Oh too often I cringe as I see people falling forward as they walk up the hills in my neighborhood. Silverlake is hilly territory, which makes for great
cardiovascular workouts but wreaks havoc on your body when you rely on your own gravity to get you up and down the hill, versus, having good posture and using your
muscles to move you.

Here are some tips for better posture. First, start by making sure you are balanced correctly over your feet. Your weight should be centered over the balls of your
feet. Your heels should be pressing down, but your weight should be forward and up. Second, draw your belly button in towards the spine and up towards the crown of
your head. As you are walking pay attention that your spine stays lifted (vs. collapsed) and stacked over your feet (vs. pulling you forwards or backwards). Next,
as you are walking, your heel should come in contact with the ground first. As it touches the ground, you want to engage the muscle in the back of the leg way up
high at the crease where your leg connects into your buttock. As you roll forward through your foot, the muscles should sequentially engage down the back of your
leg. MAKE SURE to keep your knees soft. As you push off your toe your knee should freely swing forward, and the cycle repeats itself.

While paying attention to your walking form is mentally tiresome and awkward in the beginning, you may notice that you are less winded and can walk farther. Your
muscles will also feel more worked out but you should move in your body more easily.

A good Pilates exercise to do after your walk is The Wall.