Walking Workout

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Walking by Erling Kagge, read by Atli Gunnarsson. 'Everything moves more slowly when I walk, the world seems softer . . .' From the bestselling author of Silence comes an illuminating exploration of the joy of walking. From those perilous first steps to...

Sydney, 1948. Brilliant German surgeon, Hugo Winter, is dead, and his protégé, Lucy Brynne, is tasked with sorting his papers. Among them, Lucy finds glimpses of Hugo’s past that paint a disturbing picture of war and prejudice - a portrait of Australia she can barely recognise. That same week, an intriguing patient comes into her care on the orthopaedic ward at Sydney Hospital: one Mr Jim Cleary. Lucy’s experience as an army physiotherapist, as well as her own very personal knowledge of pain, tell her there’s more to this man’s fractured leg than meets the eye.

Walking was first published in the June 1862 issue of Atlantic Monthly. In this treatise, Thoreau reminds us of how the primal act of walking connects us with nature. He argues that the genius of walking does not lie in mechanically putting one foot in front of the other toward to a destination, but in mastering the art of sauntering. The themes of Walking include freedom, self-reflection, and exploration. Thoreau states that the act of walking marks the human being as an inhabitant, or part and parcel of nature, rather than a member of society.

Taking those first steps on the road to fitness can be the hardest for many people. The thought of buying all that kit or spending hours down the gym can often be the most off putting. However there is something that we all do every day that can make us fitter and healthier without us even realizing. Yes that's right, it's walking. Just taking a few extra steps each day can have surprising results, even if you have never exercised before.