Whether it’s Victoriana, bootcut jeans, or the bob, things often go in and out of style. That is part of the cycle of fashions, but one of the latest trends to be making a comeback is one that may make some of us feel old and others breathe a sigh of relief.
Dubbed ‘silent walking’, Gen Zers are taking to TikTok to express the roller-coaster ride that going for a walk without taking any technological devices with them has been… Basically, the way most people walked for millennia until the advent of the boombox in 1975 or, even more revolutionary, the Walkman in 1979.
The trend seems to have begun with podcaster Mady Maio, who spoke about how her boyfriend challenged her to just go for a walk and leave all the things that would normally distract her from her walk, like her AirPods and iPhone, behind.
Understandably, she says that, at first, the experience was absolute ‘mayhem’ as the lack of music and podcasts was making her feel anxious. Then, after a few minutes, she got into a ‘flow state’ and realised that she could finally hear her own thoughts, be with herself, and actually take in what was around her.
All this may sound funny to those who remember the days before portable electronics, but the reality is that these days we are rarely away from some stimulus that boxes us in. In fact, this latest trend is nothing more than the continuation of the movement that’s looking to spend more time in the here and now, with people opting to stay off their phones during meals and ridding their bedrooms of any electronics.
From our end, we’re not entirely sure we’re ready for it, but there’s only one way to find out!
