How it Started
First hike:
- 16.5 mile loop
- Moderate difficulty
- 1340 ft elevation
- Finished in 7.5 hours
This was the first exercise I'd had in about 3 years. We've been living on a tiny island in the Pacific doing nothing more than riding my bike to work 10 minutes each direction on flat ground. I have a desk job and I was NOT in shape.
The goal is to get into better shape gradually so that I don't die on the Appalachian Trail. This is the first hike my husband decided to drag me on.
I made it. Barely.
I didn't eat enough food to fuel myself and I drug my butt over the last few miles until we started going downhill gain.
Seriously, this should not have been my first hike.
It probably took me 4 days of hot tub time, ibuprofen, ice, and stretching before I could walk around the house without gimping.
Second hike:
- Backpacking trip out and back 9 miles (18 miles total)
- Moderate difficulty
- 1650 ft elevation
- Finished in 4.5 hours each day
- Pack weight 32 pounds
I did pretty good on this one. It's the first time I've carried a full pack in 20 years.
The major improvement was that we got ourselves a set of trekking poles. What a life saver. It helps so much, especially on the uphills.
I made sure to eat every hour or so so I was fully fueled this time, along with plenty of electrolytes and water. We also added a recovery drink at the end of the hike. This facilitates healing. 4:1 ratio of carbs to protein and a dash of caffeine as well.
Still, very sore for about 3 days.
Third hike:
- Day hike 6 miles out and back (12 miles total)
- Moderate difficulty
- 1340 ft elevation
- Finished in 6 hours
This seemed like a piece of cake compared to the last time with the trekking poles and proper nutrition.
I made sure to add some stretching when we rested and decided I REALLY don't like eating as I'm trying gasping for breath on the uphills nor do I enjoy a full lunch. I'd rather just wait until I'm done to eat. This started my search for liquid calories vs solids. More to follow on that.
Fourth hike:
- Backpacking trip out and back 8 miles (16 miles total)
- Moderate difficulty
- 1750 ft elevation
- Finished in 4 hours each day
- Pack weight 30 pounds
Vastly improved performance on this hike. It was dry this time so actually pretty pleasant.
I did not have to take ibuprofen after this trip, I had started doing Pliability and did it again the day after for some really deep stretching. A little twinge of soreness in my legs but that's to be expected, especially considering this was the steepest trail we've done so far.
So, that's the beginning of my hiking career. 62.5 miles so far, only 2110 more to go if I was on the AT.
Next up....Hiking is an Endurance Event
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