After walking to and from work for 5 years along the same route, I found that I prefer walking without listening to anything on headphones.
Just thinking increases awareness of my surroundings, allows me time to process existing thoughts as opposed to consuming more inputs, and connects me to the people I would inevitably see on a semi-regular basis.
Personally, I have found that 1 hour + is a good threshold to aim for for some really quality thinking. After about an hour I've already processed normal stuff about family or work and have moved on to deeper topics.
Just thinking increases awareness of my surroundings, allows me time to process existing thoughts as opposed to consuming more inputs, and connects me to the people I would inevitably see on a semi-regular basis.
Personally, I have found that 1 hour + is a good threshold to aim for for some really quality thinking. After about an hour I've already processed normal stuff about family or work and have moved on to deeper topics.