“I can’t handle staring at a screen all day anymore.”

“I feel like my brain is turning to mush just staring at the screen.”

Feel like you’re wasting away physically and mentally at your desk all day? Here’s something I’ve tried that refreshed my brain, body, and put me in a better place:

Get up and walk around the block once an hour. Don’t look at your phone during your walk.

No, yeah, I know. It sounds like every advice you’ve ever heard. Stay with me.

I found myself watching a YouTube video, where a guy decided to run around his one-mile block once an hour for 24 hours and complete household tasks in between runs. Crazy, but also inspirational.

I knew I couldn’t approach his level of fitness, but I could walk around my block once an hour. It takes 7ish minutes if I go fast, and about 10 if I go slowly. I decided to try going each hour on the hour at work. I figured, if (at worst) someone has to wait 10 minutes for me to reply to them, they’ll survive.

This turned out to be a very transformative experiment.

At first, I was still worried that people would notice my absence. They did not.

I thought I’d get bored walking the same circle 8 times a day. I did not. In fact, I started to tune into the rhythms of my neighborhood. When the rabbits came out to eat, when school buses arrived and departed, when certain neighbors sat on their porch, or mowed their lawn, or gardened. Each time I’d notice something different about someone’s house, or how a flower was in fuller bloom than the previous day, or the leaves on that tree were now starting to turn.

I thought my spouse would think I was crazy. He may have. But eventually he ended up joining me for many of my walks. This was a fantastic development. We were able to chat about work, stress, leisure, everything. Several times a day. It gave us micro bonding moments that we wouldn’t have had otherwise.

I thought I’d feel guilty, taking this time for myself while “on the clock”. In fact, it helped me perform better. I could puzzle out situations while feeling the brisk breeze. Putting the brain in a new environment, especially away from screens, especially while doing physical activity, helps it find more creative avenues for approaching problems.

Did I always walk every hour on the hour? Of course not. I had meetings, or it was bone-chillingly cold, or I forgot, or I did household chores instead. But even getting out, say, 3 times was worthwhile. Even 2 times. Even once.

My circumstances have changed and it’s not as simple for me to do this habit right now (anyone got tips on sneaking past a toddler without triggering a tantrum?) but I’d recommend it to anyone to try.

Do a one day ‘marathon’. Each hour, get up and walk around the block. Notice what you see. Notice how you feel. Notice whether anyone cares. (Don’t worry, they won’t.) If you enjoy it, try again. See if it doesn’t unmush your brain.

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