I Am Not a Sloth!

And My Toenails are Not This Long

As my friend Tammy puts it, Sloths are so cute!! Thanks Tammy, for your input into my blog. But I am not a sloth, therefore I will be doing my exercises before I start the trail.

Here is the bad news: I have bad foot pain that gets worse when I walk on pavement. All summer long I walked around my neighborhood without a pack on, and got a lot of exercise that way.

 

Recently though, I haven't been able to get out and really walk because of the pain. So, Backpacker magazine to the rescue!  The recent edition (March 2015) included an article on pre-season training on page 36. Yeah!!! Just what I need. The magazine has a 9 week training schedule for strength training, endurance, and increased intensity. I have already started, and it is whipping me into shape. The day after I did the exercises for the first time, I hurt so bad it wasn't funny. I am still hanging in there and can really feel the results.

 

I didn't realize how out of strength my legs had actually become. Some hikers are able to train and get into shape while thru hiking, but I am not 20 something anymore. I am feeling great while losing weight and gaining muscle and strength before I hit the trail. I sure don't want to spend the first 9 weeks on the trail getting back into shape!

 

My exercise routine includes stepping up onto a stool that is 16" high and back down again with a 20lb. pack on. Easy, right? Not so much when you do it for 15 minutes without stopping. Then comes the Lunges, also with my pack on, round and round the yard, also for 15 minutes. By this time, my legs are screaming at the top of their little leg lungs to stop. Then I go right into Band walks, which is a resistance band wrapped around my legs, and I walk with that for 15 minutes. Very small breaks in between. Then I finish up with a leg curl, raising my body of the floor and back down for 15 minutes. This is what I am doing for the first 3 weeks, 3 times a week. It is called Strength training. Then I will add Endurance by walking for 45 minutes at moderate intensity 1 day a week. After 2 weeks of that, I add Intensity training where I will increase my walking to 1.5 to 2 hours 1 day a week and add 1 day of high intensity walking (speed walking) with less weight on my back.

 

How will I handle the pain in my feet when I take up walking again, you might ask. I seem to have the foot pain down to just a couple of sore spots now (see previous post on Those Barking Dogs). Taping my feet has been very beneficial, and I will continue that practice on the trail as long as it works. I also have new orthotics now, and they also are helping big time. So little by little I am finding what works and getting my exercising in.

 

So that is my exercise routine and plan; and I'm sticking to it!

 

 

A brief note on our balance beams: Lego and I had installed a couple of balance beams in our backyard for practicing log crossings before our 2013 hike. I am not so secure when it comes to walking on logs over raging water.

 

After his heart attack and the possibilities of thru hiking were growing dim, we took them out and haven't set them up again. I found they only helped minimally, as the real problem with log crossings is that when my eyes see the rushing water, I tend to develop a case of vertigo. So without the rushing water visual, the balance beams were rather useless for me.

I Hate Log Crossings