So I've discovered a gorgeous 4 mile walk (4.5 if I take a pretty little detour). Lately its all I want to do! I walked it TWICE (6am-ish then 6pm-ish) yesterday, with my 1 mile walk to/from work, that was ten miles walked! Early this morning I didn't feel like lifting but I DID feel like doing the walk AGAIN! (I'll lift weights after work today). So I've walked 15 miles in the last 36 hours.
The thing is, I'm a little ashamed when I see runners on the walk ... I feel like I should be running instead! But, I hate running for distance. I like doing HIIT on the treadmill and Zumba, but steady-state running is awful. Plus, whenever I run outside I feel like I'm not being fair to my VERY high-energy dog. She loves these walks. If I tried to run with her, she'd probably trip me up and kill me haha.
Anyways, am I a weirdo if some days (e.g. non-Zumba days) I'm walking 10 miles??? Why do I feel ashamed about walking versus running?
Walking is a perfectly acceptable exercise - one you can do your whole life. NO REASON to run. You just burn more calories faster, but if you have the time, walk the same distance and you're good to go for a nice work-out!
I just walked 4 miles yesterday - in under 15 minutes each of them. I had my heart rate monitor on and it was a great aerobic exercise. Sure, it took me an hour whereas running would be over with faster, but who needs faster?
It's not at all unusual for me to walk 10 miles or more in a day. It's actually pretty rare these days for me to not walk at least 3-5 daily. But maybe I'm sort of the opposite from you--I enjoy a good run when I'm in the mood for it, but I don't enjoy very fast walking! So I consider walking to be "extra, non-exercise activity" for me, because I don't make it strenuous enough to be cardio exercise.
I love walking too. I listen to audiobooks on my Ipod and enjoy being outside. I hate that it's getting dark earlier now, because it means that soon I won't have time to walk after work.
My main exercise for the last 2 weeks has been walking! I average about 5-6 miles for 4-5 days of the week. On the other days it's more like 2-3 miles.
Luckily I live in Sydney in the city so it's amazingly walkable here and the weather has been beautiful so I walk everywhere (plus I have a bit of a driving phobia). Also I've been busy discovering nooks and crannies that I've never noticed before including a gorgeous harbourside walking path by the water which is a lovely 5.2 mile walk if I walk it back and forth from home. The photo below is one I took during that walk!
Thanks everyone! Since my lovely walk brings me by an amazing little bakery in Georgetown, and I'm flying to Nashville to see my sister's family tonight, I picked up Pumpkin Ginger bread for my BIL and home-made breakfast bars for my 2 year old niece! I'm excited!
I think I'm obsessed with WALKING!
