Summer Inspiration Part 2: Walking

I am including my morning walks in my little series on summer inspirations even though my morning walks are not necessarily specific to the summer– I am pretty dedicated to them all year round—however, I love my summer walks best of all and am definitely most inspired by them– not only because I don’t have to deal with -40C temperatures and stumbling around the icy streets in the dark, but mostly because I have so much more time. With a much more flexible schedule in the summer, I can luxuriate in longer daily walks and linger over the little inspirational treasures I come across every day.

Countless studies espouse the benefits of incorporating daily walks into our schedules. In recent years the whole “sitting is the new smoking” campaign made its rounds and the “I am going for a stupid little walk for my stupid mental health” memes were popping up ad nauseam on our social media feeds. However, it is obviously one thing to know what’s good for us and it’s another to do it. My walking habit really set in during the pandemic when I was literally going for a “stupid little walk for my stupid mental health”– getting up and out of the house for 90-minute walks before having to face a whole day online—and, I just have never broken the habit of these ultra-early morning rambles.  Save for when I am travelling and my schedule is somewhat off–I get up and out every day–usually, around 5:00/5:30 AM when the neighbourhood is mostly quiet. I love hearing the first flight of the day leaving from YQR and the trains rumbling through town. I see and hear all sorts of birds, see beavers in the creek, and coyotes running alongside it and just recently saw a deer (obviously lost, poor thing) scampering through the back alleys of the Crescents.

I love my early morning walks so much that just the anticipation of them prevents me from sleeping in—even if I try-  I do not use an alarm clock –I am just up and at ‘em at the crack of dawn (or before!) itching to get out the door, which makes my dog a very happy boy. Even in the winter! I just pull my snow pants and ankle-length winter coat on right over my pyjamas—and while the winter outings are usually considerably shorter I get out nonetheless.

My walks give me so much more than just physical exercise – they allow me to clear my mind, sort through ideas, conundrums or anything, really. I sometimes listen to audiobooks,and when I was rehearsing for a show recently I listened to a recording of myself reciting my lines to aid in my memorization process, often however I chose specifically to go just with my thoughts.

There are countless articles and books written on the topic of famous writers and how walking was or is central to their writing processes as well, there are many writers who centre nature as their muse (some of my favs include Henry David Thoreau, Mary Oliver and Ross Gay). I do it for all those reasons and more. Physical exercise, mental clarity and a healthy dose of nature to help regulate my nervous system…yes, please!

This summer I have made it one of my projects to incorporate more walking throughout my day. Seeing as I am doing a lot of sitting on my tush as I stare at my computer fighting my way through quite a sizable writing project – I know from experience that stepping away from the screen on the regular to get my body moving is pretty much a guarantee that my writing brain will refresh and reboot.

Walking as inspiration.

Early morning on Wascana Creek, Regina SK.