Day three of getting outdoors and today I had to wait for a moment between the heavy rain, hail storm and strong winds to force myself to leave the confines of my house. Well technically I had been outside as first thing this morning I went out to sort the bunnies out, I’d also put the rubbish out in the wheelie bins and opened the front door to the postie – but we all know none of those things count in my #getoutdoors year.
Anyway, I did go for a walk this afternoon, and I was out a whole hour without getting rained on, pretty good timing I reckon. I went up into the village (which is quite a steep hill), round a bit, and then back home – total of a smidgen over four miles.
I managed the four miles in just under an hour. RunKeeper, which I have used for at least a couple of years now to track any “on purpose” and “for exercise” activities like running, cycling and walking, tells me I had an average pace of 14:44 minute miles, and an average speed of 4.06mph (and a climb of 239 feet). I can tell you with absolute certainty that was as fast as I could go. I can also tell you I couldn’t have kept that pace up for many more miles.
The enormity of the 26 x 14 minute miles the MoonWalk challenge requires has hit me. I’m looking at 4.3 miles an hour, or approximately 150 steps a minute. I’m nowhere near. Speed or stamina. And I have 18 weeks to go.
And the MoonWalk isn’t my only challenge this year. Actually it’s not my only challenge in May. I’ve also said I’ll give the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge a go just one week after the MoonWalk. Possibly one of the most nuts decisions I’ve made (especially as the MoonWalk recommends no strenuous exercise for two weeks after the event), but I really want to do it and as I have an opportunity to do it with family and friends, I couldn’t say no. Not quite so much pressure because it’s not for charity, but 26 miles of Yorkshire terrain in 12 hours will be no easy task either.
So, here’s a blogger at the start of their training for two quite different walking events, already really worried about what they’ve agreed to. I will do them. I will complete them both. I am quite confident of that. But I am hoping I will be at a level of fitness (physical and mental) that will mean I am able to enjoy them rather than just manage.
I’m not starting from the beginning because I’ve done things like these before, such as the Spires and Steeples Challenge and other hikes, walks and runs, but I’m not very fit at the moment. And I’m not in any routine either. My plan is to walk and cycle as much as I can fit in during the working week, and then do some walks at the weekend. I have a training plan from the MoonWalk organisers which I will do my best to follow (hoping that will also help me prepare for the Three Peaks too), but proper plans like that don’t seem to fit in with a busy schedule like mine.
Any advice for a blogger who kind of knows what she’s doing but is struggling to see how she can get from this point to successfully completing both challenges in May? How about this “always making excuses” head of mine? What is the best way for me to get into a routine of focussed training, especially when I get home from work and the weather is like it’s been today? Is the gym the answer? Feel free to comment below!
Oh, and if you’re feeling generous and would like to sponsor me to do the Walk the Walk London MoonWalk (which may well help motivate my training!!) please visit my fundraising page. Thank you.
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[…] this week I wrote about how I was finding the idea of training for the MoonWalk quite daunting. I was worried about how I was going to get into a routine, how I was going to find time to train […]