foot in front of the other and enjoying the natural world. 3.5 stars

[Kirsty Keddie · Rating 3 out of 5]

An airport purchase - I like walking and like Kate on TV so thought it could be an undemanding aeroplane read. Found the structure somewhat bitty. It is essentially a diary consisting mostly of quite dull descriptions of dog walks across the neighbours field but interspersed with occasional random interviews.
I left the book liking Kate a little less...at one stage in New York she feels depressed by the highly privileged people on the streets but she herself reveals a highly privileged life that disconnects her experiences from us normal folk. From opening the year in the Caribbean to anecdotes about personal trainers; buying a lake in France and frequent holidays and weekends away with similarly privileged middle class friends I didn’t really connect with her in this book.

[Melanie]

From the opening of „white woman amongst the natives“ and look „how I struggle with FMG but the natives are so nice“ right through getting depressed at the privilege of some but never acknowledging her own... (how many of you own a lake in France, form a very short orderly queue over there) I could just not go on. I am sure she is nice, but the book is just so tone deaf in some places and incredibly boring in others.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

THINKING ON MY FEET.

A Wainwright Prize read.

'This is one of the many things I love about seeing the world on foot,at this pace,and returning to places I have walked before. Landscapes viewed this way,connected and tangible,become like scrapbooks,full of little details and images,impressions and happenings. They may be inconsequential,but that doesn't matter;it is the pleasure that comes from jogging the memory and being witness to the shifts and changes that can happen over moments as well as months and years that make being out in the natural world so invigorating.'

This is a book all about walking. Walking in any kind of weather,in a group or just by yourself.

Kate Humble thrives on the act of walking. She pushes herself to extremes and takes part in strenuous walks up mountains and along rivers. She walks until her feet are in agony,her whole body is aching nearly beyond the point of collapse and she thinks she can go on no more but she does go on and each time she goes back for more! She loves her dogs, the countryside and the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other and walking in the fresh air.

The book itself is so pretty,inside the cover are leaves and grass pictures,they are so bright that they never failed to cheer me up every time I opened the book.

The structure of the book is in diary form and it goes through the seasons in one year. There are little vignettes from people discussing the merits of walking and the benefits it can bring to your physical and mental wellbeing.

Those are the positive bits. Now for my feelings whilst reading it...this book is laborious, I cannot tell you how long it took me to read it. I started it in January and finished it in July and I had to push myself to do it. Kate could have probably walked around Britain quicker than I read this book.

So beware if you pick this one up, there will be bits that you think 'yes' too but your mind will be numb too!

I will end by saying that it did make me want to walk more,it still does and I also felt very in touch with nature and the possibilities that just a simple walk can be really beneficial, so not all doom and gloom.

[Justkeepreading · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love Kate humble all the things that she stands for and all the amazing things that she does. I have to agree with her that going for a walk outside in nature is one of the best things to do. It clears your mind, helps with mental health and helps to keep you fit and healthy. I love getting in my steps every day and I always feel so much better in every way for it. Kate humbles year long journey is a great book to read for anyone who is a fan.

[Sadie Slater · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was only vaguely aware of Kate Humble as a TV presenter (I don't think I've ever watched a show she presented), but I have been looking out for books about walking that aren't written by men and had noted her Thinking on My Feet: The small joy of putting one foot in front of the other as a book I might want to try.

Thinking on My Feet is written in diary format, chronicling a year of Humble's walking (and sometimes running). I wasn't entirely enamoured of it to start with; the early sections involve rather a lot of walking in far-flung locations where Humble is working (Kenya, India) or on holiday (the Caribbean), and I was a little uncomfortable at these countries, where for many of the locals walking is the only option, being used as a backdrop for a white woman from a privileged Western country's narrative about the benefits of walking. However, I enjoyed the descriptions of walks nearer to Humble's home in the Welsh Marches, and as I kept going I found myself liking the book more. It didn't really seem to settle into its stride until about half-way through, when instead of being a day-by-day diary of short walks the whole "Summer" section is devoted to a single nine-day walk along the Wye Valley Way, from the river's source to Chepstow, while the "Autumn" section that follows has a much stronger thematic unity, exploring the connections between walking and mental health and including interviews with other people who have found that walking has positive effects on mental health and a New York therapist who conducts his appointments while walking. I felt that the second half of the book was much stronger than the first half, and wondered whether Humble had found that her theme only emerged gradually through the writing process, and she wasn't able to reshape the earlier material enough to completely fit it.

In the end, what I liked most about Thinking on My Feet (and the reason why the bits set in other countries worked least well for me) was the way it captured the everyday pleasure of walking and reminded me just how much I like getting out in the fresh air and countryside (not that I need reminding, really, but I don't always think about walking while I'm reading a book).

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free eARC for review.

[Michael Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full disclosure. I like Kate Humble. I wouldn't have read this otherwise but how fortunate I did. Her career is a Valentine to the great outdoors, and the grunt and bleat and the moo and the hoot of the owl and many other beasties besides. It's why this felt like it might be a fine read, absolutely steeped in intimate acquaintance with the outdoor walking world. But it was rather more. For a book about walking it was anything but pedestrian. It was warm and thoughtful, covered a lot of ground in so many ways and so many places, it was contemplative and recognisable. She used words like "munch" and "wellies" and I strangely liked that too. Ultimately for several reasons it was also quite moving. It's such an easy read, and when I'd finished I felt I'd been on a bit of a journey or a trek, but with an admirably delightful companion. I felt the joy of the amble-bubble, recognised it even. This book may be about something that most of us regularly have to do to reach the Over There but it's also very much about the inner self, because there's no destination without you knowing you got there. It's absolutely without complication. It's about walking and what you carry with you, in your rucksack or in your heart, though perhaps you could argue that's where the complications lie. Perhaps. But I liked this book a lot, Ms Humble came across as enchanting company on the trip. I read it in the twilight of Covid lockdown, so it also felt in a way as if she was wandering a world I couldn't. Irrespective of that though, what a charming read.

[Rob Frampton · Rating 4 out of 5]

My MS means I can't usually walk very far without fatigue setting-in and forcing a return to my sofa or bed. Kate Humble's book was, therefore, something of a vicarious pleasure, and a reminder that modern civilization might benefit from a tad more communing with the world rather than staring fixedly through a car windscreen or blankly out of the windows of a train.
Reading 'Thinking On My Feet' - its unhurried, unforced, unpretentious style and structure - was a reminder. too, that only by connecting with our surrounding and the people in it, can we achieve some sort of contentment with ourselves. For some of the people Kate meets it's a way of coping with illnesses both physical and mental; for others, and at its most basic it is a way of exercising (and exercising your dog!). In any case, it is, as the book's epigraph has it, "The small joy of putting one foot in front of another", and there's a deal of joy to be had in reading about it too.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think Kate Humble comes across very well on television. The series where she meets folks who are new to country living seems well intentioned and she comes across as very genuine. I think I would like to go on a walk with Kate Humble. But what this book shows is that she is way out of my league! The walks range over the year and over a variety of distances and we learn much about Kate and her life - and her travels and TV work. But at heart, this is a gentle stroll through the benefits and joys of a meander.

It is simple in its set up and well executed. I especially liked the section where she walks the Wye Valley path and her tribulations - oh the blisters! I wanted to send her some Compeed. There are interviews and reminiscences and some history but this is a light read and perfect for curling up on the sofa with a hot drink while it’s pelting with rain and just losing yourself for an hour or two.

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley in return for an honest review

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book by TV presenter Kate Humble that I have listened to. There is something very soothing about both the way she tells her stories and the way she narrates them.

This is a diary style book about a year of walking, both close to her home and as far away as the Arctic Circle and Rwanda. She lays direct connections between the act of walking and mental well-being. She talks about the effect walking has on her own mind as well as those of others, talking about inspiring people she has met along the way for who walking has made a big difference to their lives.

I really enjoyed this one, especially on audio. It was very calming and it made me realise that I do not walk enough these days and I need to change that.

I would highly recommend this book if you enjoy a book about nature, a little bit of mental health and a lot of inspiration to get walking again.

[Will Blok · Rating 2 out of 5]

Peppered with some interesting little tidbits but for the most part lacking in the more academic level musings I was expecting.

As things go a very self indulgent publication. I think it's destined to be one for the pre-existing Humble fans only because for the majority of this I was left wondering what I'm getting from it other than the odd nicely written sentence.

Also some of the content is ridiculous. Why anyone would admit to embarking upon a 9-day expedition alone without knowing how to use a compass is beyond me.

Plus the sheer irony of commenting upon social inequality in New York City when you can afford to fly to New York JUST to do a WALK with ONE person. And in a book where you have previously talked about how you bought a lake in France on a total whim.

[Clarissa Brincat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book reads like a diary in which Humble shares all her exploits on foot from January to December. There are walks with her dogs, runs at home and abroad, the 9-day Wye Valley Walk, walks with Ludo her husband, walks with friends. She also interviews several individuals for whom walking was a form of salvation, including Ursula Martin, who beat ovarian cancer and walked all around Wales to raise awareness and money, and Sam Doyle, an ex-soldier who fought against severe PTSD and raised awareness about it by walking around the entire UK coastline.

I chose to read this book because I could really relate to the sentiment in the book’s description - that walking can be therapeutic. Of course, there’s only so many times you can make an argument before it gets repetitive. I started losing interest in the book for a while, but it did get interesting again eventually, especially thanks to the stories of the people she talks to.

“Walking is the perfect way of moving if you want to see into the life of things.
It is the one way of freedom. If you go to a place on anything but your own two feet, you are taken there too fast, and miss a thousand delicate joys that were waiting for you by the wayside.”

[Pieter Morten · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very relaxing read full of interesting observation from the author as she walks in the wild outdoors. Recommended!!

[Clare]

Loved this as it reaffirmed what I believe about the restoring powers of walking. Reading about the landscapes took me home too.

[Nicholas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book read but where it was hard going to begin with, it became easier to get into, I suppose, a little like walking itself. Calming.

[Lester Noel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely wonderful…I highly recommend this beautifully written book…I will be passing this book on to my sister in law who is always ringing us up to go on a walk with her and her husband!

[Angelica · Rating 5 out of 5]

very special read. highly recommend

[Victoria Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly uplifting read which echoes all my own thoughts.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

A diaryesque book about walking, and connections, and nature and joy.

[HM Yates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very easy read, enjoyable

[Flapper72 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really lovely book. I usually like a book to have a point; a beginning, middle and end I guess. I suppose you could say that this did - it talked us through the year - but it was just a lovely, well written chat through Kate Humble's walks in the UK. Beautiful scenery. I could see it from her description. And I kind of get it (not the distances obviously!) but the calming effect of just walking and the effect it can have on the mind.

[Louise (Bookmarks and Stages blog) Cannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rated 4 1/2 stars on my blog...

This is a lovely descriptive book where you can follow in the footsteps of Kate Humble on her walks. The subtitle - "The Joy of Putting One Foot Infront of Another" appears to perhaps have two meanings. She seems to enjoy going on various walks, which means putting one foot in front of another to move, but along the way, she meets up with various people who are metaphorically putting one foot in front of each other (or taking one day at a time), as life presents itself and so to just try to lead life to overcome various issues they have with their physical health, addictions and more... and are also using extreme walking to help them overcome these, to improve their lives and outcomes.  There is also, just in general, the joy of not knowing who you might meet whilst out walking and then finding out the path in life and in a geographical sense, they are taking.

The book is written to, even if in a small way, spur people on and to inspire them to walk. I myself enjoy walking, nothing strenuous or as big as a huge hillwalk for the most part, but walking features in my life, and recently walked for MS Society to raise money for them. I also find, as this book talks about, that creativity can be inspired by walking. I mostly do it for pleasure and fun or to go somewhere as walking is a mode of transport if you like.

There are many reflections on walks throughout a year that Kate Humble writes about, sometimes in fascinating places, sometimes meeting people, she perhaps may not have met otherwise and probably not in her daily life, which perhaps added to her own inspiration. Thinking on my Feet has a mix of emotions written through it, from when Kate Humble is feeling lonely to those who she meets.

All in all, it is an interesting book that is great for dipping in and out of and will perhaps spark inspiration in many readers.

[bibliodufi · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy read diary of a year of walks all over the world, with a returning theme of the changing seasons around the author's home.
I listened to the audio book narrated by the author.

I identify with her joy in noticing the small things in nature as the seasons change and with the daily, almost desperate drive to get out and walk, especially if you are lucky enough to have the company of a four legged friend.

It's like a rambling (pun intended) chat with an old friend, made up of points of interest and ruminations from a year of walks all over the globe. Part travelogue, part meditation on nature with a bit of neuroscience thrown in. I loved it, I found it very soothing; it came into my life at just the right time.

[Samantha Hartland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting views on the world and how walking really enhances mental well being.

[Carole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Uplifting read. Made me decide to try and walk more.

[Nicola Nicholson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A joyous celebration of walking and what it brings to the walker. Grew on me as it went on and ended up being something I will return to again and again.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely start to my reading year - one that inspired me to get outside and put one foot in front of the other more.

[Olena · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are books that entertain or educate, but Thinking on My Feet grounded me in a way I didn’t expect. I picked it up feeling disheveled and anxious, and immediately, the steady rhythm of beautiful prose calmed me, like the sound of walking on cold, wet sand. I downloaded the audiobook, greedily eager to absorb the narrative. But I found myself slowing down, rereading the words I had just heard, as my attention drifted to other tasks. Although I usually swear by digital books, this one was so beautifully published that I found it worth giving my glasses and home lights a good workout.

The book is structured like a diary, with each chapter representing a different walk throughout the course of a calendar year. The chapters are tied together by Kate’s reflections, allowing you to jump in at any point. As she shares her journeys through places like Rwanda, Bequia, Shillong, and the Welsh countryside, you get a deep sense of how much each walk means to her. I couldn’t help but envy Kate for the freedom her job affords — the opportunity to travel and explore the world while doing meaningful work. She doesn’t shy away from the challenges of her career, but instead embraces them, finding moments to reconnect with herself and the places she visits.

While the book touches on Kate’s career and travels, it’s not all about work. Many chapters introduce us to fascinating people she meets along the way, each with their own unique story. One chapter, for example, features Paul West, an artist who contributed to the book’s illustrations, inspired by messages written on autumn leaves. You also get to meet Clay Cockrell, an American therapist who practises his counselling while walking together with his patients. Other chapters explore deeply personal journeys, such as that of Ursula Martin, a cancer survivor who walked 3,700 miles around Wales to raise awareness, and Sam Doyle, a veteran suffering from PTSD who is walking around the British coast as part of his recovery.

Some chapters are more meditative, focusing on nature. Kate shares breathtaking sunsets, birdsong, and full moons, along with poems and quotes from prose that invite you to reflect. She sprinkles her walks with facts that will leave you googling afterward — like I did, diving into the geography of the Severn and the Wye, or researching marathons like Offa Dyke’s Path.

While ‘Thinking on My Feet’ may not be everyone’s cup of tea, it certainly is mine. It’s the kind of book you’ll want to keep on your shelf, a thoughtful companion you can return to again and again when you need inspiration or a moment of calm.

[Ilona Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Kate takes you walking with her, describing every little detail seen along the way, the feelings she experienced , and more, to the extent that I truly felt I had walked those paths too.
I like the way the book is divided into seasons and the reader is taken on a journey through the year in such a vivid and visual way.
The pragmatic and mindful way in which she walks and the way she describes that is a joy to read about . I certainly couldn’t cover the miles she does but she made me feel as though I could . When I put the book down I felt as though I wanted to go bursting out of my front door and into the countryside. I think that is why the book resonated so much with me - at the moment I am unable to walk due to an ongoing knee problem and I desperately yearn to get back to being able to go for a walk again - at the moment I’m not sure that will ever be possible, so I greedily gobbled up Kate’s words remembering my own walking experiences.
If you are a nature lover and a walker I’m sure you will love this book!