Buddhist Walking Meditation May Help Reduce Blood Pressure and Depression
Buddhist walking meditation is a mindfulness practice in which a person walks slowly and deliberately along a short, quiet path while paying close attention to lifting, moving, and placing each foot. Awareness may also extend to breathing, posture, balance, and surrounding sounds. When thoughts arise or the mind wanders, attention is gently redirected to the movement of walking. Often practiced between periods of seated meditation, walking meditation may help cultivate calmness, concentration, body awareness, and present-moment attention.
Walking Meditation and Type 2 Diabetes
A randomized study compared Buddhist walking meditation with traditional walking in 23 adults aged 50–75 years with type 2 diabetes. For 12 weeks, both groups walked on a treadmill for 30 minutes, three times per week, at 50–70% of their maximum heart rate. During walking meditation, participants focused on each footstep while silently or audibly repeating “Budd” and “Dha” to maintain mindfulness.
Both groups experienced improvements in aerobic fitness, fasting blood glucose, and blood vessel dilation. However, significant reductions in HbA1c, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, arterial stiffness, and cortisol occurred only in the walking-meditation group. These findings suggest that combining mindfulness with walking may provide broader metabolic, cardiovascular, and stress-related benefits than traditional walking alone for people with type 2 diabetes (1).
Before and after the 12-week program, systolic blood pressure was 147 ± 6 and 143 ± 4 mmHg, respectively, in the traditional walking group. In comparison, it decreased from 145 ± 5 to 128 ± 5 mmHg in the walking-meditation group (p < 0.05). Diastolic blood pressure was 87 ± 2 before and 86 ± 2 mmHg after the program in the traditional walking group, compared with 85 ± 2 and 78 ± 2 mmHg, respectively, in the walking-meditation group (p < 0.05) (1).
Fasting blood glucose decreased in both groups. In the traditional walking group, it declined from 6.6 ± 0.5 to 5.8 ± 0.3 mmol/L. In the walking-meditation group, it decreased from 7.4 ± 0.8 to 6.5 ± 0.6 mmol/L.
Interestingly, HbA1c decreased significantly only in the walking-meditation group. Before and after the 12-week program, HbA1c levels were 60.0 ± 4.9 and 60.4 ± 5.1 mmol/mol, respectively, in the traditional walking group. In the walking-meditation group, HbA1c decreased from 60.9 ± 4.0 to 54.9 ± 3.0 mmol/mol (p < 0.05) (1).
Walking Meditation and Depression in Older Adults
Another randomized intervention study compared the effects of Buddhist walking meditation and traditional walking on depression, physical function, and vascular health in older adults. The study included 45 adults aged 60–90 years with mild-to-moderate depressive symptoms. Participants were randomly assigned to a sedentary control group, a traditional walking group, or a Buddhist walking meditation group.
Participants in the two exercise groups completed supervised sessions three times per week for 12 weeks. The Buddhist walking meditation program combined aerobic walking with Buddhist meditation practices (2).
After 12 weeks, both exercise groups showed significant improvements in muscle strength, flexibility, agility, dynamic balance, cardiorespiratory endurance, and flow-mediated dilation, a measure of blood vessel function (p < 0.05). However, depressive symptoms decreased significantly only in the Buddhist walking meditation group (p < 0.05) (2).
Both exercise programs also reduced blood pressure, although only the Buddhist walking meditation group showed a significant difference compared with the sedentary control group. At the beginning of the study, systolic blood pressure was 128 ± 6 mmHg in the sedentary group, 127 ± 6 mmHg in the traditional walking group, and 124 ± 6 mmHg in the Buddhist walking meditation group. After the 12-week program, the corresponding values were 130 ± 4, 118 ± 4, and 115 ± 4 mmHg, respectively.
At the beginning of the study, diastolic blood pressure was 67 ± 3 mmHg in the sedentary group, 69 ± 3 mmHg in the traditional walking group, and 64 ± 3 mmHg in the Buddhist walking meditation group. After 12 weeks, the corresponding values were 73 ± 3, 66 ± 3, and 59 ± 3 mmHg, respectively (2).
Both exercise programs also produced significant changes in plasma cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and C-reactive protein. In addition, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, cortisol, and interleukin-6 decreased only in the Buddhist walking meditation group (2).
Summary
Overall, Buddhist walking meditation may offer benefits beyond those of traditional walking alone. In these studies, it improved blood pressure, blood sugar regulation, functional fitness, vascular function, and depressive symptoms. By combining physical activity with mindfulness, Buddhist walking meditation may provide a practical approach to supporting both physical and emotional health.
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References:
1. Gainey A, Himathongkam T, Tanaka H, Suksom D. Effects of Buddhist walking meditation on glycemic control and vascular function in patients with type 2 diabetes. Complement Ther Med. 2016 Jun;26:92-7. doi: 10.1016/j.ctim.2016.03.009. Epub 2016 Mar 10. PMID: 27261988.
2. Prakhinkit S, Suppapitiporn S, Tanaka H, Suksom D. Effects of Buddhism walking meditation on depression, functional fitness, and endothelium-dependent vasodilation in depressed elderly. J Altern Complement Med. 2014 May;20(5):411-6. doi: 10.1089/acm.2013.0205. Epub 2013 Dec 28. PMID: 24372522.
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