8 Miles
8 miles.
I remember the first time I ever walked 8 miles. It was a major milestone.
I was training for my first half marathon in 1999 with Team in Training. Walking that 8 miles was SO hard! I was exhausted – both mentally and physically. It was physically the hardest thing I had ever done. I might have even needed a nap that day. I didn’t know a lot of people who could walk that far, so I was very excited to say I walked 8 whole miles!
As I continued to train, the longest days on my training schedule increased up to 10 or 11 miles, and then we tapered to 8 miles again. That second time doing 8 miles was relatively easy. I was surprised that I would ever consider walking 8 miles to be easy.
Over the years, training for a couple of full marathons and more than 30 half marathons, 8 miles has been my fitness barometer.
When publishing WALK! Magazine took away from my training, 8 miles was grueling! But after the magazine folded and I had more time, I entered six half marathons in one year. During that year I walked so much, 8 miles was barely a blip on my radar.
Needless to say, when training was going well, and the 8 was no big deal, I did extremely well in races. Though most of it was being physically ready for the race, it was also mental. In my mind that 8 miles meant “I’ve got this.”
By the same token, when 8 miles was rough, I typically ended up making the next race a “fun” race with the goal of simply finishing.
Right now I’m in the middle of an “overuse” situation and in recovery. (Not really an injury.) My physical therapist is recommending I walk no farther than 4 miles at a time, no more than 3-4 days a week until we figure things out.
Believe it or not, some days I’m not up for walking 4 miles. Because I’m doing some new exercises, my legs are tired in new ways making the thought of walking exhausting! Though I’m not doing speed training, some days I do find myself going fast enough I need slow down to avoid more overuse.
As I watch my friends building their mileage for their next big races, I try to be patient. If I keep doing the work, in no time at all I’ll be walking distance again.
And when I’m finally given the go ahead, I know the first time I can do 8 miles again will be fantastic!
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What walking milestone had a lasting impact on you?
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Comments
Relatively new to walking as an exercise activity. In May of 2014 I got a Fitbit pedometer and started walking. First few weeks I averaged distances of 4 miles and then jumped to a 9.38 mile day and didn’t feel too bad afterwards. Two days ago I felt good on my walk and ended up with a daily high of 12.6 miles. I have a job where I can easily get 3-5 miles per day and after work there is a 1.5 mile loop on campus that I can walk several times around to get more miles with more intensity. My motivation comes from friendly competition with someone I work with and seeing the results of walking for fitness. I never gave marathons much of a thought since I’m not a runner but the idea of walking one may be a nice challenge. Found your blog from a link referencing Walk magazine.
Walking my first marathon for a milestone birthday made me feel invincible! I was also in the best shape of my life afterward. If a full marathon seems too much, try a half marathon first. I can almost guarantee after one you’ll be hooked.