52 Ways to Walk: The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time

by Annabel Abbs-Streets

"52 Ways to Walk is a short, user-friendly guide to attaining the full range of benefits that walking has to offer--physical, spiritual, and emotional--backed by the latest scientific research to inspire readers to develop a fulfilling walking lifestyle"--

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Self Help, Walking, Nature, Science, Audiobook

270 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2022

Reviews

[Fiona · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the author’s own words, this is A love letter to walking. I really enjoyed this fascinating book and I learned a great deal. It’s full of scientifically based advice on the best ways to walk for the benefit of physical and mental health and well-being.

Any walk can be turned into a more rewarding and beneficial experience. When we walk in the cold, for example, our bodies use more glucose to warm us up. As glucose enhances cognition, we think better in cold climates. Interestingly, cognition improves even when looking at images of cold things. According to the author, mild cold = 16C. That made me laugh as 16C is considered pleasant weather in a Scottish spring or summer!

There is a wealth of advice on how to physically improve your walking style in order to enhance health benefits, such as improving your gait or breathing through your nose rather than your mouth to increase the amount of oxygen in your blood. Smile and say hello to those you meet to cheer up their day and yours. Dog walkers do this as a matter of course but in my experience, it’s becoming otherwise increasingly rare. Afghan nomads use synchronised breathing to enable them to cover vast distances: walking at an easy pace breathe in for 3 steps, pause on 4th, breathe out for 3 steps, pause on 4th. It’s surprisingly easy once you get into the swing of it.

I can never understand why people out walking in the countryside wear earbuds. Take them out and listen to the birds, the trees rustling in the wind, the babbling brook, and you won’t make other walkers feel awkward when they speak to you by having to wait while you take them out! Dr Kate McLean has mapped smellscapes across the world in a variety of environments. Google her to see her extraordinary maps. Smells are enhanced by rainfall so walk in the rain or just after a shower. Walking beside rivers or amongst trees has many health benefits, including reducing stress levels. It’s suggested that we sing or dance while we walk but I won’t be doing that any time soon, even if it’s only my dog that can hear me! Good to know though that as an ‘older dog owner’, walking him is improving my brain health.

I was always taught to walk before a meal and not afterwards. I now know that both are good for me. Studies have shown that walking before breakfast, within one hour of waking, burns off more fat than a walk after a meal. A walk after a meal aids digestion. Even a 10 minute walk after dinner can lower blood glucose spikes resulting from over eating and it will also help you to sleep.

Many of the chapters have tips at the end. Some are helpful, some perhaps unnecessary. Do we need to be told to wrap up well in cold weather or to wear waterproofs or carry an umbrella in the rain? Reminding dog walkers to pick up poo should be unnecessary but, as we all know, some people do need telling.

I love walking. I thought there was nothing I needed to learn about it but I learned a lot from this book. I recommend it to anyone looking to enhance their daily walks or to start walking more than they currently do.

With thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing plc for a review copy.

[Jason Pettus · Rating 2 out of 5]

2022 reads, #36. Even as I was putting this on reserve at my local library, I strongly suspected that this was going to be one of those Buzzfeed-style listicles padded out into a full book, which I'm a real sucker for because I'm always holding out hope that the next one will be that rare exception and actually justify its page count; but alas, this turned out to be exactly what I suspected, a book that promises to provide creative and interesting ways to change up your daily walking habit every single week throughout a year, but then is filled with silly nonsense like, "Week 3: Take a walk while you smile at people! Week 9: Take a walk when it's windy! Week 13: Do a silly little dance while you're walking!" (And on a related note, what is it with middle-aged women and their obsessive desire to do silly little dances in public whenever humanly possible?) Just like all these listicle-style books, a read through the table of contents gives you literally 100% of the information contained here; and you can do that in the "Preview Read" feature at Amazon, so I strongly recommend doing that if you have a particularly strong interest in this subject, and simply avoiding the book altogether if you don't.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

SUPER interesting! Not only does the author share 52 ideas for incorporating walking into your life, she also shares a ton of scientific research into how walking impacts the human body. I am trying to become someone who walks more, in all kinds of weather, and this book has definitely helped motivate me to choose walking over my car. So far I've walked to two different doctor appointments (a half mile away) and with a friend to the local movie theater (about a mile away). You definitely have to adjust the day to allow for the increased travel time, but once I made the trip I wondered why I hadn't done so before. In our car-obsessed (and largely car-dependent) society, this book will make you think about the places you *could* actually be walking to, and all the benefits that come with it.

[Pawarut Jongsirirag · Rating 4 out of 5]

ก่อนอ่าน : สงสัยมากว่าทำไมเราต้องมาอ่านหนังสือว่าด้วยการเดิน เดินกันเป็นอยู่แล้วทุกคนนั่นแหละ เชื่อผมเหอะ แล้วมันยังมีอะไรให้น่าค้นหาเกี่ยวกับการเดินอีก แถมมีถึง 52 เรื่องเลยเหรอ โม้แน่นอน

หลังอ่าน : เหมือนการเดินที่ผ่านมา ดูจะไม่ใช่การเดินเลย เป็นแค่การก้าวขาสลับไปมาเพื่อเคลื่อนตัวไปข้างหน้าแค่นั้น เพราะการเดินจริงๆดูจะมีอะไรมากมายกว่านั้นมาก ทั้งในแง่ของวิธีการเดิน สถานที่เดิน กิจกรรมพร้อมกับการเดิน สิ่งเหล่านี้ดูจะเป็นนิยามที่ทำให้การเดินเป็นการเดินจริงๆ

เซอร์ไพรส์เบาๆว่า ตลอด 52 บท 52 อาทิตย์ของการแนะนำการเดิน ตอนแรกนึกว่าจะเป็นการพูดถึงข้อดีทั่วๆไปว่าเดินแล้วดีแบบนี้ แบบนั้นนะ แต่จริงๆมีมากกว่านั้น เพราะมันเชื่อมโยงทั้ง วิทยาศาสต์สุขภาพ สังคมวิทยา ประวัติศาสตร์ จิตวิทยา ที่ทำให้เห็นว่าเราพลาดอะไรไปมากมายจากการเดินแบบเดินเฉยๆตลอดระยะเวลาที่ผ่านมา ยกตัวอย่างเช่น การเดินถอยหลังมีประโยชน์อย่างน่าทึ่ง การเดินเลียบแม่น้ำ การเดินป่า วิธรการหายใจขณะเดินแบบชนเผ่า การเดินพร้อมการดม การเดินพร้อมผู้อื่น การเดินคนเดียว การเดินตอนเย็น ตอนเช้า ตอนฝนตก อะไรต่างๆเหล่านี้เป็นสิ่งที่มีประโยชน์แฝงอยู่ที่เราอาจไม่เคยรู้มาก่อน

แม้ว่าแต่ละบทจะเป็นการเล่าแบบเบาๆ เป็นเพียงการเปิดประตูให้เราเห็นแบบแง้มๆว่ามันยังมีอะไรให้ค้นหาหรือชวนให้ค้นเจออีกมากมายจากการเดิน แถมท้ายบทแต่ละตอนยังมีคำแนะนำเพื่อให้การเดินในแต่ละบทนี้สามารถทำได้จริงอีกด้วย ซึ่งพลังทั้งหมด ของทั้ง 52 บท ก็ชักชวนให้เราออกจากบ้านใส่รองเท้าไปเดินจริงๆ ลองไปออกเดินตามที่หนังสือชักชวน หรืออกไปเดินเพื่อค้นหาความหมายใหม่ๆ เป็นบทที่ 53 54 ของตนเองไปเรื่อยๆ ผมคิดว่าหนังสือเล่มนี้ทำหน้าที่ของมันได้อย่างสมบูรณ์แบบแล้วครับ

ปล. อ่านหนังสือนี้แล้วแอบหน่ายใจเบาเบาในประเด็นนึง เพราะเมื่อมองกลับมาที่สิ่งแวดล้อมรอบตัวหรือโครงสร้างเมืองของเราเอง มันดูจะไม่สามารถตอบโจทก์การเดินแบบที่หนังสือกำลังพูดถึงได้เลย ในแง่หนึ่งมันจึงไม่ได้เป็นเพียงหนังสือชักชวนให้เราเห็นประโยชน์ของการเดินเท่านั้น แต่มันยังมีพลังที่ทำให้เรามองย้อนกลับมาวิพากษ์ Infrastructure ของผู้อ่านเองว่าทุกอย่างรอบตัวคุณมันพรักพร้อมที่จะชวนหใ้เราออกเดินอย่างปลอดภัยแล้วหรือไม่ ซึ่งผมคิดว่าทุกคนน่าจะมีคำตอบที่ไม่แตกต่างกันเลยอยู่ในใจแน่นอนเลยครับ

[iva° · Rating 3 out of 5]

znanost hodanja: 52 inspiracije za zdravlje, vitalnost i smirenost
prijevod aleksandra barlović; ilustracije alexis seabrook
zagreb, planetopija, 2022., 319 str.

s obzirom na sumanutu kilometražu koju svakodnevno prolazim hodajući, nadala sam se da će mi ovaj priručnik unijeti dašak svježine dok, eto, prolazim manje-više istim rutama i na to trošim (ili, ako obrneš: ulažem) sate i sate.
pa... annabel streets djelomično je u tome i uspjela. iako nam je svima u podsvijesti "hodanje je dobro za tebe", još je bolje ako imaš iza sebe neke znanstveno potkrijepljene činjenice o dobrobiti tabananja. od 52 načina koje ona predlaže, neki su iskoristivi i dobrodošli podsjetnik na važnost disanja, ispravnog držanja, prikladne obuće i odjeće, hidracije bla, a neki su posve čudnovati i djeluju kao nategnuti način da se popune stranice (hodanje pjevajući, plešući ili crtajući).
između svih tih (ne)izvedivih prijedloga, spontano sam si izabrala nekolicinu na koje ću više obratiti pažnju jer hodati ne namjeravam prestati, a kad je već tako, ajde da izvučem maksimum iz priče.
generalno preporučam knjigu, mislim da bi se našlo za svakoga ponešto (ali ni za koga sve) jer gđa. streets piše strastveno (makar i prizemno banalnim rječnikom) i očito je da je srcem i dušom u hodanju, a benefiti hodanja mnogostruki su i sasvim sigurno poboljšavaju kvalitetu životu pa ako te i mrc potakne da se digneš iz kauča ili od kompa i kreneš za nosom, knjiga je svoju svrhu ispunila.

[Ren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Know you need to walk more, but find it boring? Grab a copy of this book and find tons of ways to add interest and variety to your walks! There are other books focused on the mechanics of walking (check out books by Katy Bowman!); this one focuses on the different ways you can incorporate more walking to your life and why you should. As I read, I highlighted so many passages to refer back to. It's not about just adding steps to your days, but about finding peace, improving both physical and mental health, increasing creativity and more. I'll definitely be trying quite a few of these out myself, starting with meditation walks and walking backward.

Thanks to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book pleasantly surprised me -- short chapters, each focused on a different way to walk (after meals, in forests, at night, etc.). A quick read, written in an accessible way (much more accessible for me than *In Praise of Walking*, which I found kind of a slog). Quite a bit of research-based information on various health topics yet easily understandable for the lay reader.

[Kathleen Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an entertaining, informative, and motivating book this is! I read all 52 chapters at once even though an argument surely could be made to read them week by week as it's laid out. Streets (gotta smile a little about her name) lays out the reasons to walk in the morning, in the even, in the rain, uphill and so on. She's got tips, suggestions, and science. It's light but it's also serious because walking is, after all, one of the first things we're praised for and something that's critical to our health and mental well being. I'd not really thought about walking backwards-harder than I imagined it would be but useful. Great conversational writing style. Thanks to edelweiss for the ARC. A good read.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book covers much of the science of walking together with the health benefits and research undertaken.
In this book, I particularly liked how the author looked at different aspects of walking, such as alone or in groups, the benefits of walking after waking and eating and even working and walking simultaneously.
I ramble/walk often and am currently completing the London Outer Orbital Pathway (LOOP), over 150 miles of walking (split into 24 sections) encircling London through its green belt. I found that "52 Ways to Walk" provided much more to learn and inspire me.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Weak three stars. Really this should have just been an article, not an entire book. I got the vibe about halfway through reading that the author had also come to this realization and was struggling to fill enough pages to fulfill her book contract. It turns out that coming up with 52 different ways/reasons to walk is about 15 too many. Some are real stretches.

I live in NYC and walk all the time so reading this was like preaching to the choir. I feel validated in my walking lifestyle! I did learn some fun facts which is always cool. I also learned about ways to vary my walks and ways to reframe how I view walking.

The author is British and some of her suggestions do not translate to America. I mean, walking on the towpath? That would be nice. Walking to run errands? Good luck doing that in many parts of America. Running across a 6 lane highway in order to go to the grocery store - welcome to America, land of the automobile. She also skews towards rural walking. Rural as in rural England, not rural Wyoming. It did make me sad thinking about how so much of America is set up in a way to actively discourage walking. Her suggestion to walk to the store instead of driving and giving the example that for her it's a 20 minute walk does not take into account that in large parts of rural America it's a 2 hour walk to the closest grocery store.

This is worth skimming through as a library book. Not worth purchasing.

How to walk correctly:
• Push off from the back foot, using the muscles at the backs of our legs.
• Peel through each foot from heel to toe, using all of our toes to drive us forward.
• Lift our ribs and lower spine to activate our abdominal muscles and create space in our core
• Lengthen and straighten our neck, which frees our spine to move as we walk,counteracting the stiffness that comes from computer & phone use
• Swing our arms freely from the shoulders, using our elbows to impel us forward (not in the manner of a 1980s power walker)but more as if our arms were a pair of smoothly jointed pendulums. Our hands should be loose, not bunched into fists.

Fun Facts I want to recall:

Brown fat is activated in mild cold, around 61°F...brown fat is a more effective fat burner than anything else, including muscle tissue...two hours of exposure to moderate cold triggered the conversion of (bad) white fat (particularly in our stomachs and thighs) into (good) brown fat

Hitting the ground with a flat plod (passive foot strike) rather than a springy rolling sole (active foot strike) risks misaligning our pelvis.

Immanuel Kant famously walked every day at five P.M. He was such a stickler for routine that the inhabitants of his town, Königsberg, used to set their clocks as he walked past...Kant was so determined to breathe only through his nose that he refused to walk with a companion, fearful that conversation might inadvertently make him inhale through his mouth.

our nasal cavities produce nitric oxide (NO), which increases blood flow through the lungs, building up the amount of oxygen in our blood.When we inhale through our mouths we deprive our cells of additional oxygen...malfunctioning nitric oxide has been linked to both Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases.

humming resulted in an oscillating airflow into the nose that yielded significantly greater amounts of nitric oxide. Hummers produced fifteen times as much nitric oxide as regular breathers.

was walking in her local park when she noticed that the simple process of scanning the landscape made her feel calmer and less anxious.After years of research, she developed a therapy that mimicked this process but could be used indoors by therapists making a series of hand movements. The therapy known as EMDR...Panoramic vision is the antithesis of the intense focal vision we use to work on a screen, read a book, or look at our phones...optic flow causes our eyes to scan and sweep the landscape, quieting the brain's threat-detection system -the amygdala-and making us feel calmer.

cortical thickening took place in brain parts associated with memory and recognition, suggesting that improving our sense of smell may improve our memory too.

The Rhône can be walked from source to sea, as can the Thames and Ireland's River Barrow.

researchers found people living in leafy neighborhoods remained mentally sharper. Otherwise known as rich people live where there are more trees.

According to professor of psychology Todd Kashdan, curiosity is "one of the most reliable and overlooked keys to happiness," enabling us to experience discovery, joy, and delight. Research shows that being curious helps us accommodate stress in our lives, beefing up our emotional resilience...Curiosity also appears to be physically protective. A 1996 study of 1,000 adults found that the most curious lived longer, regardless of whether they smoked or had any sort of disease.Another study discovered that people with greater amounts of curiosity were less likely to develop high blood pressure or diabetes...curious people also have more satisfying relationships and marriages.

Silence was more relaxing than soothing music. More-over, if the silence came after a piece of music, it was still more relaxing.

experiment involving stroke survivors between the ages of nineteen and seventy-eight yielded dramatic results. As the stroke survivors walked,they sang a nursery rhyme, chosen because its tempo range of 90 to 120 beats per minute made it an ideal walking speed. Within thirty minutes the participants were moving more evenly, with longer strides and and greater speed. A study of Parkinson's patients had similar results —singing while walking led to greater improvements than any other intervention.

Germany is the spiritual home of barefoot walking, with dozens of routes Who knew!

gentle exercise after a meal has numerous benefits, from helping prevent constipation to lowering blood glucose levels...a ten-minute stroll is all it takes to lower the blood glucose spikes that can be triggered by overeating.

The link between physical activity and divergent original thinking is now well established, with numerous studies concluding that movement stimulates creativity, provoking new ideas in greater quantity and of greater quality.

a well-paced walk before breakfast —while our body is still in fasting mode-burns more fat, improves the way in which our body responds to insulin, and cuts our risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need this book so much right now. For the next 18 months I will be working primarily from home and I am afraid I will become completely sedentary. The author of this book counters every possible excuse I have ever had for not taking walk, plus the easily digestible information she provides about the myriad of benefits of walking is very motivational. Highly recommended!

[Elisabeth Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

The basic premise is “walking is good for you!” and then it repeats that 51 more times BUT I still really enjoyed this. Am now planning on taking backward walks and dance walks with my kiddos.

[Stephanie Sirois · Rating 1 out of 5]

What I was expecting: a book making it easier to get into the habit of walking, week by week.

What I got: a padded out listicle with 100 pages at the end of numerous studies and articles that do not indicate peer review or stats to prove their case. Also the weather related chapters could have and should have been condensed into one chapter.

There is a chapter on breathing through your nose as you walk where the author seems to hint that this filters out coronaviruses due to a specific chemical that it released. This seems dangerous to assert, since most doctors agree a gap less mask on will help reduce the risk of contracting COVID.

There is another chapter where the author notes she lost her sense of smell due to COVID but then later in the chapter tells us she went on "smell walks" with the aforementioned lost sense. So either this book needed another edit to not allow readers to misconstrue these chapters, or the readers are being lied to.

Just stick to reading the chapter titles. No need to slog through this entire thing.

[Rhiannon Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Does what it says on the tin! Walking is good for you in 52 different ways. Walk slow, fast, at night, in the morning, after meals, alone, with a friend, in the rain, singing, meditating etc etc x 52.

This is quite a "light" book, although all the benefits presented are supported by scientific evidence. I really liked it, and I'm already thinking quite a lot about all the different things you can get out of a walk. It's really a "dip in and out of" book; I read a library copy, so I've requested my own copy for my birthday

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher Penguin Group Putnam for an advanced copy of this book on the walking lifestyle.

As a person who walks for both physical and mental health, rather than a particular destination, Annabel Streets' 52 Ways to Walk: The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time is both an inspiration, and a revelation. I knew that walking made me feel better, especially during these super trying times, but I wasn't sure why, nor how I could make a walk around my neighborhood more interesting.

The book is broken down into 52 sections, or weeks, but there is no need for a strick adherence more each section has a new way of walking, a new way of thinking, and some science and biology facts on why walking makes a person feel better, and how to get the most benefit from a brisk constitution. Try walking backwards, carefully, and maybe only in your own backyard. Or sing while you climb up hill, giving your mind something to concentrate on, and your breathing to become more regular. Breathing makes up a few of the weeks, and Ms. Streets has a very nice style in making what could be boring facts into interesting things a walker might want to try.

Motivation is a large aspect of this book, so Ms. Streets writes about walking in the rain, the mud, the wind and the snow. The best attire for foul weather walking, with sensible advice o how to be safe. The book is more nudging than pedantic and that is nice as many self- help books can be frankly a tad, no a lot bossy.

Some sections might not be for all, but that's ok too. No book can be all things, especially a book that tries to make a person less sedentary. There is a lot to motivate and invigorate a person, to maybe move from the couch to at least the end of the driveway, or block. And from there who knows. Every journey always starts with that first step.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the cold
slowly
In the wind
with your nose
in the rain
with your ears
with a dog
amid trees
to remember
silently
with a map
with purpose
singing
barefoot
in water
beneath a full moon
with others
backwards

[Miriam Hall · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF

Sigh. The science is shoddily presented and the tone is completely ableist. Too bad. I like occasional facts and I love walking but, uh, no.

Perhaps reading a physical copy would be better - I listened and the narrator was overly perky. But not much better - I would have just skimmed it.

[Christie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't sure what I was going to get with this book, although it shouldn't have been a surprise given the rather informative title, but it was so unexpectedly delightful!

Who knew there were so many different ways to walk?!?

Meditative walks, slow walks, fast walks, walks for distance, short walks, walks in the city, walks with a map, backward walks, walks in nature, quiet walks, singing walks, walks with dancing, solo walks, companion walks, river walks, walks in the early morning hours, walks in the day, walks before you eat, walks after you eat, walks in the evening, walks at night, walking in water, walking while swinging your arms, familiar walks, walks in areas you don't know, walks focusing on sounds, walks for your eyes, barefoot walks, uphill walks, etc.

Streets goes through them all, explaining the who, what, when, where, why, and how of each kind of walk. A surprisingly high number of studies have been done on walking and its benefits. I do wonder how much we can take from a study of a group of 60 walkers (many of the studies referenced include less than 100 participants), but a lot of the things she claims make sense. If you walk in the morning, it can help you wake up. If you walk in the evening after dinner, it can help you sleep better. It makes sense, right?

The list of benefits is about as long as the list of 52 walks - walking can help you lose weight, lighten your mood, stave off depression, sleep better, prevent a number of diseases and medical conditions by lowering your blood pressure, reduces stress, releases endorphins. Walking can help alleviate back, knee, joints, and hip pain. Walking helps lower the body's inflammatory response. Walking lowers your risk of diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis, improves cholesterol levels, helps you build strong bones and slows any bone loss as you age. Walking increases your muscle endurance and increases your energy levels.

I'd write more but I have to get my behind outside for a walk.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great find.! I read this through and decided to start the walking year in January of 2023 since the weeks approximately follow the year weather-wise. The author is British so the weather is close to what we have seasonally in Ohio. I loved the approach. Annabel attempts to get you out of the rut of putting one foot in front of the other counting your steps. She incorporates moon phases, singing, drawing, walking backwards, walking alone, walking with a friend...you get the picture. Each chapter talks about a different approach to walking and then talks about specific items you might need for your walk. And since it is one walk a week, it gives you time to prepare for your adventure. I bought this book shortly after a sister's vacation hiking in Shenandoah National Park. One of my sisters lives in Idaho and had a birthday in August. I bought her a copy for her birthday and she decided to start with the week after her birthday, which I believe was the walk and draw week. Quite a challenge but she said she loves it. I will catch up with her in January!

[Kimberlee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed particular chapters of this book! I learned a lot about a subject I already love, walking. I gave three stars because after awhile, I really felt as though the author was trying to “convince” me that the science backed the health of walking.
I guess first of all, when I’m trying to be convinced of something, I get skeptical. Also, the benefits were already incredibly obvious to me, so I needed zero convincing anyways.
The tone could have been less convincing and more conversational and informative-that’s all. Overall, I learned a ton, and enjoyed contemplating the different suggestions on how to walk for even greater benefits. For example, walking backwards, barefoot, at night, in the rain, near water, while singing, uphill, and so on. Great read!

[Charlotte Burt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I rarely give non-fiction five stars but this was really what I needed to read right now. Very informative and I have a plethora of new ideas to really make my daily walk much more interesting and reading about the effect a rainy forest walk can have on my microbiome makes me much more likely to get out the door on those days when the rain just won't let up (like once a week at the moment).

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Things I liked about this book: So many ideas to think about walking in a new way and to keep the simple act of walking from being boring. Ideas to engage all the senses, different times of day, terrain, moods, duration, health benefits, etc.

Things I didn’t love about this book: Each chapter felt like an article from Self magazine, which is fine, but reading 52 of them stacked together was a just lot of research study snippets. It’s like that TikTok meme, “That’s enough slices!!!” I think this book would make a nice gift where the recipient could read one chapter per week for a year, instead of me reading it all in a week so I can *walk to* the library to return it on time.

Most woo walk that I actually want to try: Walk with negative air ions, which can be found near waterfalls, other flowing water, in the mountains, on a misty spring morning, or after a downpour.

2nd most: Walk like a nomad, a meditative practice where you sync your steps with your breaths (3 steps breathe in, 1 step hold in, 3 steps breathe out, 1 step hold out) (perhaps even through your nose).

Thing that will stick with me on the health benefits: Overall it seems that shorter more frequent walks have more benefits than one longer walk, especially short walks after meals. Time a 12 minute walk from your front door, and take it as often as you can (without overthinking or overcomplicating anything). Also, walking early in the morning has the benefit of lower air pollution.

[Sarah Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

10/10 has actually changed my life. I finished the book a few months ago and find myself continuously think back to various chapters. Rainy day? Oo remember that chapter about the dirt and the smells and how it’s good for you? Amazing, I love that for me, I love rainy days. Early early morning meeting I don’t want to get up for? Cold night? Summer ending blues? Oo remember that chapter on the benefits of walking in the cold, yes, love that. I love the cold. I loved every chapter. And I felt like each one could be applicable to anyone. Anything I can add a walk to now I’m doing it. I genuinely have looked and interacted with my days differently after reading it. The chapters are short, sweet and dense with facts. I recommend it to everyone especially those surrounded with the guilt and pressure of high intensity classes, expensive memberships and endless marketing.

[Davenport Public Library Iowa · Rating 5 out of 5]

An impressively readable book, this is a flexible and quick-paced non-fiction on the many methods and benefits of walking. The weekly format means chapters are brief and to the point, and clear chapter titles make it an easy book to read either straight through or cherry-picking based on interest. Each chapter also includes a good balance of personal anecdotes and scientific studies to hold the reader's attention and make a convincing argument.

Highly recommended for lovers of walking and nature, as well as those seeking a holistic fitness plan.

-Callen

[Zoë Soriano · Rating 5 out of 5]

so so delightful and made me want to try all these wonderful walks!! a love letter to walking :')

[Sammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this book!

Much like the author's father, I don't drive, so have naturally become a life-long walker. Good thing I love it really!
I got about half-way through listening to this book on audio, before pausing and ordering a physical copy too. This is one I'm going to want to dip in and out of at will, which is much easier with an actual book. that doesn't mean the audio version isn't worth a listen though! I flew through it in one sitting (minus the brief book-ordering pause), and it really made me want to get up and move!

Even as someone who generally clocks up a few hundred miles every month, there was so much new to me in this book. I recommend this book not only to those who love to walk, but also to those who don't! Seriously, the benefits of walking are endless

Due to medical issues I've not been able to walk as much as I usually do these past few months (typically 5 miles in the morning and another 2 or so in the evening), and as I'm currently recovering from surgery, I'm not quite up for a brisk uphill climb in the rain just yet. But I did spend most of the time listening to this book pacing up and down my hallway/kitchen, and am so very much looking forward to being able to get out walking again very soon!

I needed this book. I loved this book. I suspect I will wear out the physical copy of this book. All my thanks go out to the author for writing this book!

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love to walk, mostly with my dogs, but I love a good long walk with a good conversationalist and/or under a canopy of trees...or, meandering 10 miles through NYC with a native city dweller. So, when I stumbled upon this book I was excited to learn some new "ways" to walk, both to relax and improve fitness. Streets, the author's last name (right?!), gave me way more than that. This is all kinds of goodness for your brain. There is tons of research behind each of the "ways" Streets recommends walking that includes all kinds of other health benefits. I immediately found myself walking differently when I out with my dogs AND I am planning on buying a hard copy of this book to reference going forward to test out some other ways of walking. Some of the ways I want to walk include: at night, backward, as meditation, sketching, within an hour of rising, and after eating.

[Kristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book by listening to an interview with the author, Annabel Streets, on the Mind Body Green podcast. As soon as she explained that the book was inspired by the many excuses from friends and family for NOT walking with her (too cold, too muddy, too hungry, too long, etc.), I knew I had to get the book! I listened to the audiobook (yes, while walking), and once finished, I promptly got the kindle version to reference more easily and a hardcover version shipped off to my mother. I will be honest, the primary reason I loved this book is because the science supports everything I've already concluded from my own walking experience (I knew it!!) -- PLUS, it gave me new ways to explore the various benefits available through a diverse walking repertoire.

[Millie Picker · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I picked this up for book club I thought, “Really, who needs a book on walking?” As I started reading individual walking ideas I became intrigued by some of the things to try while walking such as Afghan breathing. I’ve tried it on several walks while reading this book and have gotten better at it.

Of course I’ve always walked for the sheer pleasure of being outside and enjoying nature, but I did enjoy the insight as to what scientists find happens to the body when we walk. To quote Psalm 139:14 “I am fearfully and wonderfully made”. God master designed the human body to benefit from walking, enjoying nature, slowing down( so we can enjoy the earth He created), and developing kindred spirits.
Pretty good and fast read.

[Nancy Motto · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't completely finish this because it was due back to the library but I read enough to know that in my case, it was preaching to the choir. I've been a serious walker for years and I have already put into practice many of the author's suggestions. As I think one other reviewer said, this is not necessarily a book you want to take out of the library and just read. This would be a great book for a new walker who needs motivation to get going or for someone who just wants to up their walking game.