Practice: A Slow Walk

Show Notes
In this episode, I invite you on a slow walk practice — an exploration of pace, nervous system regulation, and what becomes available when we intentionally downshift.

We begin with a story from a recent neighborhood walk, where someone commented on how slowly I was moving — and how differently that landed in my body than it might have in the past. From there, we explore the idea that slowness isn’t “better” than speed, but that many of us live in cultures and nervous systems that are deeply conditioned toward urgency and fast pacing.

Together, we experiment with slowing down physically and noticing what shifts: awareness, sensation, breath, attention, pleasure, discomfort, and connection to the environment around us. Along the way, I offer reflections on nervous system range, inner critic healing, and the importance of finding your own pace rather than performing someone else’s.

This episode is an invitation to get curious about rhythm, pressure, and what your body might want if there was nowhere to be and nothing to achieve.

Timestamps
00:00 — Introduction + invitation to slow walk
01:00 — The “Art of the Mother Duck” class announcement
04:30 — Early spring in Alaska + the story behind this episode
05:20 — “You’re walking so slow”
06:30 — Slowness, nervous system range, and cultural pacing
07:30 — Inner critic healing + trusting your own pace
08:50 — Beginning the slow walk practice
10:00 — Settling into a slower rhythm
11:00 — Feeling feet + contact with the ground
12:30 — Letting your feet choose the pace
13:00 — Slowness is not morally superior
14:00 — Activation, exercise, and learning to slow down
15:00 — “Your pace is sacred”
16:00 — Bringing awareness to ankles, knees, and hips
18:00 — Expanding attention into the environment
19:00 — Sights, sounds, smells, and air on the skin
20:30 — Checking in with your current pace
21:30 — Releasing pressure + achievement
23:00 — Noticing what happens in the body
23:30 — Discomfort with slowness + nervous system learning
25:00 — What becomes available at a slower pace?
26:30 — Closing reflections

Resources: 

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