2012 Slow Movement Challenge page 30

[kahiba]

Another 8.3km this morning. Autumn is is my favourite time of year for walking. The sting has gone out of the sun and the days are crisp and clear. At least they are where I live. I hope you are all getting the same.

[tim_1522]

Not been a great end to the month of March, but I may as well close it out...

I did get out and do some "fun"/"play"/hobbies that I really enjoy, some of which don't involve much moving. Perhaps I'll call it a prescription of "mental health", though...

Oh, and it's gotten quite a bit hotter out this past week!

Mar 26 - 3.1 miles
Mar 27 - 1.5 miles
Mar 28 - 1.5 miles
Mar 29 - 1.0 miles
Mar 30 - 2.0 miles
Mar 31 - 0.5 miles

YTD -- 207.2 miles (333.5K)

With roughly 1/4 of the year gone, I'm more or less on pace to do 1334K for the year.

[cantare]

True to its name, March has been a good month for walking!

After doing some flat neighborhood walks the first part of the month, I became intrigued with the concepts of IF and prolonged exercising on an empty stomach in hopes of maximizing fat metabolism. With the advantage of the extra hour of light from DST, I got kinda compulsive about hiking Black Mountain. Not much of a mountain to look at--just a bump on a ridge, festooned with radar dishes, but it has great views and is basically the longest sustained climb that's within easy reach & can be done in under 4 hr. So far, so good...calves are bulking up, plantar fasciitis is still there but under control, and after 1 year of LC+primal I've finally reached my first "big" mental goal of 100 lbs lost

I see lots of pretty views and wildlife most evenings, but photos don't always come out well on my smartphone... here's a few decent ones:





Stats for March:

Date miles elev
2-Mar 6.2
3-Mar 6.2
5-Mar 6.1
6-Mar 6.2
7-Mar 5.6 530
8-Mar 6.2
9-Mar 6.0
11-Mar 6.1
12-Mar 9.6 2400
13-Mar 6.2
14-Mar 9.6 2400
16-Mar 6.2
17-Mar 6.1
19-Mar 9.6 2400
20-Mar 9.6 2400
21-Mar 9.6 2400
23-Mar 9.6 2400
24-Mar 6.4
25-Mar 9.6 2400
26-Mar 9.6 2400
27-Mar 6.0
28-Mar 9.6 2400
30-Mar 9.6 2400
31-Mar 9.6 2400

March totals: 185.1 mi (297.9 km) 26930' elev

2012 YTD: 475.6 mi (765.4 km) 52780' elev

[Sigi]

Wow, you guys are all doing well - I'd better pull my socks up! I have no excuses now, the weather is fine, I have plenty of time again ... I'm just a lazy sod who doesn't want to get out of bed in the mornings. I think I'll have to make a habit of going straight out for a walk when I come home from work instead.

YTD total 215.8 km.

[Buzz71]

Hi everyone, sorry for my absence again. A few personal issues to work through unfortunately.

That said Easter looks like a great time to get some walking in. How about I do a full thread update over Easter and post the current totals in the main post then. So if everyone could post their most recent in the next few days I will pull it all together when I get a minute or two over Easter.

For me, my walking has been sporadic ... I need to get back on top of it. One positive, I just needed a headsapce break last Sunday. So I just opened my door, and walked. Randomly. It was great, had no idea where I was at one stage, really enjoyed the freedom. I had my phone with me of course so I could use google maps if I really got lost. Eventually came a cross a street I recognised, navigated my way home.

Runkeeper said I did 11.72km in 1hr 53 mins.

Best walk I ever had.

[Sigi]

Runkeeper said I did 11.72km in 1hr 53 mins.

Best walk I ever had.

Nice!

[Meegeek]

Did not check in for March yet, but as the weather gets nicer, the mileage has been increasing.

Ended the month at 162 km. Catching up slow but sure.

Was thinking of adding some pictures here of my walks too. Thank you Cantare for the additional inspiration.

[kahiba]

What great views Cantare. Makes the walks so much more interesting when you have views like that to keep you company.

I did another 8.5km yesterday. Updated distance in my signature.

[cantare]

Would love to see others' pictures. Also, what motivates you?

Sigi mentioned getting out of bed for early AM walks...which I definitely couldn't do, being a confirmed afternoon/evening person

For 'low-energy' days I used to have a mental pact with myself that I'd put on shoes and walk for 5 minutes, then if I still didn't feel like walking, I'd come back. Invariably I always felt better as soon as I got moving. Not quite as applicable now that I have to drive to a trailhead for most of my walks, but it was key in the beginning. I had a sign on my desk that read, "The hardest part of walking is going out the door."

But probably my biggest inspiration is from audio books. Singing birds and scenic views are nice, but after a few days on the same trail I wind up counting footsteps and focusing on the remaining distance, unless there's something to distract my mind. I've been swept along many miles by historical naval fiction (Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series, Alex Kent's Richard Bolitho novels), mysteries (Agatha Christie, Tana French, Martha Grimes), epic fantasy (CJ Cherryh, Tolkien, Stephen Donaldson, Steven Erikson), and modern fiction (Cormac McCarthy's The Road and Blood Meridian). There's safety to consider, naturally--but I just put in one earbud and leave the other open to listen for traffic, other hikers, swarming bees, mountain lions etc.

[Meegeek]

My motivation is that I like to "live" in my own head and do some clear thinking when I walk. There is something about the mild exertion of walking that helps my mind focus and think through issues, problems, and various scenarios. I like to walk alone really, when I can, but I also enjoy walking with my wife. We just seem to have better conversations when we walk, probably because of the same distraction process mild exertion provides. I do like to use the walking time to catch up on various podcasts that I really enjoy. I used to have a very long commute, but now can walk to work and spend an hour (each way) listening to podcasts or just thinking through things. Preparing for my day on the way in, depressurizing on the way home.