A meditation for people who can’t sit still

An overlooked form of meditation that has had a huge impact on me

The classic image of a meditator is someone sitting with their legs crossed, wearing a beatific look on their face, as if they were floating off into the cosmos.

This trope is misleading for at least two reasons:

First, because it makes it seem like proper meditation entails some sort of magical mind-clearing + a sublime merging with the universe. Maybe that happens sometimes for some of us, but the vast majority of my meditation experience is much more humdrum*; I try to focus on one thing (e.g., the breath), get distracted a million times, then start again. And again. And again.

(*It may be humdrum, but it’s also radically useful, because every time you wake up from distraction, you get increasingly familiar with the voice in your head—and that visibility helps you not be so possessed by your inner chaos.)

Second (and this is the relevant part for today’s missive), the criss-cross-applesauce meditation trope is misleading because there are many other postures for meditation. The Buddha listed four of them: sitting, lying, standing up, or walking.

It’s that last one—walking—that I want to focus on today. Walking meditation doesn’t get much airtime in the so-called mindfulness revolution, but it is, in my experience, a game-changer.

For a few reasons:

First, because it’s great for people who (like me) have trouble sitting still.

Second, because it helps you bring mindfulness off the cushion and into the world.

Third, because it can boost your daily walking quotient, which is a great way to improve your health.

How to do it? Of course, you can try to be mindful as you’re walking through the world. But I recommend starting with a few minutes of formal walking meditation once in a while.

It’s not complicated:

1. Stake out a patch of land, either inside or outside—maybe like 10 yards.

2. Walk slowly back and forth within this area. (You can walk super slowly, or just slightly slower than your normal stride. You don’t have to do anything special with your eyes; just gaze forward softly.)

3. Bring your full attention to the feeling of your body moving. (To help you stay focused, you can use simple “mental notes,” silently repeating words like “stepping,” “touching,” “seeing,” or even “hot” and “cold,” depending on what you’re noticing.)

4. Every time you get distracted, start again.

Today’s episode of the podcast, featuring T. Morgan Dixon and Professor Gary Bennett, explores the science of motivation and the health benefits of walking.

Paid subscribers get an excellent guided walking meditation from Dharma teacher Cara Lai, who makes the case that mindfulness is portable. Like all of the guided meditations we released during our June Get Fit Sanely series, it is designed to pair with the podcast episode.

We hope you’ve enjoyed Cara’s meditations throughout this month. If you missed any, they’re all available in the ad-free feed for paid subscribers. And good news: starting July 2nd, we’re keeping the momentum going with new, tailor-made meditations from our next Meditation Teacher of the Month. More details coming next week!

Paid subscribers get the 10% Happier podcast ad-free, as well as:

• A cheatsheet for each episode — with key takeaways, time-coded highlights, and a transcript

• The ability to comment on posts and participate in subscriber chats

• Access to our twice-monthly live video sessions, in which I guide a meditation and take questions

Join the party.

Episode cheatsheet

The big takeaway

T. Morgan Dixon and Dr. Gary Bennett break down why building healthy habits—especially getting active—is so hard, and share science-backed strategies that actually work.

Motivation That Sticks: Why Habits Are So Hard (and How to Actually Get Moving)

Key takeaways: