There are many ways to get into the meditative state and many benefits attributed to the meditative state.

The most familiar kind of meditation involves a relaxed sitting position with good posture. Perhaps the eyes are closed and one sits in a dimly lit quiet setting. One repeats a phrase or chant, and the body enters a subdued, yet aware metabolic state. Perhaps the meditator aims to attain the goal of enlightenment after some time.

Physical and mental devices are sometimes used to reach this state, such as regulated breathing and visualized energy patterns. Physical routines are sometimes incorporated, such as the muscle relaxation and stretching techniques of Yoga, or the slow circular calisthenic patterns of Tai Chi.

You might test this claim about body warmth in your own habit of walking.

Everyone has a core body temperature of 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, but that set point can range by as much as 3 degrees, that is, 1.5 degrees cooler or warmer. Consider the concept of "resting body temperature." You have heart the term "resting heart rate," so imagine "resting body temperature" as something similar.

Considering the cold extreme, how often have you heard someone say, "I'm chilled to the bone, I can't get warm." Or at the hot extreme, "Johnny is running a fever. If it goes any higher, we're going to the doctor."

From the windows of the second floor apartment where we have lived here in Pennsylvania for more than 30 years, my wife and I can look to the north in winter and see the Susquehanna River's West Branch as well as the ancient Arch Street Bridge which spans the river, crossing from Duboistown  to Williamsport. In warmer months the longer view tends to be obscured by the intervening leaves. Much as we enjoy the winter view, we do prefer the leaves.

On the far side of the river is the linear Susquehanna State Park which runs west from the bridge for perhaps three quarters of a mile. It is a pretty enough stretch of green, even though it is within earshot of the Williamsport Industrial Park, not to mention Interstate 180, from both of which the park is separated by

You may already be a member of the Marathon Walking Club, whether you know it or not.  Here's how:

If you can walk two miles twice daily for a week, you'll walk 28 miles - more than a marathon in a week.  If you can walk it in a week, then you can walk it in a day.  It's that simple.  For those of you in the metric camp, that's three kilometers and a few steps twice daily.

Nearly everyone can walk a couple miles, and nearly everyone can recover to walk another couple miles later in the day.  Herein lies the secret to your training:  1) Break up your effort into manageable pieces, so that your body adapts naturally, 2) Repeat small successes many times over, and 3) Understand your own exercise and recovery cycle.