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Listen While You Walk: The best apps to keep you moving
Listen While You Walk: The best apps to keep you moving

Listen While You Walk: The best apps to keep you moving

So you’ve decided to walk more. Congratulations! Whether this is your first foray into starting a walking habit or you’re an old pro by now, you probably already have it figured out that daily walking can feel tedious at times, even while listening to your favorite playlist. Why not mix it up a little, and listen to something besides music while you walk? Here are a few options:

Enjoy an audiobook

Many books are even more engaging when read by a talented narrator, especially when it comes to a celebrity memoir or a gripping thriller. What’s more, since most audiobooks are anywhere from 6 to 15 hours long, you’ll want to keep moving just to find out what happens next. To listen, you can try a paid app such as Audible or Scribd, ask your local library if it has a system for lending audiobooks, or check out this list of cheap or free sources of audiobooks.

Get hooked on podcasts

If you’re not ready to commit to a lengthy audiobook, perhaps a podcast will keep you entertained on your walks. Besides the app built into your mobile device, there are dozens of popular podcast app alternatives like Pocket Casts and Overcast. Most podcasts also keep their episodes roughly the same length, so you can use short daily podcasts for brief walks, and save lengthier weekly podcasts for when you have more time to stroll. Not sure where to start? To find podcasts that suit your interests, check out Wired’s comprehensive list of The Best Podcasts for Everyone.

Learn a language

A lot of us keep intending to pick up a new language, but find it difficult to make the time. Fortunately, there are plenty of language learning apps with purely listenable content that don’t require you to interact while you walk! The free Language Transfer app offers audio-only lessons in multiple languages, and FluentU has an additional list of ways to learn languages hands-free.

Meditate

Most of us think of meditation as a seated activity, but it doesn’t have to be. Walking meditation is a form of mindfulness with a long history and numerous variations according to the place of origin. Today, many meditation apps such as Calm or Headspace offer guided walking meditations that encourage you to fully experience your surroundings as you walk.

Need more tips for getting more steps in your day? We've got some advice for how to make walking a lasting routine!

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