Walking yoga: a walk for the soul
16-4-2026
Translation: Elicia Payne
Pictures: Anika Schulz
Want to do something nice for yourself now that spring’s finally here? Why don’t you try walking yoga? You don’t even need a mat or a gym subscription.
Finally, the freezing cold winter’s over. My body’s craving light, sunshine and warmth. And my shoulders need to relax. No wonder, I mainly work at a desk, just like half of all employees in Germany. In Switzerland, 35 per cent of people spend most of their time in front of a screen, according to the FSO.
Anyone who knows me knows that I practise yoga regularly. But somehow, it’s not enough for me anymore. In the evenings, I often have pain from my arms all the way up to my neck. Maybe I should go to a yoga class after work? Hmmm. While looking for something simple, I came across walking yoga: a combination of slow walking, mindful breathing and targeted stretching exercises for office workers.
How walking yoga works
The great thing about walking yoga is that, according to science, just 30 minutes of exercise in the fresh air is enough to relax both body and mind. To get started, it’s best to find a place where you won’t be disturbed. So, a park, a small wooded area or just a nice spot between the fields.
Breathing
Start by taking a walk for about ten minutes. Focus on your breathing. That’s more than enough to get started because it’s harder than it sounds. Especially when your mind starts wandering again, your attention quickly drifts elsewhere.
If you’d like to do more, you can try a few yoga breathing exercises – such as full-body breathing. Take a deep breath in through your nose. First draw in from your stomach, then your chest. And then take a little breath on top of that, as if you were sighing. Your chest feels really wide and full right now. Then, relax and let all the air escape through your nose. Take a moment to notice how you feel. Once you notice your natural breathing pattern returning, repeat the process for a few minutes. Studies show that this type of breathing calms the autonomic nervous system, lowers your heart rate and helps you sleep better.
Alternatively, you can also try alternate nostril breathing (Nadi Shodhana) while walking. It synchronises the two hemispheres of the brain and has a calming effect on your vagus nerve, which is responsible for relaxation, rest and digestion. The best thing to do is sit down on a park bench for a moment or just stand there.
Use your right thumb to close your right nostril and breathe in through the left. Then use another finger to close your left nostril and exhale through the right one. Breathe in through your right nostril, close your right nostril, open your left nostril and breathe out through your left nostril. Then breathe in through your left nostril again, close your left nostril and breathe out through your right nostril. Repeat this for two minutes, then continue breathing normally.
My favourite yoga influencer, Mady Morrison, demonstrates clearly how to do this in the following video.
What I wouldn’t recommend is fire breathing, also known as Kapalabhati. This is when you take several quick, shallow breaths in and out through your abdomen in quick succession. On the one hand, you need practice to do this; otherwise, you’ll quickly get dizzy. On the other hand, fire breathing stimulates your body rather than calming it down. So here it’s actually counterproductive.
Stretching exercises
After walking for ten minutes, you can start doing some gentle stretching exercises. The standing cat-cow pose is particularly effective for tense shoulders. Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Extend your arms backward at shoulder height, as far as you can without feeling any pain. Push your chest forward. Now stretch your chest and front shoulder muscles.
Next, perform the counter-movement to stretch your neck and the muscles between your shoulder blades. To do this, bring your outstretched arms back toward your chest, as if you were hugging a large barrel. Round your upper back into a hump. If you feel a slight pull between your shoulder blades, you’re doing it right. Repeat the exercise five times.
To relieve pressure on your lower back and lumbar spine, you can do the forward bend. Stand comfortably and bend forward at the hips. Let your upper body and arms hang loosely and sway from side to side a few times. It’s important not to fully extend your knees, but to keep them slightly bent. Ideally, you can rest your stomach on your thighs. The entire exercise should feel relaxing, not strenuous. And make sure you stand up slowly afterwards. Otherwise, you might feel lightheaded.
If you want to loosen up your entire back, you can do some gentle rotational exercises. Stand with your arms extended to the sides and twist from the hips about ten times to the left and right. Or lean to one side and alternate with the other side. This exercise is similar to the yoga pose known as the Crocodile (Makarasana), which is traditionally performed while lying down and stretches the back from the neck to the buttocks.
People who spend a lot of time sitting at a desk often have problems with their hips – or, more specifically, with tight hip flexors. Deep lunges are particularly helpful for this. Bring your left leg forward, bending it at the knee, and extend your right leg backward. Keep both feet firmly on the ground, otherwise you’ll lose your balance. Hold it for a few seconds, keep breathing calmly and avoid wobbling. Then swap to the other side.
It’s up to you how you incorporate the stretching exercises into your walk. You can take a few minutes to walk around and breathe mindfully between each exercise, or you can do several exercises in a row. Listen to your body and do whatever feels best for you. Yoga isn’t about doing everything exactly as planned. The goal is to (re)connect with your body. So give yourself some space and time.
Here’s what you’ll need
Not much! Wear shoes and clothes that you feel comfortable in. The main thing is that nothing pinches or rubs, and you can move around easily. For example, sneakers, leggings and a loose-fitting sweater. Or Birkenstocks, shorts and a comfortable T-shirt. Since you perform the exercises while standing in walking yoga, you don’t need to bring a mat. You can also leave your yoga block and foam roller at home without any worries.
Also, think about whether you want to bring your smartphone. Although there are apps for walking yoga that guide you through the exercises, you also run the risk of checking WhatsApp and other apps every now and then. And that’s not the point, because yoga is about focusing on yourself.
Anyone who already has some experience with yoga knows which exercises are good for the body, and doesn’t need any further guidance. Beginners can also start by practising the asanas at home and then go outside without digital guidance. If you really can’t go without an app or music in your ears, make sure you download everything instead of streaming it. That way, your addictive digital device can at least stay offline for a little while.
This is what it felt like on my first yoga walk
Since I’m familiar with the exercises and breathing techniques, I didn’t take anything with me on my walk except my house key. Spring was in the air. I headed toward the park and started doing breathing exercises on the way there. I consciously focused on breathing in and out, but quickly realised that Hamburg’s city traffic was distracting me. It would be better in the park. I took a few deep breaths in peace and felt the fresh air flowing through my lungs. It felt amazing.
I then started with the Cat-Cow pose because my shoulders hurt. Ten times up and ten times down. I was glad I’d put on a loose-fitting sweater that didn’t constrict me. With each repetition, I felt my upper body opening up a little more and my breathing getting even easier. Then I turned and tilted my head a few more times to the left and right. Simply because it felt good. Then I continued walking and let my gaze wander over the fresh green plants. Somehow, we don’t really take the time to think about our surroundings, do we?
To finish off, I did the forward bend. This pose really does me a world of good in yoga class, too. First, I let my arms hang down, and then I bring them back. I clasp my hands together and raise my outstretched arms as high as I can. This way, I stretch my shoulder and chest muscles once again, while my lower back gets to relax. (As you can see, things don’t always have to be planned out. It’s perfectly fine to mix it up.) All in all, the trip took just under half an hour. Afterwards, I felt refreshed and invigorated.
In case you’re wondering: nobody gave me any strange looks while I was doing my exercises. I’d actually expected people to give me looks that said, «What on earth is she doing?» Perhaps I was too relaxed to notice. Namaste.
Have you ever tried walking yoga? Let me know in the comments!
Header image: Shutterstock/fornStudio
Anika Schulz
Teamleader Editorial
Anika.Schulz@galaxus.deAs a child, I was socialised with Mario Kart on SNES before ending up in journalism after graduating from high school. As a team leader at Galaxus, I'm responsible for news. I'm also a trekkie and an engineer.
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