What is a Color Walk?
Lindsay Knake
| 3 min read
If you fondly remember the “I Spy” game on long card rides as a kid, you may be interested in a color walk.
A color walk is a type of walking meditation in which you pick a color and search for items in various shades. This kind of walk combines exercise with meditation. The color walk is also a social media trend with millions of views on TikTok.
Learn how walking meditation can improve your mental and physical health and how to take a color walk.
The benefits of walking meditation
More than half of American adults do not meet the recommended 150 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic exercise a week. Taking five 30-minute walks each week will meet the recommendations. A brisk walk increases your heart rate but is still a gentle, low-impact form of exercise many people can do.
Walking has both physical and mental health benefits. The exercise is connected to lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol and lower risk of stroke, diabetes and heart disease. Walking can also help you improve sleep, reduce fatigue and get sick less often.
A 2018 study found a 10-minute brisk, meditative walk can help alleviate stress and improve mood. Walking in nature can help improve anxiety and depression, according to a 2022 study in the Journal of Clinical Medicine.
Sitting meditation can be difficult for many people, especially if they are new to mindfulness practices. A walking meditation can combine physical and mental health benefits. Without media like podcasts and music and with a task to focus on, the color walk is an easy way to stay in the present moment. This can particularly help people who deal with anxiety or rumination as a focus on their immediate surroundings keeps them from thinking about their stressors.
How to take a color walk
To take advantage of the benefits of both walking and mindfulness, here is how you can take a color walk:
Go outside
Head out for a walk without music, an audiobook or podcast to focus on your surroundings. You could vary your walks, whether it’s at a park or right outside your door.
Pick a color
As you head out, pick one color and notice where and how the color appears. You can do this in urban, suburban or rural environments. For example, you could see pink petunias or peonies, a pink yard ornament, a restaurant sign or a person’s pink shirt.
Search for the color in the environment
Allow yourself to enjoy the search for each item and savor the color you notice. Notice the different shades and textures of the color in the places you find it.
You can choose a new color for each walk or change colors every 10 minutes. You could also go with a partner and share what you see as you walk. There isn’t a wrong way to take a color walk. The important part is getting outside for exercise and practicing mindfulness.
Image: Getty Images
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