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Lessons Learned from Being a Walking Metronome
The surprising benefits of rhythmic movement
Once a week, I do a long walk as part of my training to walk a half marathon at the end of April. Walking long distances can be almost as mentally challenging as it is physically challenging. I’ve adopted a new approach to that challenge that I’m going to stick with. I’ve become a human walking metronome, and it’s made all the difference.
How I got here
In January 2023, I signed up to walk a half marathon in April. I was walking pretty regularly but had certainly done nothing close to 13.1 miles. I wanted the challenge. And I knew the required discipline would have physical and mental benefits.
About the same time, I also started meeting with a personal trainer about once a week. She pushed me to do more than I thought I could, and I loved it. I couldn’t believe how much better my body and mind felt with regular exercise.
I did my longest walks of the week every Sunday, walking a little farther each week. As the distance I walked grew, I found the mental challenge growing. When you walk for one to four hours, you need something to occupy your mind.
I tried music and audiobooks. They each worked okay but still didn’t quite do the job. My brain constantly wandered, and neither music nor audiobooks helped for long.
The metronome approach
Now I’m training for this year’s half marathon. It’s the same one, happening at the end of April again. Again, I’ve tried music and audiobooks with limited success. Today I tried something different.
I take about 2,000 steps for every mile I walk. I like to check my heart rate and my time about every mile. Today, I counted my steps.
I really enjoyed this technique and plan to continue using it. I found it surprisingly meditative as I counted to the rhythm of my steps. It was as if I were a human metronome.
The sound of my feet hitting the ground was the ticking of a metronome. It calmed my mind and allowed me to keep a steady pace.
When I checked my heart rate once, it was at the upper range of where I like to keep it. I set my metronome…
