Unable to walk with the Buckeye Striders yesterday because of a funeral, I decided to head to Sharon Woods today. I arrived at the park at about 8:30. It was an absolutely beautiful morning! The sun was shining, there was a light breeze and tons of wild flowers were blooming everywhere. I was immediately happy I made the decision to drive to that park for this morning’s walk.

Because I have been feeling burned out lately, it was nice to feel excited to be at the park.

The tiredness is back. A couple of weeks ago I was having difficulty with the first two miles of most walks. After I passed the one-mile mark, I pretty much warmed up and felt great. Today that didn’t happen. I felt tired the entire four miles.

Though I thought I was pushing hard, that first mile was slower than 15:30! The second and third miles were not much better. The last mile was closer to only 15 min. My legs felt tired the entire distance.

There are two things that I think contribute to the heavy feeling and the slowness. The first is I have not been walking as much as I should. I walked just three days this week. Second, on two days instead of walking outside, I rode my antique exercise bike. Riding that bike exhausts my legs in a totally different way. It tends to make walking a few days later a little harder.

So, though I am still feeling burned out, and I wasn’t very fast, I’m glad I went today. It was a beautiful morning to be outside. And I’m confident that if I keep walking when I don’t feel like it, eventually it will be fun for me again.

(381)