Can walking to your yoga class benefit you as much as the class itself? Michael J. Gelb and Bruce Fertman answer with an emphatic YES! In Walking Well they deliver a cornucopia of surprisingly effective, immediately applicable, practical wisdom. This original, compelling, and creative book will show you how to make every step more comfortable, energizing, and inspiring.”
— Chip Conley, New York Times bestselling author and founder of the Modern Elder Academy
“Filled with wisdom, Walking Well is a guide to walking with greater presence, grace, and resilience. With over a century of collective experience in the art of walking, the authors weave together science, history, and contemplative practices. This book will inspire you to move in connection with yourself and our shared world.”
— Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Real Happiness
“Walking Well helped me to relearn a fundamental skill that’s been diminished by multiple surgeries over the past two years. This has improved my confidence and balance while offering me a pathway to more robust health. I especially love the animal imagery — so vivid and practical. A huge thank-you to the authors.”
— Sally Helgesen, author of The Female Advantage and Rising Together and coauthor of How Women Rise
“Walking enhances brain function, boosts focus, elevates moods, and improves memory. That’s why I recommend it to all my patients. This book offers an easy-to-follow blueprint that will help you walk with more comfort, ease, and energy so you can gain the most benefits possible from every step.”
— Daniel G. Amen, MD, CEO and founder of Amen Clinics and author of Change Your Brain Every Day
“This inspiring book is replete with sound, evidence-based advice for a healthier and happier life.”
— Tal Ben-Shahar, PhD, founder of the Happiness Studies Academy and author of the New York Times bestseller Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment
“This book guides readers on a transformative journey that begins with a simple act we often take for granted: walking. The authors unlock the profound mental and physical benefits of mindful walking, merging ancient wisdom with modern science. This book isn’t just about improving your stride; it’s about enhancing every aspect of your life by tapping into the natural rhythm of your body. As a coach to leaders around the world, I appreciate how the simple act of walking, as Gelb and Fertman present it, can lead to powerful insights and sustainable change. I recommend Walking Well to anyone looking to step into a healthier, more creative, and balanced existence.”
— Dr. Marshall Goldsmith, Thinkers50 #1 executive coach and New York Times bestselling author of The Earned Life, Triggers, and What Got You Here Won’t Get You There
“This magnificent book guides you not only to walk in the footsteps of genius but to take every step with more grace, ease, and joy.”
— Ross King, PhD, author of Brunelleschi’s Dome and Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling
“Walking Well has made me a better biped. It taught me how to best inhabit my body and how to move forward. I’d broken my foot stepping off a curb, and Walking Well made peace between me and the ground beneath my feet. The authors have written an enchanting, instructive, and stabilizing book. It’s terrific, vital, and effective.”
— Joan Juliet Buck, author of The Price of Illusion
“The authors, renowned experts in movement and well-being, take readers on a compelling journey through the physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of walking. Going beyond conventional understanding, they share an original approach, grounded in a practical understanding of biomechanics and living anatomy, to making every step more comfortable, energizing, and inspiring. This book will unlock the full potential of your walking life.”
— Patrick McKeown, author of The Oxygen Advantage, internationally acclaimed authority on breathing and sleep, and fellow of the British Royal Society of Biology
“If you just read and experiment with the material in part 1 of Walking Well, your walking will become easier and more comfortable; if you read and experiment with part 2, you will have more energy and stamina as you get older; and if you read and experiment with part 3, you’ll find out how every walk you take can become a spiritual and creatively inspiring experience.”
— Eva Selhub, MD, instructor at Harvard Medical School, coauthor of Your Brain on Nature, and author of Resilience for Dummies
“Contemporary research makes it clear that your brain — and your body — can actually get better as you age. In Brain Power, Michael Gelb offered useful, practical methods for sharpening memory, creativity, and learning ability as the years roll on. Now, in Walking Well, Gelb and coauthor Bruce Fertman show you how you can swiftly improve your walking, balance, and flow as you age. I highly recommend this wonderful and lifesaving book!”
— Ken Dychtwald, PhD, founding CEO of Age Wave and bestselling author of nineteen books
“This book gives us the tools to have a walking renaissance, as happened in the early 1900s. Walking is the single best exercise, the most beneficial with the least stress. Our bodies were meant to walk, and yet we do it so little. Walking Well offers clear instructions to transform the way we walk for health and recreation. Beyond the physical aspects, we discover other dimensions — imagery, sensory awareness, breathing exercises — that enhance the benefits and the joys of walking. Start reading now before you take a hike.”
— Richard P. Brown, MD, associate professor in clinical psychiatry at Columbia UniversityVagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and coauthor of The Healing Power of the Breath
“Walking Well transcends the ordinary, unveiling the profound journey of walking as not merely a form of physical exercise but as a vibrant pathway to a richer, more integrated way of life. Masterfully interweaving practical techniques with deep philosophical insights, the authors illustrate how each step can be a step toward greater health, creativity, and spiritual awakening. More than a guide, this book is a companion for those who seek to transform their daily walks into a practice of mindful exploration and personal growth. Walking Well doesn’t just teach us how to walk; it teaches us how to live fully, with each step revealing the beauty of the moment and the potential within ourselves. A must-read for anyone yearning to connect more deeply with themselves and the world around them.”
— Robert Peng, author of The Way of Virtue: Qigong Meditations to Cultivate Perfect Peace in an Imperfect World
“Scholarly and playful, Walking Well first teaches how to walk without tension, in harmony with the earth. From there, the authors walk us through portals to self-awareness, sensory perception, physical and spiritual vitality, and self-development. We visit philosophy, neuroscience, and the arts on this shape-shifting journey. At last, this delightful read brings us to the place where we walk in beauty.”
— Patricia L. Gerbarg, MD, assistant professor in clinical psychiatry at New York Medical College and first editor of Complementary and Integrative Treatments in Psychiatric Practice
“This is an absolutely brilliant work that integrates a huge amount of spiritual, scientific, cultural, and, most importantly, practical information. There is no better or more natural exercise than walking, no better way to learn from both the body and the natural world as it comes into view and reveals itself with each step. ‘At every step a pure breeze rises,’ the Zen poet tells us. So it is with every refreshing and inspiring page of this book.”
— Kenneth S. Cohen, author of The Way of Qigong: The Art and Science of Chinese Energy Healing
“The way we walk affects every element of who we are. We can uplift our moods, transform our feelings, and improve our thinking by changing the way we walk. The way we walk also influences the way others perceive and relate to us. When we move with relaxed confidence, it’s easier to connect with others, to invite rapport. This is especially important for anyone in a position of leadership. In this truly original and transformational book, you’ll discover a surprising new approach that will help you feel more comfortable, connected, and inspired as you walk through life. Highly recommended!”
— Peter Bregman, CEO of Bregman Partners and author of five business bestsellers, including Leading with Emotional Courage
“This book is like a walking prayer. I love the way the authors have integrated timely, timeless quotes, wisdom, and science with prescriptive how-tos and joyful first-person stories. This is an important, page-turning book that will make a positive difference for everyone who reads it.”
— Sam Horn, CEO of the Intrigue Agency and author of Talking on Eggshells
“A transformative guide to unlocking the potential of walking as a profound practice for holistic well-being. The authors offer invaluable insights and practical exercises that empower readers to enrich their walking experience. This book provides a holistic framework for enhancing physical, mental, and emotional health.”
— Brett Bevell, author of Energy Healing for Everyone, Psychic Reiki, and Reiki for Spiritual Healing
“Walking Well is the key to living well. This book is laced with a multitude of insightful comments by writers, poets, scientists, anthropologists, philosophers, physicians, primatologists, and others who attribute their creativity, insight, and genius to the act of walking. Bruce Fertman and Michael J. Gelb, themselves masters of a variety of somatic disciplines, have synthesized those disciplines into a beautifully written book that encourages us to look more deeply into the mysteries to be explored in walking. You will be pleasantly surprised!”
— Jack Stern, MD, PhD, clinical professor of neurosurgery at New York Medical College, founder of Brain and Spine Surgeons of New York, and author of Ending Back Pain
“As an experienced teacher of yoga, Feldenkrais, and the Alexander Technique, I was surprised and delighted to discover that my walking improved after reading and applying the simple, easy method introduced in the first chapter of this amazing book!”
— Michael D. Frederick, founder of the Alexander Technique International Congress
