I’ve been injured and sedentary too long. A couple of weeks ago I started walking along the bus route until it hurt too much, then hobbled onto a bus back home.
Today I made that distance and back with low/manageable pain.
Next time the same route will be less pain, and soon I’ll try going as far as I can in the other direction and bus back again.
Keep it up. And just remember to feel your pain. If you mask it you can’t trust your body to prevent making it worse.
I’ve spent some time with long distance hikers, and not one of them was pain free. Some quit due to pain, and others walked through it. Some got worse and some got better. After 5 months, everybody at the end was in pain, but we were also still walking 25 miles per day. For me, each morning putting weight on my feet felt like I was crushing every bone in my foot. I hobbled around through coffee and breakfast and packing up. After about 20-30 minutes of walking the pain was gone. After the trail, my feet hurt every morning for about 2 to 3 weeks. But without a mile to walk it off, they would hurt for a couple hours at work. Eventually it faded away.
Anyway sometimes pain is there to tell you not to do something. And other times it’s just there to tell you to be mindful and gentle. It takes practice to discern the difference.
Thank you! Yeah, today was harder, pain wise… but I probably err on the side of caution. Like I’ll stop when the pain makes me walk funny, only limping and shuffling instead of taking steps.
But that sounds like just getting warmed up for you haha! 5 months hiking, at once? It’s a full on lifestyle at that point. Incredibly impressive, truly.
It was a lifestyle and it feels like a dream or a different lifetime. I don’t feel like that person anymore but I do have all the memories!
Today I’m lucky if I log 7,000 steps on my pedometer (3 miles, or one hour).
I’m convinced walking is the most sustainable fitness activity there is. Almost everything else trends toward injury, but walking is the first real physical feat any of us accomplished. Walking is the only activity that can be done for nearly every waking hour in a day. You can even eat while walking (though it’s not very enjoyable).
The other thing most people don’t consider is that walking is a form of meditation. Especially strenuous walking when you get your breathing consciously synced with your steps.
You also might look into Tai Chi walking. Basically super slo-mo balanced walking. It strengthens all of your walking muscles without all the hassle of going on a walk.
7000 steps is really good though! Even if it doesn’t seem like a lot compared to the extreme walking you used to do, it’s good.
Yes, to my understanding humans evolved for long distance walking and running, not for sitting. Which sucks, because I love sitting almost as much as I love lying down, haha.
I looked into tai chi walking, thanks for the tip! I’ll probably not attempt it as a routine, but I think walking slower is better for my pain and I can perhaps try to do the slow balancing steps for a short portion of my walks.