Why walking is good for you -- Walking out of Africa -- How to walk : the mechanics -- How to walk : where are you going? -- Walking the city -- A balm for body and brain -- Creative walking -- Social walking

"Walking upright on two feet is a uniquely human skill. It enabled us to walk out of Africa and to spread as far as Alaska and Australia. Every day, we put one foot in front of the other-yet how many of us know how we do that, or appreciate the advantages it gives us? In this book, neuroscientist Shane O'Mara invites us to marvel at the benefits walking confers on our bodies and brains. From walking's evolutionary origins, traced back millions of years to the ocean floor, to new findings from cutting-edge research, O'Mara reveals how the brain and nervous system give us the ability to balance, weave through a crowded city, and run our "inner GPS" system, and how walking, in turn, spurs our imaginations. In Praise of Walking illuminates the joys, health benefits, and mechanics of walking-and reminds us to get out of our chairs and discover a happier, healthier, more creative self"--