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Everyday Livingness
Exercise & Sport, Healthy Lifestyle 624 Comments on Why I Love Hills

Why I Love Hills

By Kim Weston · On August 29, 2017 ·Photography by Benkt van Haastrecht

Let me just start by saying I have never liked hills. I always dreaded the pain in my body, the struggle to reach the top, the exhaustion that soon followed. I never understood why people would choose to put their body through such pain… for what? To ‘conquer’ a hill? To feel like they had achieved something? To feel they could make their body do ‘incredible feats’? It all seemed such a push and drive, with a lot of pain, without much to truly gain at the end of it, except perhaps the initial high of achievement and an inflated sense of self to make up for a deep-seated lack of self-worth that is not being addressed. Climbing hills seemed to me to be clearly about ‘proving’ something.

Come many years later and I have moved to a road that has an incredibly steep, long hill. I do have the option to walk a flat road one way if I so choose.

I had been pre-warned by a neighbour to take it slow and start by only doing half to begin with. So one day I stood at the top of the hill with a view that takes your breath away, and taking the advice from my neighbour, I started my half way descent.

I knew from past hill experience that if I went into drive I would be exhausted and out of breath, so I made a conscious effort to stay with my body and feel each step. I took in the view with every breath and with every breath felt the expansion within as I opened up to feeling my connection with my environment, the world around and within me – the undeniable Oneness with God felt in every cell of my body.

In connection, one cannot help but feel every breath and part of the body as it moves.

I came to a halfway point I had noted at the beginning and turned around. Now this part would usually be my most dreaded part, but not today in this solid connection I had built with my every step on my descent. I started on my way back up, still very connected and expanded, feeling my every move. I noticed that if I stepped away from this connection and my mind would wander to some mental issue, the walk felt hard on my legs, I would lose the consistency of my step and it would become unpleasant. Bringing back the connection, my breath became steady, my body expanded, I felt the immensity that I am – not just the physical body that is walking – and I kept moving with ease.

I have now managed to walk the full length of this hill many times and every time my enjoyment increases.

I began to see how life is the same process as this hill. When we are connected within to the light of our Soul/God/the Universe, we are expanded. We feel the delicateness of our bodies; we take note of our movement. In fact, we love our movement for we are moving in tune with a far greater rhythm and not against it.

I often appreciate how this is what making love truly is. It is in our every move in synergy with the whole that we are a part of. When we are present with this movement nothing is hard, a push, or done in drive. Life becomes about movement, joy and making love. We don’t get tired, for it’s impossible to get tired from love; it’s the ultimate health pill that supports every inch of our being.

This hill has given me an incredible marker for how I can live my everyday if I make my everyday about consistency, connection and God, and wow – what an incredible life is on offer if one chooses to love hills!

By Kim Weston, NSW, a forever student of The Livingness

Further Reading:
Exercise – it doesn’t need to be hard work
Enjoying my Gentle Exercise Programme
Self-worth and self-development – does it work?

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Kim Weston

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624 Comments

  • Shami says: December 6, 2017 at 7:59 am

    It is super important to stay in the reality of what the world is and has to offer, and how there is a multidimensionality to this life, but that multidimensionality must include the practicalities of life.

    Reply
  • kehinde james says: December 5, 2017 at 4:17 pm

    As hills become easier to scale, so too do distances reduce in length and duration. I’ve discovered that walking to my local supermarket in a neighbouring village, instead of driving, is no distance at all and infinitely more enjoyable. A distance I once believed too far to walk is now part of my regular routine.

    Reply
  • kehinde james says: December 5, 2017 at 4:07 pm

    ‘We don’t get tired, for it’s impossible to get tired from love; it’s the ultimate health pill that supports every inch of our being.’ This is gorgeous and confirms how we continually expand the more love we give ourselves: We are given more, not less and can conquer what once seemed impossible.

    Reply
  • Sarah Karam says: December 5, 2017 at 5:55 am

    This blog just makes me want to go out and find a hill and that says a lot for someone that has avoided hills her whole life! Come to think of it, I won’t have to look very hard, I have actually just moved to a new house and there is a big one that sadly I have not been brave enough to attempt yet. I think staying with yourself and with your breath, will result in just about everything being a godly experience. For how we move and breath is the key to returning to true quality.

    Reply
    • Michael Chater says: December 6, 2017 at 8:17 am

      Great point Sarah and it is lovely when this is felt in your body. I recently experienced a situation when I noticed my breathing had changed and it was from a feeling in my body rather than a thought in my head. The instruction then came from my body to restore my natural breath – felt so lovely.

      Reply
  • Meg says: December 4, 2017 at 4:18 pm

    A big part of being able to live life to it’s full potential is down to how we have prepared ourselves and our bodies so that we are ready for whatever is in front of us – whether it be a hill, or a challenge, or whatever it may be. If we’ve prepared and we’ve built an inner and outer strength then life is super simple.

    Reply
  • kev mchardy says: December 4, 2017 at 4:18 pm

    Just one more thing to thank Serge Benhayon for as before SB, I would checkout totally when I had a strenuous physical task to complete, thinking that this was the way to get through it. Now though I can enjoy the same tasks by actually connecting to my body and being present with the task.

    Reply
  • Stefanie Henn says: December 2, 2017 at 9:31 pm

    Movement in presence , being connected to the all is an absolute body experience and supports back to the true power that is within us. No surprise there are so many modalities, that bastardise true movement in form of hardness and speed and any kind of extremes.
    The fitness industry, to call only one, works with optimising, shaping, achieving which gives that false strength and self confidence in the body. I used to go this path and I can share here now -my body being moved in a true way is much more vital, emanating, strong and sexy than every before. And the only sport I practise are walks in conscious presence.

    Reply
  • Stefanie Henn says: December 2, 2017 at 9:10 pm

    It is never about reaching a certain point or destination- if you make it how far or high I walked for example you are connected to time instead of space. Moving in space, like you describe is pure magic. The judgement of how far we come needs to be knocked out, as it is always about quality and not quantity if you are moving in space, which is the realm we are living in. So why not connect to it 🙂

    Reply
  • Francisco Clara says: December 2, 2017 at 6:36 am

    When we walk our bodies and not just our heads we can access levels of vitality and joy we never knew where there, this is a simple yet super powerful way of knowing who we truly are.

    Reply
  • Joseph Barker says: December 2, 2017 at 6:27 am

    Like a secret gear you unlock, love changes the way we move and things flow. I have seen every hill of life as another unfortunate obstacle but today after reading your words Kim I am sensing that each dip and bump is a chance for us to choose Love. No matter what the situation, we can bring true care and understanding, not to mention sacredness and stillness. When we see life like this, hills become great gifts.

    Reply
  • Janet says: December 1, 2017 at 6:46 pm

    I love this, Kim – “Life becomes about movement, joy and making love.” What a beautiful way to live…

    Reply
  • Danna Elmalah says: December 1, 2017 at 6:42 am

    Beautiful real blog — sharing the science of energy in this instance on hills (nature). Which is offering us a pull up to see and feel more than our eyes can see. Stop playing limited video games and actually extend our view to see what is beyond what our eyes can see. That is truth and that to our body is absolute love.

    Reply
  • Gill Randall says: November 30, 2017 at 3:55 pm

    I am discovering how our movements can expand us when we move in a harmony and flow with the body, instead of a push and rush. Walking in hills made you more aware Kim, and we can feel that in every very small movement too throughout the day too when we observe this.

    Reply
  • Michael Goodhart says: November 30, 2017 at 12:19 pm

    Reading this blog made me feel how we turn many situations and issues in our life into giant hills of struggle when they could quite easily be made into a flowing smooth rhythm when we stay connected with our bodies while moving. It’s living in our heads that makes things feel difficult, bogged down, and draining.

    Reply
  • Kelly Zarb says: November 30, 2017 at 7:36 am

    “When we are connected within to the light of our Soul/God/the Universe, we are expanded.” Beautiful Kim thank you as we expand from within we also get to feel our every movement and learn to surrender to its joy and move with ease and clarity which helps us to not only support ourselves throughout our days but also be more aware of our surroundings too.

    Reply
  • Lucy Dahill says: November 29, 2017 at 5:04 am

    Oh how I am pleased your blog found me this morning 🙂 I could feel myself walking the hill with you, recalling the very physical memory of the many times I have walked up and down steep hills and remembering the different experiences in my body. I can see how this translates to life, how we can be drained when we over-reach, over-work and yet how there is an enormous capacity for work when it is in service to others, from a glass that is full and connected to a source that does not deplete.

    Reply
  • Toni Steenson says: November 29, 2017 at 5:01 am

    It is really that simple, feeling our every movement in our body. Such expansion, such delicacy, fragility and power…..

    Reply
  • Susan Green says: November 28, 2017 at 11:06 pm

    I love walking, but recently, I realised how much I love walking with another person and talking about the things that I have observed and learnt during that week. The walk was not just about walking or just being with me, it was about connecting with another person, sharing, evolving and bringing in the bigger picture.

    Reply
  • Tricia Nicholson says: November 28, 2017 at 7:30 am

    The love and joy of our movement you share here is so beautiful to feel in the deep connection and presence of truly walking with the light of our soul. A real inspiration to be very aware of the quality of our every movement.

    Reply
  • Vanessa says: November 28, 2017 at 3:22 am

    Love how you share your relationship with love through the Movement of walking.

    Reply
  • Sandra Vicary says: November 27, 2017 at 7:44 am

    I have a very steep hill near my house that I love to climb. I always take it gently, but it is a great marker that shows me very quickly how much I have taken care of my body or where I have let my rhythm slip since I last climbed it.

    Reply
  • Carolien says: November 26, 2017 at 6:37 pm

    I love exploring my movements these days and how there are different ways to move. To be very aware and present and playful in allowing my body to find its own true way of moving. Nothing to do, no trying but surrendering within myself and my body, allowing for an amazing quality of ease, flow and lightness to come through.

    Reply
  • Carolien says: November 26, 2017 at 6:33 pm

    a beautiful testimony to the power of movement when we are aligned to our essence and thus moved by our soul.

    Reply
  • Lucinda Bathust says: November 26, 2017 at 5:40 pm

    The hill is a beautiful analogy for life Kim, how quick we are to project an image of it being hard, yet if we stay with our connection and movements we can enjoy the space and appreciate the opportunities we are offered by every situation.

    Reply
  • Elaine Arthey says: November 25, 2017 at 6:19 pm

    From the age of four I was brought up in a village that was built around a river with a hill on either side. To walk to the village shops, we had to walk down the hill and then back up to get home again. What was so lovely was that this journey to the shops, or to the church on top of the hill on the other side, was always taken gently. The whole atmosphere of the village was laid back and everyone wanted to share their gardens and have a few words. Perhaps this is partly why I have always loved hills and climbing them, taking it slowly and pacing myself and taking in all that I can and appreciating so much as I go.

    Reply
  • Alexis Stewart says: November 21, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    Today, as I was walking up a hill, I felt myself tiring and starting to feel rather negative at the prospect of getting up the rest of the hill. I consciously relaxed my belly, which is the area of the body that is associated with acceptance and found that my irritation dissolved and I actually relaxed into walking up the remainder of the hill.

    Reply
  • Chan Ly says: November 14, 2017 at 7:41 pm

    When we apply love to life and to every step we take, then no hill is too steep for our love filled body.

    Reply
  • Gill Randall says: November 13, 2017 at 6:46 pm

    The body lets us know when we are walking or living without connection to do, and the learning to listen to it is key to the rhythm in our life. So you get a constant reminder, living near your hill as feedback..good choice.

    Reply
  • Melinda Knights says: November 13, 2017 at 2:08 pm

    Thank you Kim, we are taught to give dominance to the mind, as you have experienced the true joy comes from being with the whole body. It’s a new concept to understand that the whole body has an intelligence, and also that by virtue of its particles it’s connected to the whole Universe. Suddenly the mind is looking very small!

    Reply
  • Kev says: November 11, 2017 at 3:18 pm

    I love this blog it can be applied to everything we do in life, let love reign by committing to stay connected to who we truly are.

    Reply
  • Adele Leung says: November 10, 2017 at 9:15 am

    When we feel our movements are in rhythm with God there is so much joy and lightness and that is actually our natural in life.

    Reply
  • Irena Haze says: November 6, 2017 at 6:03 am

    “It all seemed such a push and drive, with a lot of pain, without much to truly gain at the end of it, except perhaps the initial high of achievement and an inflated sense of self to make up for a deep-seated lack of self-worth that is not being addressed. Climbing hills seemed to me to be clearly about ‘proving’ something.” I see this as a metaphor for many areas of our life.

    Reply
  • Monika Rietveld says: November 3, 2017 at 7:53 pm

    Opening up to our environment, to the world around and within us – to the undeniable Oneness with God is like a healing for every cell in the body. The cells become alive and align to the whole and its divine rhythm. All we have to do is surrender and accept this grandness in full.

    Reply
    • Lucy Dahill says: November 29, 2017 at 5:06 am

      Yes Monika, this grandness that we are part of, that we come from whether we choose to consciously feel it or not! I often ask myself what I am expanding in this communal body and if it is respectful of the other occupants.

      Reply
    • Lucy Dahill says: November 29, 2017 at 5:13 am

      Yes to accept the grandness we are from. What I love is that tension that shares when we are not aligned, when it is giving us a small reminder that we have taken a wander but our essence, the grandness our essence is from is calling us home.

      Reply
  • Carola Woods says: November 3, 2017 at 7:18 am

    So gorgeously shared Kim. Making love with our every breath, our every move is precisely what we are here for. To magnify the light of God, which is who we are, in all we do… truly there can be nothing more Heavenly for us to be part of.

    Reply
    • Irena Haze says: November 6, 2017 at 6:06 am

      This feels courageous to attempt, and yet it is our natural given birthright.

      Reply
  • Monika Rietveld says: November 2, 2017 at 9:58 pm

    ‘it’s impossible to get tired from love’. But saying no to love, to the universe and God is very very tiring.

    Reply
  • Amparo Lorente Cháfer says: November 2, 2017 at 3:17 pm

    Whatever exercise we practise in connection to our body and soul is pure joy and always there is so much awareness on offer to us in that. I experience then, an absence of effort as well as a deep understanding of every of my movements, and this is an expanding experience worth to be felt.

    Reply
  • Willem Plandsoen says: November 2, 2017 at 4:05 am

    When we live on love it is impossible to get tired, what an insight. Another one: when we live on love, we need far less food.

    Reply
  • Samantha Davidson says: November 1, 2017 at 7:41 am

    I had this experience walking up a hill once, when I realised I was in the universe and there was not really up or down and it was my perception, as well as my legs that was influencing my experience of ascent. When I surrendered more to working with the universe my walk became much lighter.

    Reply
  • Suse says: October 31, 2017 at 5:47 am

    That makes absolute sense Kim and is quite symbolic of life really, for when we walk through our daily life at a pace that keeps us connected to ourselves we are far more aware of and accepting of the world around us – as opposed to when we rush, we can often see the outside world as an imposition.

    Reply
  • Shirley-Ann Walters says: October 30, 2017 at 8:20 pm

    So true we can’t get tired of love, we can only avoid it by saying yes to things that are not loving. Love has a flow and an energy that we can just keep on going with.

    Reply
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