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Week 3: Time to Test Your Rain Gear!

Most recently updated February 6th, 2024

Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes

– – Awesome Training Week 3 got off to a frozen start with a very cold hike on the Loblolly Trail in Umstead State Park on Sunday.

Hikers on a very cold Sunday morning hike!

Temps were in the teens at our normal start time, so I pushed it out to start at 10:30am, so we’d be starting off at least in the 20’s F.

The rest of the week was much warmer and a lot wetter!

What to Wear When It’s Cold AND Rainy

It’s important to wear the right gear when it’s cold outside to keep your body’s core temperature warm. It’s even more important dress protectively when it’s also rainy.

Because there’s nothing worse than being cold AND wet, with 5 miles left to get back to the trailhead 🙁

Clothing and accessories can help conserve body heat to keep your muscles warm, so you feel less stiff. Waterproof clothing keeps the wetness and wind off of your skin to help you preserve that body heat.

Here are some ideas for how to dress when hiking in the cold and rain:

Wear Layers — Your bottom layer should ideally be something thin that is made of synthetic material that is “moisture-wicking.” Over your thin layer, add something heavier that will keep you insulated, like a jacket or fleece.

Water and Wind Proof – Over your wicking and warm layers, wear something water or windproof, like a rain jacket or shell.

If it’s really coming down, I throw a poncho over my pack and all, and put a rainhat on top of the poncho hood. I’m also not above using an umbrella!

Socks, Boots and Gaiters – Keeping your feet dry is always important, and especially challenging in the rain. Waterproof boots, and 2 layers of socks (thin wicking and warmer on top) with maybe a plastic bag in between is how I roll. If necessary, you can wear gaiters.

Cover up vulnerable parts — Your hands, feet, toes, ears and tip of your nose are the parts most vulnerable to cold. This is because your body priorities warming your core, rather than your extremities.

Depending on how cold it is, cover up with a hat, gloves, face mask, scarf or goggles so less skin is exposed.

Protect your skin — Most dermatologists recommend wearing 30 SPF+ if outdoors more than 20-30 minutes, plus lip balm with sunscreen. Don’t forget the sun is out even when it’s raining!

Monday I joined my friend Lenore’s hike exploring a new section of greenway adjacent to the Park.

The new section of the greenway connects to other existing routes.

We followed the paved path to see where it would go, then looped back into Umstead State Park , onto the Loblolly trail and MUT for a total of about 8 miles.

Following the greenway back towards the natural trails in the park.

I hosted a hike the next morning before rain was forecasted to return, on the Company Mill Trail. We went about 6.5 miles.

A few of us got together for an early hike before the rain.

The next day – Wednesday was supposed to be very warm and unexpectedly NOT raining, so I hosted a last-minute 9 mile hike on the Mountains to Sea Trail, at Eno River State Park.

The water was pretty high after all of the recent rain.

The water level in the river was nice and high after all of the recent rain, but the trail was only a little bit muddy.

Thursday was forecasted heavy rain in the afternoon, but it was a warm morning.

So, I did my yoga/Pilates, then invited That Man and the prettiest puppy Colleen out for a walk on the new greenway and Loblolly trail.

We got about 4 miles in before the rain started to roll in. We took that as a cue to go find some lunch on a covered patio 🙂

There’s Rain, and then there’s RAIN

Meteorologists broadly categorize stuff falling from the sky into one of two groups: liquid and frozen.

Liquid precipitation falls to the ground as a liquid (hopefully water). Here’s a quick look at different types:

1. Rain

Our first type of precipitation is one that most people are very familiar with: rain.

Basically, rain is water that falls from the sky when clouds become saturated with droplets of water.

2. Drizzle

You may think the term “drizzle” is simply a colloquial term for light rain.

In fact, a drizzle is technically defined as liquid precipitation where the individual water drops are no larger than about 0.2 to 0.5 millimeters in size.

3. Freezing Rain

Most freezing rain starts its life in the clouds as snow. Then, if the snow hits some warmer air on its way to the ground, the stage is set for freezing rain.

If the layer of sub-freezing air near the ground is small, raindrops won’t have time to refreeze before they hit the ground.

When this happens, the water will freeze on contact with the ground or whatever surface that it hits first, be that your car, the road, or a tree, creating freezing rain – and dangerous black ice!

If you find yourself hiking in freezing rain, beware: the ice that accumulates on trees can cause tree branches to fall, and the trails can become very slick.

4. Freezing Drizzle

The distinction between freezing rain and freezing drizzle is really a matter of size. Freezing drizzle comes from very small droplets of water, like liquid drizzle.

When freezing drizzle happens in parts of the southeastern United States, it wreaks havoc on local highways, causing many car crashes.

So please be careful if you’re driving in these conditions!

5. Slush

Slush is a blend of partially melted snow and rain. This kind of precipitation is usually fairly mushy and rarely freezes when it hits the ground.

Sometimes, slush serves as a transition between snow and rain. For example, if the temperature starts to warm, snow might become rain or vice versa.

Warm weather continued the next day (Friday), and I didn’t have a hike planned.

So I did the yoga/Pilates again, and then That Man and I dug out our bikes for a very early first ride of the season!

We got in about 10 miles – seemingly all uphill – checking out some new routes before calling it a day.

The new greenway section seems to be all uphill!

Saturday the rain forecast turned out to be real, so I did my Pilates routine and some weights in my home gym , and treated it like a rest day.

I ended the week feeling a bit stronger, but a LOT impatient with how long it’s taking to get over my illness from the Holidays. But the only way to get better is to keep going!

Kickboxing in my home gym with my little bro!

Next week’s weather forecast is for a LOT more rain.

But don’t panic!

We’ll find a way to get some exercise and time on the trail anyway, and I guarantee we’ll feel better about everything when it’s done.

NEW: Track Your “Awesome” Progress at Home!

Track your progress towards your fitness goals!

You’ll get instructions and three printable trackers:

- Your Hike Plan Worksheet
- Daily & Weekly Workouts
- Weekly Meals tracker

Click Here to Order!

A download link in your confirmation email let’s you get started right away. Happy training! LJ

The new greenway section goes up and up and up... — The new greenway section goes up and up and up…

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful- or at least amusing! 🙂 To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ

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The Awesome Hike Training, Season 4

Most recently updated January 6th, 2024

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

This is the 4th year in a row that I’ll spend 8 weeks training at the beginning of the year to get in shape for an awesome epic hike later on.

My last year’s training was for an epic 2 weeks of hiking in Greece, specifically hiking Mt Olympus, the Vikos Gorge and all over the island of Corfu.

We took hike breaks in the sea while on Corfu.

The training did it’s job, and I didn’t have any issues with any of the hikes.

At this point, I don’t know yet what hike that will be for me this year. But it’s still a good idea to be ready to hit the trails by Spring time.

Last year, the NC General Assembly) designated 2023 to be “The Year of the Trail” in North Carolina, and if their goal was to promote more use of NC outdoor recreation resources – it was a success!

Last year both local and regional NC trails saw more traffic, especially from beginning hikers.

Now a year later, the trails will likely be even more popular – and populated! – especially in peak times.

Last year's bucket list hike was Mt Olympus in Greece — Last year’s bucket list hike was Mt Olympus in Greece

It’s safe to say the shorter, easier, and easier-to-get-to beginner-level trails will likely be the most crowded.

All the more reason to train up early, so you can tackle the more ambitious trails when the easy ones are crowded!

The “8 Weeks to Awesome” hike training plan will help you do that, and you’ll be in great shape by Spring Break for any hike you want to do 🙂

The Holidays are just now winding down... — The Holidays are just now winding down…

The Holiday season is just now winding down, so this past week I started to focus on getting back to my usual pretty disciplined training routine.

That routine includes several hikes per week, and starting next week I’ll post the training hikes on my hiking Meetup, so you can hike with me!

And of course, there’s weight training and cardio each week, with stretching every day.

Over the next couple of weeks, along with more focused and increased physical training, I’ll also try to clean up my diet.

Over the holidays – which for me was a series of gatherings for the whole month of December and into January – I went kind of overboard with the cheese intake.

Holiday eating caused me to abandon my usual healthy eating habits, so now I’ve got to get strict with myself again.

Because of my asthma, I’ve adopted a “clean” diet ( you can read about my Anti-Asthma Diet here ) that focuses more on protein and veggies, and less on dairy, breads and grains.

Combined with intermittent fasting, this diet works pretty well for just about anyone, whether you’ve got asthma or not!

Luckily, I live within walking distance of a couple of different grocery stores, so for extra exercise I could walk to the store for smaller trips and carry groceries home in my back pack.

I’ve been very sick with chest/sinus congestion during this past Holiday season, and have been pretty much grounded from hiking.

No specific injury, just hard to breathe with all the buckets-o-snot, and very tired….

So this year, I’ll be training back up from the ground along with everybody else! (Please don’t hurt me…)

I made a checklist/tracker to help everyone measure their hike progress, available now on the IRW Merch Shop!

NEW: Track Your “Awesome” Progress at Home!

You’ll get instructions and three printable trackers:

- Your Hike Plan Worksheet
- Daily & Weekly Workouts
- Weekly Meals tracker

Click Here to Order!

A download link in your confirmation email let’s you get started right away. Happy training! LJ

(Or, you could subscribe and download the pdf for FREE here.)

For your amusement and (I hope) to help with motivation, you can follow along with my journey in my weekly Training Logs. I’ll be adding them as I complete each week.

To see logs from this year and years past go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing.

Anyway, gotta go hork up a lung. Thanks for stopping by, see you next time! – LJ

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Week 8: Things Are Looking Up

– – Training Week 8 started Monday with some yoga, and I FINALLY had a chance to get back on my new Vertical Climber for a 35 minute session.

Still just lifting my own body weight, but I’ll see how it goes and probably add some pack weight later in the week.

I finally got some time on my vertical climber!

I hiked up about 2000ft, and I did 3lb weights on each wrist to work my arms and back a little bit harder.

This week I needed to “look up” and focus more on vertical gain training, either with actual uphill hikes, or treadmill or vertical climber workouts.

Tuesday was my fun/exploration day because the weather was amazing!

Started with kickboxing in my home gym, then went over to Umstead State Park.

My goal was to take a look at a social trail on the far side of Big Lake that I hadn’t been on for several years.

Hiking a social trail at Umstead State Park.

My time was limited, so I ended up hiking only about 4 miles, but it was good to get out in the unseasonably warm day and see what had happened to the social trail.

Wednesday I led a small but mighty group of hikers on a long hiking route I hadn’t done in a couple of years.

Laurel Bluffs Trailhead at Pleasant Green.

We started from the Pleasant Green trail access on the Eno River and hiked the Laurel Bluffs, Quarry and Pump Station Trail for a 12.5 mile RT hike.

Stopping for a halfway break at the Pump Station ruins.

We also had about 1400ft elevation gain, which I’d forgotten about (ugh!).

But I only had 5lbs extra in my pack, so it wasn’t that bad 🙂

It was a gorgeous hike, and I was also able to take the group on a short detour from the Laurel Bluffs trail to the old Cabe Cemetery site I found a couple of weeks ago.

Headstones in the old Cabe cemetery along the Laurel Bluffs trail.

We stopped for a break along the river at the Pump Station ruins, and then reversed our route back to Pleasant Green.

This hike kicked my butt! So Thursday was mostly a stretching and rest day 🙂

Are You Getting Closer to Your Goals?

It’s Week 8, so it’s time to do a final progress check. (You can click here to sign up and download your FREE “8 Weeks to Awesome” PDF.)

By Week 8:

- - Your weekly Long Hike should be full goal-hike length, and
  - Your Strength Building hike should include full goal-weight pounds in your pack.

To Track Your “Awesome” Progress at Home Click Here!

You’ll get instructions and three printable trackers:

- Your Hike Plan Worksheet
- Daily & Weekly Workouts
- Weekly Meals tracker

Friday I had to drop off my car in the morning for some maintenance work, so though the afternoon was nice, I was limited to exercise I could do around home.

So I did some longish yoga, and about 4 miles urban hiking in my neighborhood.

Saturday began with kickboxing and upper body weights in my home gym.

Later in the day I met with That Man and the puppy at Falls Lake for some exploratory hiking in the woods.

Hiking the MST towards the intersection with Hwy 98.

We have a short hike that we usually do from the Baptist Rd trailhead to a bench along the lake that’s along the MST.

We wanted to continue from there to the intersection with Hwy 98.

The closest equivalent I could find was MST Hike L, which they say is about 6-7 miles RT.

We thought our route would be slightly shorter because of where we were starting, but…No!

It was actually longer.

We ended up going about 8 miles, which was a very long way for That Man (who is rehabilitating a knee) and the puppy (who has very short legs).

Hiking through the powerline cut towards Hwy 98.

Fortunately the route is mostly soft underfoot with pine needles and leaves, and doesn’t have much elevation gain .

Even so, we barely made it home before sundown and pretty much flaked out for the rest of the evening 🙂

Between kickboxing, weights, AND 8 miles of hiking, I think that was just the thing to do!

Hikers on the 1 Mile bridge on the Company Mill Trail.

Sunday I led a big group of hikers on a 9 mile Company Mill and Sycamore loop in Umstead State Park.

The weather was perfect, the pace was good, and everyone had a great time 🙂

Hikers taking a break on the Company Mill Trail.

And so ends Week 8.

Don’t worry if you haven’t reached your goals yet – just because it’s an 8-week program doesn’t mean you have to stop at 8 weeks.

In my case, I still have some training to do in terms of elevation gain.

Maybe you’ve still got some work to do, too?

Fortunately for me, my epic hike event doesn’t happen for about another 8 weeks.

I'll be hiking Mount Olympas in a couple of months. — I’ll be hiking Mount Olympus in a couple of months.

So, I’ll just keep training from here – while trying to NOT over-train.

And I’ll bet you thought this was going to be my last Training Log post! Not so fast, Grasshopper 😉

I’ll also keep posting weekly because telling you guys what I’m doing helps keep me motivated- and you know you’re all my accountability buddies.

But I’ll bet some of you are heartily and justifiably sick of these training posts – it’s just too much me, right???

Believe me, I’m getting kind of sick of me, too… 😉

So I also want to get back to writing about great parks and hikes you can try out – we’ve all got that to look forward to!

TAKEAWAY LESSON: For any kind of training – ongoing or towards a goal – it’s a good idea to stop every once in a while to appreciate how far you’ve come. But if you still have a way to go – don’t stop!

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful in your training process – or at least amusing! 🙂 To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my Asthma Diet , if you want to see what kind of things I’m eating. It might work for your diet goals, too.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ

Week 6: Are We There Yet?

Most recently updated February 25th, 2023

– It’s Week 6 of our training! Are we there yet?

If you’re like me, you’re getting tired of this training routine and are ready to move on to something else – hopefully something, you know, easier…

But don’t do it! Keep going, just for a couple of weeks longer.

Just a couple of weeks more - you can do it! — Just a couple of weeks more – you can do it!

And with that encouragement… on to my Week 6 Training report!

Monday was a beautiful day, so I joined Lenore and a good group of hikers for what I thought was going to be a pretty flat 7-ish mile hike in Umstead State Park on the Multi-Use trails.

Gathering at the trailhead for a sunny Monday hike.

With that in mind, I loaded my pack with 15lbs extra to make it a strength-training day.

But in a mid-hike surprise twist, Lenore handed the reins over to Michael.

We ended up tromping through a less-traveled section of the woods, fording streams and climbing mud banks before we were through!

It turned out to be an 8.25 mile hike in all.

It was so much fun, I hardly noticed the extra weight in my pack 🙂

Tuesday was a kickboxing and upper body weights day in my home gym – despite the wonderful sunny Spring-like weather outside.

A beautiful sunny Winter's day in Bond Park. — A beautiful sunny Winter’s day in Bond Park.

This is because Tuesday was also “refrigerator day” and I was trapped there until my new fridge was delivered and the old one removed.

But it was also Valentine’s Day and That Man and the puppy came to my rescue, just moments after the fridge business was over.

We had just enough daylight left to have a picnic and take a nice 3 mile walk in Bond Park!

Wednesday was supposed to be my “rest” day, but it was another nice NOT rainy day and I couldn’t stand it!

So after some yoga, I loaded 15lbs extra weight (and a snack lunch) into my pack, and set off to explore a bushwack at Eno River State Park.

A “bushwack” is when there’s no official trail blazed from one point to the other, so you’re just using landmarks or info from other hikers to find your way.

This particular bushwack was an out-and-back from the Cole Mill Road trail access to the Pleasant Green Road trail access in Eno River State Park – about 6 miles in all.

Map of the Cole Mill to Pleasant Green bushwack

Aside from looking for a passable hiking route between the two access points, I was also hoping the find the old Cabe Ford in the river, and the old slave cemetery back in the woods behind the powerline cut.

Cole Mill to Pleasant Green Road Bushwack

I was fortunate to have some guidance from the Eno.com website to get me started on finding a route.

Starting from the Cole Mill Road Loop Parking area, I took the Eno Trace Trail, staying close to the river until it turned uphill to the left.

I went straight ahead, following the river.

At that point, I left the established trail and followed the river bank downriver.

There was still a trail to follow, but it was un-blazed.

Follow the power line cut until it goes away from the river.

I followed the trail south under the powerlines until it turned left away from the river.

I had to cross a small creek – fortunately someone had placed stepping stones to make it easier.

After a while I came to the remnants of the old Cabe Ford in the river.

I knew from the map that the the historic cemetery for the slaves of the Cabe family was nearby – supposedly just a a few hundred yards away from the river.

I poked around, but I didn’t see anything, so continued to follow the river.

After a bit, the trail turned back into the forest, and the way became less obvious and not so well-used.

Then I noticed the pink ribbons tied at intervals to the trees….

At first, I thought it was just some random surveyor’s marks, and I thought they’d stop after a couple of ribbons. But they kept going!

Pink and green ribbons were tied to the trees.

And not only did they keep going, but now there were both pink AND green ribbons tied to the trees.

I’d had my suspicions before, but now I knew for certain – it was Bushwack Fairies! 🙂

And thank goodness for the Bushwack Fairies, because the way became more and more obscure – especially hidden under fallen leaves – so I just followed the ribbons.

After a while, I had to cross a small creek, but couldn’t find a good place, so I followed it up on one side and came to another larger creek, with some little waterfalls.

This would be a good spot to take a break and have a snack on a sunny day.

I found a large creek with a series of little waterfalls upstream.

This was a pretty large creek with a series of waterfalls upstream adding to the water flow.

I crossed the creek on the rocks and kept going, staying on the high ridge and following the pink and green ribbons when I could see them.

I passed a house with a pond just outside the State Park lines, then emerged from the woods to the powerline cut again.

The route goes through the powerline cut again.

The trail goes back into the woods and follows the river.

Along the way, I saw some unexpected waterfalls on the other side!

Eventually, you end up going through some scrub brush along the river to a point where you approach some old farm buildings.

The trail goes through a tunnel of laurels.

Emerging from the bushes you can see the Pleasant Green Road Parking area on the other side of the river.

The Pleasant Green Road parking area can be seen across the river.

About a quarter mile further down, the trail ends at the bridge on Pleasant Green road. This is where you would cross the river to actually get to the Pleasant Green Road parking.

But since the bridge and road were under construction, and there were a lot of cars backed up, I decided that seeing it from across the river was good enough!

I went back down the trail the way I came, with no surprises.

But when I got back to the woods near the powercut, I decided to try again to find the Cabe slave cemetery.

Remnants of stone walls may mark the location of the cemetery.

I found remnants of stone walls in the cemetery location shown on the map.

I don’t know for sure that these were part of the cemetery, but there were no other ruins that I could see nearby.

Old cabin across the river from the Eno Trace Trail.

I retraced my steps back to the parking lot at Cole Mill, then got in the traffic line behind the flag guys on the Pleasant Green bridge 😉

Thursday started with a balmy 9.3 mile hike on the MST at Falls Lake with a great group of hikers!

Cypress tress in the water near Little Lick Creek bridge on the MST.

This hike is one of my favorite sections of the MST, because it’s long enough to know you’ve had a hike, and has some interesting features along the way – including the friendly horses in trail- adjacent corrals.

Feeding an apple to the friendly horses. — Feeding an apple to the friendly horses on Thursday’s hike.

Sometimes they ignore me, but this time I was worried I didn’t have enough apple to go around! I’ll bring more next time 🙂

I took my first spin on my new vertical climber!

Friday I finally did take a rest day, and just did some yoga…but I also put together my new Vertical Climber machine and tried it out for about 30 minutes.

The climber folds up and stands in a corner when not in use.

I got the machine because I really need to get more training in really steep vertical gain hikes.

The hike I’m training for has several miles of almost straight vertical climbing up rock faces – almost as steep as cliff climbing.

CLICK HERE to see purchase details for the Vertical Climber.

Saturday was a rainy day, so I did a treadmill climb in my home gym with 10lbs on my back.

I did 2 miles in 35 mins with 1000ft vert gain, then another 2 miles in 30 mins with 700ft elev loss.

Sunday I led a great group of hikers in what ended up around 9 miles at Umstead State Park.

It was a long hike but a fast one, with an average pace of 3.7 mph.

Next up: Week 7!! Let’s make it a good one 🙂

TAKEAWAY LESSON: Don’t give up if you’re getting bored or worn out in the middle of the program – change it up, make it fun, or take a rest day – but keep on going!

We’re winding down with this year’s 8-week hike training, but you can get started and do it on your own whenever you want!

Take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what this hike training is all about.

To Track Your “Awesome” Progress at Home Click Here!

You’ll get instructions and three printable trackers:

- Your Hike Plan Worksheet
- Daily & Weekly Workouts
- Weekly Meals tracker

Happy training! LJ

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful- or at least amusing! 🙂

To see more of them go to my Training Log. Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ

Week 3: What is your “Why”? And don’t panic!

Most recently updated February 3rd, 2023

Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes

– – Awesome Training Week 3 got off to a great start with some yoga and kickboxing on Monday in my home gym.

Tuesday I led a 9ish mile hike in the morning at Umstead State Park , combining the Company Mill and Sycamore trails.

It was a cold sunny day, but sadly there was bad traffic so only half of my group made it to the hike!

We still had fun though, going at a good clip, and stopping to look at the carved tree art on the multi-use trail in the middle of the hike.

Then Jody showed me an alternative route for part of the return trip to the trailhead, so I learned something new, too 🙂

Wednesday I was kind of a slug. Seriously. But in my defense, I was really very busy panicking.

Detail of the carved tree art in Umstead State Park.

Why? Well, remember when we started this training, I hadn’t decided on my goal hike yet?

Usual “whys” for fitness goals can include feeling and looking better for life in general, or getting ready for a specific event – in my case, an ambitious epic hike!

I’ve been dithering about pulling the trigger on some international travel this year.

Hiking the Tongariro Alpine Crossing in New Zealand just before the pandemic.

My last international trip was to hike the Tongariro Alpine Crossing in New Zealand just days before the pandemic shutdown about 3 years ago.

I’ve stayed pretty local since then due to all of the travel restrictions and general airline weirdness.

This week, I finally made the decision to to take advantage of a January sale at my favorite sustainable travel company (read my page about it here.)

Hiking the Pyrenees in Spain a year before the pandemic.

Because it’s so expensive to fly now, I also decided to combine 2 of their week-long hike itineraries for the longest trip that I’ve taken in many years.

Aaaaand my “why” is… hiking Mount Olympus! In Greece!!!

Hiking Mt.Olympus From Refuge A to Skala Peak

The itinerary has us hiking from Prionia up along the E4 to a mountain refuge (6890ft) on the FIRST DAY, and spending the night.

The next day, we’ll hike from there to 2 summits -Skala (9455ft) and Skolio (9550ft) – and then ALL THE WAY back down the E4 from there to Prionia. (See AllTrails description of the summits route.)

Seriously, my knees hurt just thinking about it.

So, immediately after committing and sending the down-payment, I began to worry I’d taken on too much.

So, Wednesday was spent kind of freaking out.

Why? Because the Mount Olympus hikes are just the beginning.

I also want to be in good enough shape afterwards to do the rest of the trip (and enjoy it)!

But then, I took some time and translated the original hike descriptions from km=miles and meters=feet so I could relate better.

Meteora Hiking Tour — I get to hike to the monasteries in Meteora! How cool is that?

Here’s the rest of the trip’s hike itinerary AFTER the Mt Olympus hikes and summits in the first two days (translated to miles and feet):

Mt Olympus (Day 1-2)	Miles	Elev gain/loss	Est hike time
Day 3: Meteora	5 miles	2548ft	3 hours
Day 4: Zagori Mountain	9.3 miles	1765ft	6 hours
Day 5: Vikos Gorge	7.5 miles	984 ft	6-7 hours
Day 6: Travel to Corfu/rest	Miles
Day 7: Stavros-Pelekas	10.6 miles	2133ft	6 hours
Day 8: Giannades-Lakones	8.7 miles	1800ft	5 hours
Day 9: FREE DAY!!! Opa!
Day 10: Angelokastro-Afionas	10 miles	1312ft	5.5 hours
Day 11: Spartilas-NE Coast	9.3 miles	1968ft	6.5 hours

I stopped hyperventilating long enough to compare these hikes to some I’ve done pretty recently closer to home.

View from the trail in the New River Gorge last Summer.

It was then I realized that the projected “miles per hour” on the trip is MUCH slower than I ever go, even on the steepest or longest local hikes.

With that in mind, the freakout dissipated a bit.

I hiked the Triple Crown in Virginia! It's a group of three hikes - Dragon's Tooth, McAfee Knob, and Tinker Cliffs - that can be done individually or tackled all together as a backpacking trip. — I hiked the Triple Crown in Virginia a couple of years ago! It’s a group of three hikes – Dragon’s Tooth, McAfee Knob, and Tinker Cliffs – that can be done individually or all together as a 40-ish mile backpacking trip.

Nothing much needs to change with my training except to increase the degree of elevation gain.

So if I do that and also practice rock some scrambling before the trip, I should be fine.

I could even revisit some of my vertically tougher local hikes, too, like summiting Old Ragin Shenandoah, or head back to the Smoky Mountains for a few days.

Resting at the summit of Mary's Rock in Shenandoah. — Resting at the summit of Mary’s Rock in Shenandoah National Park.

And maybe add some time on the “mountain climber” machine at the gym because it LITERALLY simulates what I’m going to be doing.

I feel much better now 🙂

Thursday started with a 9ish mile Saturday morning hike hosted by my friend Heidi on the Mountains to Sea Trail, at Falls Lake.

Specifically Hike N, which starts at the Cheek Rd MST Trailhead and goes to the Little Lick Creek Bridge.

Trees in the lake at the mid-point of the MST section hike from Baptist Rd trailhead. — Trees in the lake at the mid-point of the MST section hike from Baptist Rd trailhead, in Summer.

I do this hike frequently from the opposite direction, starting from the Rolling View side of the MST and going from there to the bridge.

It was interesting to come at this hike from a different angle, a beautiful sunny day, and a great group!

I only had a little bit of extra weight in my pack, so the 9ish mile hike was good exercise, but didn’t exhaust me too much!

Good thing, because I had a full day after that with That Man and Colleen (the prettiest puppy), hacking around outdoors and having a pretty great music rehearsal 🙂

Cyprus at Little Lick Creek bridge in winter.

The next day, Friday, I had scheduled a favorite 7-ish mile hike at Umstead State Park, this time on the Loblolly Trail going into Schenk Forest and the Reedy Creek Greenway.

This was to be my main “strength-building” hike for the week, so I had 10 extra lbs in my pack.

It was a great group of hikers and a beautiful day!

Saturday was kickboxing and weights in my home gym before meeting That Man for a frozen (but sunny) test drive on the lake in a pontoon boat.

We bundled up for a sunny chilly day on the water.

I know, in January, really??? But why not? We bundled up 🙂

The next day Sunday, I led a great group hiking on the Eno river, starting from the Pump trail, crossing the river at the Guess Road bridge and continuing along the Sawmill Trail.

This was the trail I scouted last week and it was my first time taking a group on that trail. Everyone seemed to like it!

View of the old sawmill dam from the MST.

We did a out-and-back hike of about 8 miles total.

Next week’s weather forecast is for a LOT of rain.

But don’t panic!

We’ll find a way to get some exercise and time on the trail anyway, and I guarantee we’ll feel better about everything when it’s done.

NEW: Track Your “Awesome” Progress at Home!

You’ll get instructions and three printable trackers:

- Your Hike Plan Worksheet
- Daily & Weekly Workouts
- Weekly Meals tracker

Click Here to Order!

A download link in your confirmation email let’s you get started right away. Happy training! LJ

Meanwhile, I’ve got to find out if my gym still has a Mountain-Climber machine….

One of the creek crossings on the Sawmill Trail.

TAKEAWAY LESSON: Don’t freak out if your goal seems unattainable, or the weather is against you! Break your problem down into small do-able chunks until you can see the best way to tackle it. And keep moving forward 🙂

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful- or at least amusing! 🙂 To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ

To get New Idratherwalk Posts
sent directly to your inbox (how convenient!) Click this Button!

Week 1: Resolutions and Hope for the Future

Most recently updated February 3rd, 2023

Estimated Reading Time: 2.3 minutes

– – I started the Awesome hike training again this past Monday, with some yoga followed by a Dam hike (that’s a moderate-paced 7-miler to the Dam and back).

This hike was on the MST at Falls Lake in the warm sunshine with friends, led by my hiker friend Heidi.

The day before I’d led a brisk 9-mile fitness hike in the morning cold, so a warmer “moderate” hike sounded like a great idea!

Well, Heidi was extra-energetic, so the pace was a bit MORE than moderate! (Maybe it was the sunshine.) But it was still fun 🙂

Looking down at the Eno River from the trail.

Tuesday was another 7.5 miles hike, this time on part of the MST trail on the Eno river. I also added 5 lbs extra weight to my pack.

It was a cold morning, so my hike group had dwindled to just myself and one other stalwart hiker by hike time.

That’s fine – in fact, it was so pretty we took advantage of it being “just us” to hike an extra 1.5 miles along the river.

Wednesday I took as a very light, almost rest day, because at that point I realized I’d already hiked ~25 miles in the previous 4 days, and had committed to another 20 before the end of the week.

Last year I found out the hard way that over-doing can screw up your whole season!

So just some yoga and upper body weights.

Besides, it was That Man’s birthday, so we took the afternoon off and went to check out Zinc House, a new brewery/winery in the Falls Lake area.

It was a good day to visit, because we had the place mostly to ourselves, and got a chance to meet Muskie, the owner’s golden retriever, who was making his rounds and getting pets 🙂

Fountain at the Zinc House winery and brewery

Most Common New Year’s Resolutions

Even if you aren’t doing the Awesome training because of a New Year’s resolution, there’s something about the start of a new year that causes people to commit (or re-commit) to some goals for improvement.

So, what do people want to change about themselves and their lives?

A Forbes Health/OnePoll survey found the most popular resolutions for 2023 to be (in order of most to least common):

- - Improved mental health (45%)
  - Improved fitness (39%)
  - Lose weight (37%)
  - Improved diet (33%)
  - Improved finances (30%)

Some less popular resolutions include stop smoking (14%), learn a new skill (12%) and make time for hobbies (11%).

Fitness, weight and diet were all on my radar this year – and every year! What about you?

Thursday I led a (small but feisty) group on the Lake Trail and greenways in Bond Park and all the way to Davis Drive park and back.

I chose this route for strength training, because it’s pretty flat and can be a good choice after a recent rain.

Friday I joined a fun exploratory hike led by another hiker friend, Michael, in search of a lost quarry in Eno State Park.

I still had 5lbs extra weight in my pack for mild strength training.

The hike was about 8 miles altogether, with around half (I think) off trail, and some hills.

Off-trail is harder hiking, carefully choosing your steps to avoid rocks and potholes hidden under fallen leaves, and lifting your knees high over the grasses and other obstacles.

And of course, finding your way back.

But we did find the quarry (and our way back) and had a lot of fun doing it!

View of a cut in the quarry from the bottom.

Saturday was cold and rainy, so I did my kickboxing and weightlifting indoors and called it good.

What Percentage of New Year’s Resolutions Fail?

The second Friday in January has been nicknamed “Quitter’s Day”, which might give us a clue 😉

And the joke with fitness friends is that machine lines at the gym will for sure be back to normal by March.

Sadly, it’s not really a joke.

One survey (of those who responded) found that:

- - 11% lasted less than a month.
  - 19% made it at least one month,
  - 14% made it at least three months,
  - 11% made it at least six months, and only
  - 55% kept their resolution from 6 months-year.

Ugh! That’s kind of discouraging – on the other hand, it’s more than I expected.

So, if you just keep doing something for at least 6 months – even if you start from scratch every day – you’re still doing better than half of the people!

That means if you just have persistence, and hope to do better in the future, you’ve already won 🙂

Sunday, I had a great group of hikers join me on the 6.5 mile Company Mill Trail in Umstead State Park – despite temps in the 20’s to start!

This trail has some noticeable hills, especially right toward the end (ugh!) so it’s a great training hike. (I still had an extra 5lbs in my pack.)

We also ran into a huge number of blackbirds flocked to a single tree in the middle of the forest. We only saw them because of how loud they were!

I’d never seen that in the forest before, and it was probably due to the very cold temps.

Blackbirds congregate for warmth, to find food, and keep an eye out for predators.

This week, I also did long-form yoga or at least stretches every day. And as for my diet… I don’t want to talk about it. I’ll do better next week 😉

And now at the end of the week… drum roll, please…

I’m pretty much the same.

Well, crap.

Hikers at the lost quarry site we found in Eno State Park.

Logically, I know it will take longer than a week to see or feel any difference.

It’s okay, though. As my kickboxing instructor says, “If you’re moving, you’re doing it!” And tomorrow is another day!

But here’s the thing:

You DO have to do the work – or at least some of it – every day.

- - Even if it’s boring, painful, inconvenient or all of those.
  - Even if you start over every single day.

It’s just going to take a while.

So, on to the next hike – which is tomorrow morning 🙂

TAKEAWAY LESSON: Patience and hope for the future is required for training, and instant gratification is never fast enough!!

NEW: Track Your “Awesome” Progress at Home!

You’ll get instructions and three printable trackers:

- Your Hike Plan Worksheet
- Daily & Weekly Workouts
- Weekly Meals tracker

Click Here to Order!

A download link in your confirmation email let’s you get started right away. Happy training! LJ

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful- or at least amusing! 🙂 To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ

To get New Idratherwalk Posts
sent directly to your inbox (how convenient!) Click this Button!

The Awesome Year of the Trail

Most recently updated February 3rd, 2023

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Starting next week, as I have for the past 3 years, I’ll be spending 8 weeks training for an awesome epic hike.

I don’t know yet what hike that will be, but in any case it’s a good idea to be ready to hit the trails before Spring break and definitely before Summer vacations begin.

In fact, now that they (“they” are the NC General Assembly) have designated 2023 to be “The Year of the Trail” in North Carolina, the trails will likely be more popular than ever.

I hiked the Flat Top Tower Trail in Moses H Cone Memorial park on the Blue Ridge Parkway this past summer. I found it by accident while hiking nearby Grandfather mountain, and I'm so glad I did! Read about the Blue Ridge Parkway, Cone Memorial Park, this hike and other local attractions, and how you can visit too. #Idratherwalk #Hiking — Hikers on the Flat Top Tower Trail in Moses H Cone Memorial park on the Blue Ridge Parkway this past summer.

The big challenge from NC State Parks and Rec is for people to walk 100 miles within the coming year.

One hundred miles in a year is not really a problem for regular hikers (I usually hike ~30+ miles per week) so while all of the trails will be busier, it’s safe to say the shorter, easier, and easier to get to beginner-level trails will likely be the most crowded.

All the more reason to train up to tackle more ambitious trails, both locally and in your Bucket List locations!

The holiday season is just now winding down, so this past week I started to focus on getting back to my normally pretty disciplined training routine.

That routine includes several hikes per week – and starting next week I’ll post the training hikes on my hiking Meetup, so you can hike with me!

And of course, there’s weight training and cardio each week, with stretching every day.

Hiking down - and up! - 820 steps at the Kaymoor Miners Trail in New River Gorge NP. — Hiking down – and up! – 820 steps at the Kaymoor Miners Trail in New River Gorge NP.

Over the next couple of weeks, along with more focused and increased physical training, I’ll also try to clean up my diet.

Because of my asthma, I’ve adopted a “clean” diet ( you can read about my Anti-Asthma Diet here ) that focuses more on protein and veggies, and less on dairy, breads and grains.

And no more Holiday cheese platters!

Combined with intermittent fasting, this diet works pretty well for just about anyone, whether you’ve got asthma or not!

Luckily, I live within walking distance of a couple of different grocery stores, so I’ve also decided to walk to the store for smaller trips (that don’t include cat litter), and carry groceries home in my back pack.

Carrying your groceries on your back gives a whole new meaning to “eating light” 🙂

I just finished making a checklist/tracker to help everyone measure their hike progress, available now on the IRW Merch Shop! See below:

NEW: Track Your “Awesome” Progress at Home!

You’ll get instructions and three printable trackers:

- Your Hike Plan Worksheet
- Daily & Weekly Workouts
- Weekly Meals tracker

Click Here to Order!

A download link in your confirmation email let’s you get started right away. Happy training! LJ

(Or, you could subscribe and download the pdf for FREE here.)

Anyway, gotta go sweat. See you next time!

Hiking on the Brumley Mountain trail in Virginia.

TAKEAWAY LESSON: Any diet (and possibly strength training) begins in the grocery store!!

I hope you’ll find my Training Log ramblings to be helpful- or at least amusing! 🙂 To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ

To get New Idratherwalk Posts
sent directly to your inbox (how convenient!) Click this Button!

Week 8: Don’t Be a Lame Duck!

– – Training Week 8 started Saturday with a 45 minute yoga flow session.

I also tried out a short hike in the afternoon at Falls Lake with That Man and the puppy, but my leg started hurting after about 2 miles. (Heavy sigh.)

Don’t get me wrong, it’s fine.

But I REALLY want to stop being so, well, lame. Literally.

Sunday, anticipating that I would NOT be ready for my already-posted 9.3 mile hike on the Mountains to Sea Trail along the Eno River, I got one of my regular hikers to take over and lead the hike for me.

All reports are he did very well 🙂

And I did more bleeping yoga. And 45 minutes of *very mild* treadmilling in my home gym.

Monday, I did another Infrared sauna session (see Week 7) and then joined Lenore and some other hikers for a 5ish mile hike in Hollow Rock Nature Park and Duke Forest.

I was feeling lucky, so I didn’t wear any ankle support, but I also didn’t add any extra weight to my pack.

I also thought about bringing hiking poles – which I almost never use.

In fact, the last time I carried hiking poles, was years ago hiking in Italy with a group – where they “strongly encouraged” everyone to rent poles. (Mine never left my pack.)

I was encouraged to use hiking poles in Italy.

I forgot to bring my poles on Monday, but did end up finding a sturdy hiking stick along the way, which helped support the bad ankle crossing streams and rock scrambling.

I did okay, and we had fun exploring! When I returned home, I snarfed some ibuprofen and applied a bag of frozen veggies to the ankle.

Part of my adventure for the past few weeks is that my asthma meds have run out, because my prescription order for new ones have gone missing from the Port of Los Angeles. (Read story from CBS here.)

Cargo Container Theft in LA Is a Big Problem

Anyway, I’ve had to get creative with alternate asthma treatments. (Learn more about vitamins and supplements that help your asthma.)

That means my challenge lately has been to try to stay in shape and at the same time avoid triggering massive asthma attacks or further injuring my leg.

So, I’m just focusing on what I CAN do – and planning for new hikes when I’m on the trail in earnest again. 🙂

That Man's REAL girlfriend :-) — That Man’s REAL girlfriend 🙂

Tuesday, I broke out the Pilates!!

AND I also treadmilled a couple of miles, and took another 2-3 mile urban hike with That Man and his (real) girlfriend, Colleen.

Wednesday I was supposed to join Heidi’s hike on another 6 mile section of the MST at Falls Lake, but it was a rainy day and slipping in the mud while nursing an injury seemed like a SPECTACULARLY bad idea.

If it seems like a bad idea.... — If it seems like a bad idea….

So I did the stoopid yoga again, PLUS Pilates and took myself on a soft-surface hike in Bond Park for about 4 miles – wearing compression on my ankle AND my knee.

Thursday I did my long-form yoga and took another Infrared sauna session.

Rock scramble at Rock Hollow. There's a trail there somewhere... — Rock scramble at Rock Hollow. There’s a trail there somewhere…

Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention that Chromotherapy is included in the Infrared sauna sessions.

Colored light is turned on in addition to the Infrared inside the sauna to complement the treatment.

What is Chromatic Light Therapy?

Chromotherapy is a centuries-old concept that uses the visible spectrum (colors) of electromagnetic radiation to cure diseases, on the premise that each color is associated with a different bodily response.

Color has been used to treat all kinds of medical conditions since ancient times. Color light therapy history dates back to ancient Egypt, India, China, and even as far back as the Mayan culture.

10 Benefits of Color Light Therapy

Color light therapy is attributed with many benefits, ranging from emotional to physical, including:

- - - Reduced Swelling and Inflammation
    - Pain Relief
    - Accelerated Healing
    - Increased Range of Motion
    - Decreased Muscle Tension
    - Improved Circulation
    - Regulated Mood
    - Improved Sleeping Patterns
    - Relief of SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder)
    - Anti-Aging Benefits

Although thought of as “alternative” medicine, a recent scientific study from the NIH explores Chromotherapy’s history, uses and effectiveness in treating different disorders or illnesses.

In fact, today the medical benefits of color light therapy are being investigated and implemented in major hospitals and medical research centers worldwide.

The other thing I did on Thursday was to go and consult my new friend Joe at B.E.S.T. Physical Therapy in Cary, NC.

I’ll let him introduce himself to you as he did to me:

“Hello –

Joe's actual face :-) — Joe’s actual face 🙂

My name is Joe Villecco and I’m a physical therapist with B.E.S.T. Physical Therapy in Cary.

As the new year begins, I can’t tell you how many people I talk to about starting new habits and ways that they can do that.

For many of my patients, running or traditional gym workouts are just not their cup of tea. I have frequently recommended hiking in the past but with no resource to point them to!

Enter, the I’d Rather Walk blog and Meetup! “

(What Joe didn’t tell me until later is that he earned his Doctorate of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree from SUNY Upstate Medical University and has his Bachelors of Science degree in Biology from SUNY Oneonta, where he also became an ACE Certified Personal Trainer.)

Joe at B.E.S.T. Physical Therapy in Cary

I took the opportunity to visit Joe at his office, and talk to him about my leg problems.

I stressed out my leg with too much activity all at once.

He examined my leg and moved it around a bit, gauging pain level etc. – and assured me that it was NOT a stress fracture in a leg bone. (Yayy!!)

He did say that it was probably a stress injury caused from jumping up activity too much all at once.

So anyway, yeah, I know exactly when and why that happened – beautiful weather, lots of fun hikes posted, FOMO.

Joe recommended only bumping up your activity by 10% each week to avoid injury. Now I have to carefully build back up to my previous level.

More About B.E.S.T Physical Therapy

In addition to his other qualifications, Joe is a Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopedic Physical Therapy (OCS) and completed his Orthopedic Residency through Evidence In Motion in 2018.

Orthopedic Clinical Specialists are experts in evaluating and treating musculoskeletal conditions – an honor that is held by < 5% of all physical therapists in the United States!

At their practice at B.E.S.T. Physical Therapy in Cary, they focus on a 3-step approach.

Step One – is to reduce pain and improve function as quickly as possible to return to activity.

Step Two – is complete symptom resolution and working on correcting weaknesses, mobility deficits, movement impairments, etc.

Step Three – is to create a daily at-home plan to attack ongoing weaknesses to reduce the risk of any future injuries or problems.

During a typical visit, they use various hands-on techniques to reduce pain and improve mobility, and then they go on to use individually designed corrective exercises to further improve any weaknesses.

The goal at B.E.S.T. Physical Therapy is always to get you back to what you enjoy doing as soon as you can, and Joe truly loves to see his clients leave the clinic more resilient and with a higher quality of life than they had before!

For those of you who might also be interested in seeing if some PT might help you, I’ve invited Joe to come give a short talk and some pre-hike stretches at one of my regular Meetup hikes in March.

Keep your eyes peeled for that notice!

Winter hiking isn't the most scenic, but it's still great exercise! — Winter hiking isn’t the most scenic, but it’s still great exercise!

Now, I’m sure all of this stuff about my total lameness is entertaining – but for those of you who are NOT lame, Week 8 training should be kicking your butt!

If you go back to the beginning and look at the 8 Weeks to Awesome plan, by this time:

- - Your weekly Long Hike should be about 10 miles, and
  - Your Strength Building hike should include an extra 25-30 lbs in your pack.

Regular weekly maintenance (whatever level you are) should look like this:

- - (3 days) Strength training workouts,
  - (2-3 days) 1.5-2 hour moderate endurance hiking or jogging workout, and
  - (1 day) high intensity workout – like fast hiking or running
  - Stretch every day

Sample Weekly Workout Schedule
Monday	Strength	Stretch
Tuesday	Endurance	Stretch
Wednesday	Strength	Stretch
Thursday	Endurance	Stretch
Friday	Strength	Stretch
Saturday	Hi Intensity	Stretch
Sunday	Endurance	Stretch

Some people think a daily workout is too much, but it’s okay as long as you vary the intensity – for instance, don’t do two really long, high intensity workouts back to back.

And as I learned (the hard way), don’t go jump up your activity by more than 10% per week!

Friday was the ankle mobility exercises Joe gave me plus more yoga, kickboxing (without the hi-impact parts), upper body weights, and another leisurely 2-3 mile walk with That Man and his furry side-kick in the forest.

And so ends Week 8.

….and I’ll bet you thought this was going to be my last Training Log post! Nope.

Because I’ve been so lame this week, I’m adding a Bonus Week to the training log, including a special event. 🙂

So you’ve got that to look forward to!

TAKEAWAY LESSON: Training towards a goal should include a rest period just before the event. For any kind of training – ongoing or towards a goal – it’s a good idea to only bump up your activity by 10% each week, or you risk injury.

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful in your training process – or at least amusing! 🙂 To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing. It might work for your goals, too.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ

Week 6: Don’t Stop Now!

– – Training Week 6 started with a cold Saturday morning 9 mile hike on the MST at Falls Lake.

This hike is one of my favorite sections of the MST, because it’s long enough to know you’ve had a hike, and has some interesting features along the way.

I normally don’t lead hikes on Saturday, but the weather forecast for Sunday was for snow, ice and extreme cold (again), so I switched it up.

Needlessly, as it turns out, because the forecast was completely wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong! Oh, those wacky meteorologists…..

Hiking at the North Carolina Museum of Art park.

So, instead of cowering inside all day Sunday and doing the dreaded housework, I did some kickboxing – and, yes, housework.

Pretending to be sculptures in the Rodin garden.

Then I convinced That Man and the puppy to join me in the afternoon for a nice 4 mile walk at the North Carolina Museum of Art.

Monday, it was forecast to be rainy all day and evening – and it was!!

So it was a treadmill training and weight lifting day.

Tuesday – I was able to join Lenore and other hiker friends at Umstead State Park – and this time I was not thwarted by a slow lumber truck!

We hiked the MUT about 6 miles, and I had a heavy pack, so this was my official Strength Building hike for the week.

View of the old boathouse at Umstead State Park.

THE SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION PART

A couple of weeks ago I got an email out of the blue from Mary Insprucker, host of the “Triangle 411” podcast.

She wanted to know if she could interview me about hiking and the I’d Rather Walk meetup group. How cool is that?

So I said okay, and the interview was just published. Here it is:

Triangle 411 I’d Rather Walk Hiking Interview

Please feel free to share with wild abandon!!!

I just hope I don’t sound like a doofus…

View of the Eno from the MST at Penny's Bend. — View of the Eno from the MST at Penny’s Bend.

Wednesday was another gorgeous day, so another hiker and I explored a new-to-me trail from Penny’s Bend to the River Forest trailhead.

The whole RT route was about 8.8 miles on the MST – our turnaround spot was just a mile or so from West Point on the Eno.

Penny’s Bend Nature Preserve is a small 85-acre natural area in northeast Durham that is owned by the Army Corps of Engineers and managed by the NC Botanical Gardens.

Map on the kiosk at Penny's Bend. — Map on the kiosk at Penny’s Bend.

The nature preserve protects a peninsula of land that is surrounded on three sides by the Eno River just upstream of where the river flows into Falls Lake.

Thursday I hosted a longer training hike at Umstead State Park with a great group of hikers, hiking about 9 miles on the Loblolly Trail into Schenk Forest and back.

For some reason this hike kicked my butt…

Friday was such a gorgeous day, I spent most of the day hiking a new-to-me section of the MST with a wonderful group of hikers led by Rich B from the “Life is a Hike!” meetup.

MST Hike K is a 14 miles out-and-back between Hwy 98 and NC 50 near Falls Lake.

It was fun, but after completing that hike, my legs hurt and I realized I’d hiked 51 miles during the week!

So, I got off my feet and let That Man pamper me with a nice dinner 🙂

This MST section runs opposite the Rollingview Marina on Falls Lake.

I may have slacked off a bit this week on the kickboxing and weight lifting because the sunny warm weather made me do a lot of hiking and ignore the rest.

That said, there’s still time to focus and get back on track before the 8-week program is over.

Okay, then – time to go work up a sweat somehow.

THE SHAMELESS SALESY PART

In case you haven’t noticed, Valentine’s Day is just a few days away.

If you haven’t planned anything yet, here are few suggestions from the IRW Merch Shop Valentine’s Collection:

At this point, your gifts won’t get there in time, but you could tell your sweetie it’s on the way!

Week 7 is next. Let’s make it a good one 🙂

TAKEAWAY LESSON: Don’t give up if you miss a cross-training workout or snarf too many jelly beans – every day is a new opportunity to do better!!

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful- or at least amusing! 🙂 To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ

Week 5: Ice and Rain

– – Training Week 5 started with another snowy, icy Saturday morning – so it was treadmill training for me!

But Sunday the roads were clear – although it was still very cold! – and I went back into the woods with a great group of hikers for 6 miles on the Loblolly Trail in Umstead State Park.

We started a bit later than usual due to the cold, so I had time before we started for some extra yoga 🙂

A thin skim of ice on Big Lake in Umstead State Park.

Monday I attempted to join my friend Lenore for another hike, this time on the other side (Glenwood entrance) of Umstead State Park, to hike the multi-Use Trails.

But I was thwarted by a slow lumber truck that made me late, so I went my own way.

This was a short Strength Building hike for me, so I carried extra weight in my pack and hiked around 6.5 miles.

I decided to check out a trail at Forest Ridge Park.

Tuesday was supposed to be kickboxing, but it was an unusually warm day, and I just had to get outdoors, so I went to check out a new trail – recommended by another hiker – at Forest Ridge Park, and did a short 5 miles on the Shoreline Trail.

It was another trail along the shore of Falls Lake, but this time not part of the Falls Lake Trail or the MST.

Hiking the Shoreline Trail at Forest Ridge Park.

Wednesday I scheduled a long hike (`9 miles) that we hadn’t done in a while, due to weather.

The hike follows the MST along the Eno River from the Old Pump Station ruins to the Old Mill at West Point on the Eno.

There’s been construction along there for a couple of years, and it looks like it’s finally winding down.

Construction is finally winding down at the dam at West Point on the Eno.

Thursday was another long hike at Umstead – 9mi on the Co Mill & Sycamore trails, followed later in the day by another 4 miles on Loblolly and MUT with That Man and puppy.

Second hike of the day at Umstead with Colleen, the prettiest puppy :-) — Second hike of the day at Umstead with Colleen, the prettiest puppy 🙂

Friday it was supposed to rain all day, so I’d planned for kickboxing and indoor work.

Turns out we got hardly any rain at all. Hmmmph.

Nevermind, we’ve made it through 5 weeks so far.

In case you’re feeling proud of yourself (and you should!), I designed some Awesome T-Shirts to commemorate your training:

Wednesday this week was Groundhog Day, and the Rodent says we have 6 more weeks of winter.

Whatever that means around here…. But, no matter what, we know that:

Are you ready????

TAKEAWAY LESSON: The weather can have a big impact on your workout plans! Always check the weather and trail conditions before you head out, and even though the forecast is wrong A LOT, plan as if you believe them 😉

I hope you’ve found my Training Log ramblings to be helpful- or at least amusing! 🙂 To see more of them go to my Training Log.

You could also take a look at my 8 Weeks to Awesome Training Plan post, if you want to see what kind of training I’m doing.

Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ