One week left

Training is stopping pretty much as of yesterday. I walked 23.31 km in 5 hours, to and from the new house. I was exhausted by the end of it, and had a pretty dark tan despite the sunscreen. It wasn't until the next morning that I was really feeling it.

And, oh, boy, do I hurt right now. I guess I know what to expect next weekend now: pain in my gluts, back, ribs, spine, shins and knees. My feet are miraculously fine, thanks to double-layer frictionless socks and my New Balance shoes.

Meanwhile, a shout out to the community of Kensington Market and patrons of CAAM United Hardware. They helped me raise $255.58 for the Weekend to End Breast Cancer! Thank you everyone in the market!

30 km might be easier if there was lots of shopping on the way...

Since I've been sick with laryngitis, I haven't been able to do my usual workout, but I got back into training for the big Weekend to End Breast Cancer walk today, and boy howdy, gravity and my weak stomach were really trying to take me out. Did 14.31 km in about 5 hours (with lots of shopping and a couple of quick bathroom stops.)

Found that the khaki shorts I was wearing--casual things I got at Bluenotes--were a little too long and didn't give me much in the way of comfort for a walk this "intense". So I stopped at Old Navy and picked up a pair of teeny-tiny running shorts for, like $7.25 (they had a 50% off summer hot picks sale. Woot!) I even got the matching running bra top so that I'll be forced to work off some of my gut before I can wear it in public...which will likely be never.

A lot of people don't really understand why I'm training the way I am. They don't have a concept of what 30 km is to walk.

Well, here are some examples of 30 km walks, mapped out via Google Earth:

• If you started at Exhibition Place and headed north via the most direct street route, you could walk to Vaughn Mills/Wonderland in 30 km.
• If you started at the bottom of Yonge Street and kept heading north, after 30 km you'd be in Richmond Hill, just north of Gamble Rd./19th Ave.
• If you were to drive 30 km on the 401, you could start at Yonge and 401 and end up at Brock Road in Pickering.
• If you were to travel 30 km on the TTC Bloor/Danforth subway line, you could start at Kipling station, ride all the way to Kennedy station, and continue on the Scarborough LRT to Ellesmere station.

So yeah. I'm training. Good thing shopping is a good incentive for all this exercise.

OW...

Did the dreaded walk from work to home today.
That's roughly Don Mills/401 to Christie/Dupont.
Mapped out my walk on mapmyrun.com:

I walked a total of 16.86 km in 4.5 hours (including rest stops).

And now I know: no matter what gear you have, after a certain point, it doesn't matter. You're still fighting gravity and your own (i.e. my own) decrepit body.

You win again, gravity. Curse you, decrepit body.

Save me, ibuprofen, save me!

Right Gear, Wrong Body

Walked about 11.5km today around the city. Had my new shoes, a new jacket, my yoga/running pants, workout T-shirt, cap, backpack, bottle of water, and two granola bars. Temperature hovered around 14 Celcius today; bright sun and a medium breeze kept me alternately warm and cool.

Made it to my halfway mark at the Eaton Centre for my break. And then my bowels rebelled. I cramped up and nearly didn't make it to the washroom, where I proceeded to break out into a cold sweat as agony seized my abdomen.

I figure it was the sudden change in temperature that did it. Or possibly the six or so kilometers I'd briskly walked. It wasn't until later that I clued into the Raisin Bran I had for breakfast. Of course, as I was eating it, knowing I'd be training later, I knew it was a bad idea. And yet, I just kept on eating it....

Took a long while to rest, continued on with some stomach squelching. Hadn't eaten lunch, I realized about halfway in, but since dinner last night was so big, I didn't think I'd need it. Changed my mind about three kilometres from home and ate a stuffed grape leaf.

By the end, I was tired and headachy (from cold wind blowing through my ears), and my feet felt like pancakes, but I know it's barely a fraction of the total distance I'm going to have to walk in September.

Note to self: no Raisin Bran before the walk.

WEBC Walking Update

Walked home from Pape Station today, which amounted to just a bit over 7 km in my effort to train for the WEBC. I haven't decided if my running shoes are the right ones to wear yet, though. They served me fairly well in Vegas walking up and down the strip, but I feel like I need more spring in my step. Maybe a few extra insoles will help.

Got my first call from my walking coach today, and received a package from the WEBC people with a pair of pink retractable earbuds I can use to listen to podcasts with. Pretty nifty.

Thanks to a lot of generous donors, I'm up to 62% of my fundraising goal, but I want to raise as much as I can. I've been toying with the idea of getting some custom magnetic poetry made up with romance words to build Harlequin Presents-esque titles. The only problem is that the minimum order would be, like, 500. I don't think I can sell that many...or have the funds to cover that amount. I could use some of them to give away as gifts/promos, etc. But I'm not certain this is the way to go.

Thoughts? Suggestions?