It is solved by walking

Or, if you want to sound smarter, try it in Latin: Solvitor Ambulando.

“It is solved by walking” is a saying attributed to Greek philosopher Diogenes, and also to the Christian Saint Augustine.

But no matter who said it first, we all know it in our hearts to be absolutely true. Walking helps us to think things through, to arrive at solutions, or to at least achieve clarity about some of the problems that beset us.

It’s not even a matter of trying. When I’m writing something and find myself stuck, the urge to get up and walk is almost overpowering. And once I get walking – ideally in the local forest, if I can, but a quick stroll up the road is fine if I’m short for time – the rhythm of my footsteps seems to make my brain work better, more creatively.

I don’t necessarily even need to think about the writing problem: once I relax into the physical act, the mental cogs start whirring away all by themselves.

It doesn’t have to be walking either. Any repetitive physical action that doesn’t require much thought (housework, cooking prep, weeding, knitting) can achieve the same cognitive results. Our subconscious minds make connections while our bodies are active.

According to author and PhD candidate Ilka Tampke, research over the past decade has shown that walking makes us:

• smarter
• more creative
• remember things better
• less stressed and depressed.

Apparently only 20 mins per day shows benefits.

I recently spent some time hiking in Tasmania. Yes, the scenery was spectacular. Yes, I’m sure my cardio-vascular health has improved. But the best part, for me, was the thinking time I was afforded. It’s not that I spent hours concentrating on any particular thing – quite the opposite. My mind was free to wander, across the trivial and the profound.  

There were no sudden epiphanies, no eureka moments. But by the time I came home I had some newfound clarity about… well, about all sorts of things.

Plenty of other writers have found solace in walking too. Books about walking that I’ve read and enjoyed include:

• The Salt Path by Raynor Wynn. A beautifully written memoir about a couple who, at a time of personal and financial crisis, make the seemingly crazy decision to walk a thousand mile trail.
• The Old Ways by Robert Macfarlane, about walking in England and Europe. Although to be fair, I think all of his books involve walking – and all of them are worth reading.
• Footsteps by Richard Holmes. An exploration of the relationship between a biographer and their subject. Holmes literally as well as metaphorically follows in his subject’s footsteps.
• Wild: A journey from lost to found by Cheryl Strayed. Another fabulous memoir – and for once the movie version is just as good.
• Tracks by Robyn Davidson. Iconic Australian work about a woman who decides to walk (and trek with camels) for 1700 kilometres across the western deserts.

There are many more, of course. And if I started a fiction list we’d be here all day (Lord of the Rings being the first example that comes to mind of the many novels about long walks!)

Feel free to add your own favourite books about walking in the comments.