Forest bathing, or shinrin-yoku, is a Japanese form of healing therapy that started to gain popularity back in the 80’s.
No rubber duckies required!
In case you’ve never heard of forest bathing, rest assured you’re not going to need a towel or your rubber duckie.
You also won’t be required to wander the forest in your birthday suit 😉
At it’s simplest level, forest bathing could be described as taking a leisurely walk through the forest for physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual benefits.
Shinrin-yoku in Japanese means “taking in the forest atmosphere”.
Forest bathing is best done where there are a lot of trees.
Research has long shown “green exercise” to have a positive impact on our overall health, and the practice of forest bathing grew out of that recognition.
Promoted by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries, the practice has become a mainstay of preventive health care in Japanese culture.
Today, many spas, resorts, and retreat centers across the world offer guided forest bathing experiences as part of their services.
That said, you don’t necessarily need a guide to take a forest bath yourself or with a friend.
All you need is a park or forest, a pair of good outdoor walking shoes, and some simple instructions.
I just managed to squeak that trip in very early last Spring before travel was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
So this time, I’m training for an amazing hike in Kauai.
This trip has already been rescheduled twice due to COVID travel restrictions.
But even if the hike has to be cancelled again, training as if it’s going to happen will get me back in great shape 🙂
If your fitness downfall was illness, injury, or being stuck in a studio apartment for months due to a lockdown, you could be feeling hugely resentful, extra-fluffy and unmotivated.
In my case, (this time) it was a combination of three things:
a bone bruise that led to ankle effusion (fluid in the joint),
a broken refrigerator, and
my severe asthma season.
My evil broken refrigerator was working against me!
Seriously, all of those things at once.
I couldn’t train or eat normally for more than 6 weeks!!!!
I’m just now getting back to sort-of normal, and while I’m grateful to be active at any level, I’m still feeling very frustrated with myself.
While I’m very impatient with it, I’ve found that it’s possible to do meaningful training while you’re still recovering from injury without pushing yourself too far, too soon.
You’re snoozing along, all peaceful and comfy in your bed, when suddenly –
Your toes curl back and touch your instep or your calf muscle tenses up as hard as a cannon ball. And boy, does it hurt!
Talk about a rude awakening… The cramps get worse, and you have to get out of bed and walk it out to get relief.
Sound familiar? It should if you – like me and around 60% of adults – have had nocturnal foot or leg cramps.
This common, mysterious pain happens when a foot or leg muscle gets involuntarily stiff and can’t relax.
Overdoing it on the trail can cause leg cramps.
The recurrent, painful tightening – known as a cramp or charley horse – usually occurs in the calf muscles and can lead to insomnia, especially if it happens more than once per night.
Usually the cramping subsides in a few minutes, but you’re left wide awake with a sore leg, wondering what caused the cramps and how you can make it stop.
“They tend to happen more frequently as we age,” says sports medicine specialist Caitlin Lewis, MD.
Foot and leg cramps can vary from just being a nuisance to being a painful and crippling experience.
By finding the triggers for your specific cramping situation and making some simple lifestyle changes, you can minimize the occurrence of foot and leg cramps and sleep undisturbed. Continue reading Get Rid of Painful Foot and Leg Cramps
The Zombie Tunnel Hike is a route that goes from Umstead State Park, and all the way through Carl Alwin Schenck Memorial Forest – with the help of the Richland Creek Trail.
All tunnels could be zombie tunnels…
I’ve been leading this hike for years, and people really enjoy it.
At over 11 miles, it’s a good long hike, but it’s pretty flat, and has a lot of different features – like Zombie tunnels!
Okay, there may not *actually* be any Zombies, but it sure looks like there could be….and one time I did find a mutant fish in there 🙂
According to legend, Brigadoon only appears for one day every 300 years.
I don’t host this hike very often because conditions need to be just right or the route is impassable, and I hate to disappoint anyone.
The other thing about this route is that, depending on recent weather conditions or new construction, parts of the trail have been known to disappear like Brigadoon at sunrise.
So earlier this year, before I posted the hike for others to join me, I decided to take a look and see if the route was still there – and still the same.
Good news! The route was still there – and still mostly the same. In fact some parts had actually been improved!
Now – just in time for Halloween! – I’ll tell you what I found, and how to get there – and maybe you can go try this somewhat spooky trail for yourself…
UPDATE: There have been some major changes to the Schenck Forest access area over the past few months. Read on for more updated info.
New construction on the Schenck access road off of Reedy Creek road.
We would go on our own, or with another single Mom friend who also had young kids, and make a day of it.
The kids loved the access to the Cape Fear River at the Fish Traps rapids, and scrambling on tree roots and rocks on the trail to the massive Raven Rock.
The trails were short enough that we hardly ever had to carry them back to the trailhead – a big plus, since neither of us were all that much bigger than the kids 🙂
I haven’t had much reason lately to make the 50-minute drive to Raven Rock, since my daughter (though still pretty short) has been out of grade school for much longer than a decade now – and I usually like longer trails.
Trailhead sign at the Raven Rock loop.
I’d also lost touch with my friend, and though we’d comment on social media now and then, hadn’t really talked for at least ten years – no reason, just the kids got older and we had drifted apart.
Then, when I went to wish her a happy birthday, I found that she’d recently passed away.
So I decided to take a trip down to Raven Rock, walk the trails, and remember my friend.
Some things had changed, but the park is still a good place to go for a walk – with your kids or on your own. 🙂
Historic Yates Mill County Park is not on my usual round of go-to parks.
View of Yates Mill from the rocks.
This is mainly because it’s a longer drive for me than either Umstead State Park or Bond Park, both of those parks have longer trails – and these days I’m usually looking more for a place to have a serious hike than to entertain kids.
Raven Rock State Park is another great place to take younger kids, but it’s an hours drive away….
But a couple of weeks ago, I had an hour to spend and didn’t want to get too sweaty.
So I dropped by Historic Yates Mill County Park to take an active break.
I’d visited Yates Mill once before, in the winter, but this visit I got to see what it was like in the summertime.
I wasn’t disappointed.
There’s a pond, a few shorter – mostly shady – flat hiking trails, and fishing (with a permit).
Plus, it’s got a historic working water-driven grist mill. So there’s that 🙂
Based on what I found, if you’ve got grade school or younger kids, or even Middle-schoolers who (unlike mine) DON’T refer to hikes as “forced marches”, Historic Yates Mill County Park could be a wonderful hang-out for your family!
If you have asthma, like I do, you may be extra concerned about how COVID-19 could affect your health.
COVID-19, after all, is a respiratory disease and those of us with asthma have had bad experiences with those.
And by “concerned” I might also mean frightened, anxious, panicky… 😉
The COVID-19 virus is known to cause problems in the respiratory tract (nose, throat and lungs).
Courtyard at Fort Macon State Park
Because asthma is also a respiratory disease, it’s been assumed that people with asthma have a greater chance of catching the virus and getting very sick from it than other people.
It’s a reasonable assumption, and asthmatics have been classified as “high risk” since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
But I’m here to tell you, I’ve done the research, and at this point – maybe for the first time ever – asthmatics are just like everyone else 🙂
It’s important to know that currently there’s no evidence of increased COVID-19 infection rates in those with asthma.
And now, after months of studying this new disease, medical and infectious disease experts have been able to create a more exact picture of the risk to asthmatics.
Since the release of the vaccines, there have also been questions about the possible risk to people with allergic reactions. I’ll tell you what I found about the current CDC advice.
(I’ve included photos of my garden and places I’ve traveled, as a reminder both that while there is beauty to be found at home, the world is still full of amazing places waiting for us to find them!)
– – Week 6 – the final week – of the ReFit Training is finished. Yay!!!
And I did go to see the Doc – which you may recall, was the endpoint for this training series because with all of the COVID-19 trail closures, it was hard to plan for a specific hike .
Here’s what I did this week and how the Doc visit went….
Week 6 Recap
Week 6 was another hot, hot, hot! week weather-wise, and I was still recovering from some dehydration from the week before.
So the first couple of days I did my main daily exercise indoors – kickboxing, treadmill runs, weights.
Some tools for indoor training in the home gym.
Midweek I was back out on the trail locally in Bond Park for a quick 6 mile walk before it got too hot.
Thursday I did the unthinkable – I took a rest day 🙂
That was also the day I went in for my checkup with the Doc.
The Checkup
The good news is, apparently I’m going to live forever!
The bad news is, I didn’t reach my weight goal. I blame licorice and chocolate sorbet…. 😉
But seriously, I’m not too worried.
My clothes all still fit, and the weight loss was my own goal – not mandated by illness or anything.
Hiking the Lake Trail in Bond Park.
I just generally feel better and more energetic when I’m a bit lighter.
I’ll keep working on it – hopefully without obsessing too much. Because no one needs more stress these days!
Actually, with all of the stress and forced inactivity due to COVID-19 restrictions, it could be a lot worse…
Stress and Weight Gain
Stress can leave you open to a lot of illnesses.
With all that’s been going on the past few months – health worries, job and financial losses, enforced isolation, restricted movements, killings and riots, incessant political noise, etc – we’ve all had a lot of reason to be stressed out.
And we can all agree that too much stress is bad for you.
Excess stress can lead to headaches, digestive and sleep problems, and depression.
Stress can also wreak havoc on metabolism and cause stress-induced weight gain.
For some time we’ve known about the connection between stress and weight gain, specifically due to an increase in cortisol levels.
What is Cortisol?
Cortisol is a hormone that your body releases when you’re feeling physical or psychological stress.
The hormone raises your blood pressure and blood sugar and can suppress the immune system.
Higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol have also been shown to increase appetite.
Stressed to the Max
Fresh fruits and veggies are part of a healthy diet.
Psychologist Leslie Heinberg, PhD. , Director of Behavioral Services for the Bariatric and Metabolic Institute at Cleveland Clinic, agrees that the link between stress and weight gain is real.
Healthy habits like getting enough sleep, exercising and eating a healthy diet are harder to maintain when you feel like you’re maxed out emotionally, she says.
3 Tips to Fight Weight Gain
But even if you can’t fix the causes of your stress, you can make small changes to try to minimize offset the effects.
Here are three tips that might help you fight stress-induced weight gain:
ONE: Choose Your Fats Wisely
Fat is important to feel full, and it’s also one of your body’s key building blocks. But to keep it in balance, try to choose only one high-fat item per meal.
For example, if you have a healthy salad for lunch, don’t include both olive oil and avocado – just choose one of those things.
So, if you want avocado on your salad, use a balsamic vinegar dressing rather than an oil-based vinaigrette.
TWO: Adjust Your Meal Proportions
To reduce calories, shift your servings a bit to slash calories without having to eat less food.
Trading in a portion of dense grains for low-cal veggies is an easy way to accomplish a quick calorie savings that doesn’t require sacrificing volume.
For example, if you’re eating rice and veggies for a meal, shift the balance to include more veggies and less rice.
Eating 1.5 cups of veggies and .5 cup of brown rice instead of 1 cup of each can easily save you 60-75 calories. Those small savings will add up over time.
THREE: Take a Quick Post-Meal Walk
Take a short walk to boost your metabolism.
A study from George Washington University found that taking a 15-minute walk after meals helped normalize blood sugar levels for up to three hours after eating.
If you don’t have 15 minutes, even a 5 minute walk – just to break from sitting to get your blood pumping – can shift your metabolism.
It can also be a time to clear your head, connect with nature, or catch up with a walking buddy – all of which can help reduce feelings of stress.
Back to the Woods
Later in the week, the weather cooled down a bit and I’d recovered from my dehydration, so I was ready to hit the woods again!
The Lake Trail goes past the Observation Tower at Lake Crabtree.
So on Friday (after a treadmill run indoors in the morning), I hiked around Lake Crabtree in the afternoon.
It was beautiful as usual – though I miss seeing the sailboats on the lake! (They’re not allowed now due to COVID-19 restrictions.)
Saturday, That Man and I got on the bikes and had a nice 20-mile ride on the greenways and the ATT.
A new section of the White Oak greenway connects Bond park and Davis Drive Park.
It was a gorgeous day, and the trails were surprisingly un-crowded.
Sunday, was my long hike for the week, a 8-9 miler in Umstead State Park, on a combination of Company Mill and Sycamore Trails.
A great group of hikers came with me 🙂
That hike was the end of my training week, and of this training series. But I’ll keep on going!
A stroller-friendly trail in Umstead State Park
Training for Life
For me, training is never really over. Many active people are the same.
Even though our goals change from week to week, or year to year, we always keep moving forward and striving to improve.
Whether it’s a hiking to a new mountain summit, getting into a new dress, or mastering a new sport or skill, training towards a goal is what keeps us motivated and interested in what we’re doing.
The Tongariro Alpine Crossing was one of my Bucket List hikes.
What’s Your Next Adventure?
Although some destinations are still out of reach due to continuing COVID-19 restrictions, many State and National Parks are opening back up now.
I’ve got my eye on a few new adventures within driving distance of home, and I’m starting to get excited about it!
I might even start some new training hikes soon 🙂
If you’re local and would like to join us, check out the I’d Rather Walk Meetupfor hike postings.
The Hawksbill Summit in Shenandoah National Park is an attainable goal for most hikers.
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. Take a look at my 6 Week Training Planpost to see the whole plan.
For some ideas for your next adventures, check out my Hiking Destinations page for outdoor vacation spots for you and your family.
Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ
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The forecast called for highs in the 90’s, which is pretty hot for hiking, but it’s better than thunderstorms, so I stuck to the plan.
It’s been my habit to visit Hanging Rock every year in the early Spring, but this year the parks were closed due to COVID restrictions during the milder weather.
Most State Parks are at least partially open now, and the weather will only get warmer, so it was time to go!
Summer Heat is Back
Every year in North Carolina, sometime between March and late June, there’s a moment when you step outside and get smacked in the face with hot, humid air.
And you suddenly remember what Summer feels like in all of it’s intense sweaty glory. 🙂
We had a few hot days earlier this year, but this past week Summer let us know it’s really here to stay.
Summer includes higher temps, higher humidity and changes to the weather pattern. If you’re smart, it should include some some changes to your workout routine, too.
North Carolina heat and sun are just as intense inland as on the beach.
If you’re planning on doing anything really strenuous outdoors, you should probably get going as early as possible.
Not only will the heat get more intense later in the day, but we usually have a pretty good chance of heavy storms – possibly with lightning – in the late afternoon.
So my plan was to hit the road early, get to the Park by 9ish and be done hiking before the storms rolled in.
Midweek Field Trip to Hanging Rock
I’ve been to Hanging Rock many times over the years, so I decided to try something a little different this time.
Hanging Rock SP Visitors Center closed due to COVID-19 restrictions
Instead of parking as usual at the Visitor’s Center (which is currently closed due to COVID restrictions anyway), I decided to park at the Tory’s Den parking lot and hike from there.
The Tory’s Den parking gives you access to the Ruben Mountain trail, plus Tory’s Den and Falls.
You can also get on the trail to Moore’s Knob from there as well – but be aware that it’s a 1 mile hike from the parking lot to get to the start of both Ruben Mountain Trail and Moore’s Wall Loop, so you need to add 2 miles to figure total distance.
Map of trails near Tory’s Den parking area.
I’d hiked to Moore’s Knob before, but hadn’t hiked Ruben Mountain so I started with that trail.
Ruben Mountain Trail – 6ish mile loop
The Ruben Mountain Trail starts 1 mile from the parking area. It’s about 4 miles total, but with the additional miles to and from the parking, just to do the Ruben Mountain trail is around 6 miles.
Trailhead sign at Tory’s Den parking
The trail is wide and lined with split-rail fences in some sections, and you can tell it’s a favorite trail for horseback riders.
It’s an okay trail, mostly flat and would be a great trail running route if you lived locally.
But I wouldn’t recommend traveling that far (it’s a 2 hour drive for me) just to hike the Ruben Mountain Trail.
I contemplated going up the hill to Moore’s Knob, but realized that would add another 4.5 miles to the 6 miles I’d already done, and I still wanted to be sure to see Tory’s Den and Falls before it was time to go.
So I walked back down the to the intersection with Tory’s Den Trail.
Tory’s Falls at Hanging Rock State Park
The hike to Tory’s Falls was a soft dirt trail, mostly downhill.
After crossing a couple of streams, and finally going down a few flights of wooden steps, I stepped onto a large rock outcropping.
On the other side of a river channel were Tory’s Falls. It was a great place for a break 🙂
After eating an apple and chugging some water, I continued down more wooden steps (!) to Tory’s Den.
Looking into Tory’s Den.
History of Tory’s Den
During the American Revolution, Whig (revolutionaries) and Tory (loyal to Britain) neighbors occasionally clashed.
One of these skirmishes occurred in 1778 at Hanging Rock State Park.
The Tory’s Den (the cave shown above) was home to about 100 British sympathizers who lost their property to the Whigs after the war began.
After a Tory raid, the Whigs retaliated by attacking the den. No Whigs were lost in the skirmish and most of the Tories were taken prisoner.
THE TRAIL continues down a little bit further, but you can’t get close to the water due to vegetation along the banks.
Current Park Restrictions
I climbed back up all of those stairs (!) and drove about 6 miles to the Visitors Center parking area, where I hiked a couple of the shorter waterfall trails before making the drive back home.
Though the swimming area at the lake is closed for COVID-19, people can still swim in the waterfalls 🙂
Unfortunately, the Visitor’s Center (and restrooms) are currently closed due to COVID-19 restrictions.
There are restrooms available at the bathhouse. (To see current conditions and restrictions at all State Parks, click here.)
Trail head for Upper Cascades Falls at the Visitor’s Center
Puppy Hike and Bond Park Run
Good puppy on a leash!
The middle of the week was even hotter at home!
I contented myself through the rest of the week with some kickboxing, treadmill running and weights indoors, a shorter outdoor morning run at Bond Park, and took the puppy on a shady greenway hike to Annie Jones Park and Lake Pine.
Hot, Hot, Hot! This Week’s Long Hike – 12.5 miles
This week’s long hike was on a very hot day, but we started pretty early.
The route began on the Loblolly Trail in Umstead State Park and followed Loblolly into Schenck Forest and back out onto the Reedy Creek Greenway.
The rest of the route would continue to follow the greenway all the way to the North Carolina Museum of Art Park.
(The Museum buildings and restrooms are still closed due to COVID-19 restrictions, so we made sure to take advantage of facilities at Umstead before heading out.)
Half of the group turned back to do a shorter 6.5 mile hike options, and the rest of us continued on along the Reedy Creek Trail.
– – Week 4 of the ReFit Training began with a long group hike (<25 people in accordance with current restrictions) at Umstead State Park.
We hiked 8 miles on Company Mill trail to Big Lake and back on a combination natural trails and multi-use trails.
The route was designed to avoid the spots that were still muddy from last week’s rain.
I was starting to worry when we didn’t see our snake friend, but then we spotted him towards the end of the hike on higher ground.
And the hikers who joined were amazing as usual! 🙂
A Different Sort of Week
It was a holiday week, since the work week started with Memorial Day.
For me, that meant an extra day to hang out with That Man and explore some new (to us) local places on foot.
Specifically, we spent time checking out the Rolling View section of Falls Lake.
View of Falls Lake from the Rolling View side.
Falls Lake State Recreation Area
Falls Lake State Recreation Area is made up of seven access areas scattered around the shoreline of an undeveloped 12,000-acre reservoir.
The Falls Lake Trail (a portion of the North Carolina Mountains-to-Sea State Trail) can be joined at the Rolling View access – which was one of the places open despite COVID restrictions – so that’s where we started.
Map showing the Falls Lake Trail in Rolling View section
The Falls Lake Trail follows the entire south shore of the lake, traveling over 50 miles from the shore of the Neuse River below the Falls Lake Dam all the way to the Eno River.
We were only able to go a couple of miles before the trail was too flooded to pass, due to the high water from recent heavy rain.
But we improvised on some other trails and got about 5 miles in anyway 🙂
Strength Building Hike – Bond Park, 6 miles
The middle of the week was dry (finally!) so I loaded 20 extra pounds into my pack on Tuesday for this week’s Strength Building hike in Bond Park, a 6-ish mile hike that included the Bond Park Lake Trail.
Midweek Beach Escape
After months of being unable to travel due to COVID restrictions, I decided to gamble on the weather and take a little overnight road trip to the Coast.
Though beaches and State and National Parks are still partly closed, some trails and facilities are available, and some coastal parks have beach access.
I booked a room in Atlantic Beach, and headed for Fort Macon State Park.
Fort Macon State Park map at the Visitors Center
Fort Macon State Park
Nearly surrounded by water at the eastern tip of Bogue Banks, Fort Macon State Park is the site of a restored Civil War-era fort, a couple of hiking trails, and offers unspoiled shoreline for swimming.
Canons line the upper fort wall on the beach side
Unfortunately, the interior of the fort and the Visitor’s Center are currently closed due to COVID restrictions, but the beach and trails are open.
There are also restrooms available.
Trailhead sign in the Visitors Center parking lot
Elliott Coues’ Trail – 3.3 mile loop
The main thing I wanted to do at the park was hike the relatively new Elliott Coues Trail.
I started at the trailhead in the far corner of the Visitor’s Center parking lot.
Raised boardwalk on the Elliott Coues’ Trail
The trail is a 3.3 mile loop that goes along the beach, through salt march and forest, and even along the road beside the Coast Guard station for a short time before returning to the park.
It’s a beautiful trail, with the beach side of the loop paved with a new layer of soft wood chips.
The wooded side is a combination of soft dirt and some boardwalks.
You can see different kinds wildlife from the trail: there were a lot of different birds and I startled a young doe near the marsh side.
View of the beach from inside the upper fort wall.
Atlantic Beach is one of my favorite North Carolina beaches, not in the least because I usually stay in a place where can get up in the morning and walk to the beach – without worrying about trying to move my car or pay for parking.
When I’m there I usually do about 4 miles on the beach in the morning, more if time allows.
This time, I was able to get 4 miles in but couldn’t do any more because of a fast-moving thunderstorm.
The rain wasn’t going anywhere, so after my run I packed up and headed back inland.
Storm rolling in to Atlantic Beach
Company Mill Accidentally Underwater Hike – 6 miles
Friday was rainy at home, too. But I decided to risk an afternoon hike between rain storms on the Company Mill Trail in Umstead State Park anyway.
Unfortunately, a couple of miles into the hike a downpour started.
I was on the natural trail when the rain started, but the trail quickly became a raging stream.
Reedy Creek Lake and multi-use trail on a sunny day.
So I diverted my route to get back to the the drier multi-use trails, and ended up with about 6.5 miles and lots of mud on my boots when I finished.
In addition to hiking at home and on the coast this week, I also kick-boxed, ran on my treadmill , lifted some weights, and did some Bodyweight Training exercises.
With 4 weeks down of the allotted 6 weeks to get back in shape , I’m still not seeing the kind of results the I’d hoped for, but I’ve still got a couple of weeks to keep trying 🙂
If you’re local and would like to join us, check out the I’d Rather Walk Meetupfor hike postings.
Looking down Atlantic Beach towards the pier.
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.
Take a look at my 6 Week Training Planpost to see what other kinds of training I’m doing, and what other hikes I’ll have coming up.
Thanks for stopping by – see you next time! LJ
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If your fitness downfall was illness, injury, or being stuck in a studio apartment for months due to a lockdown, you could be feeling hugely resentful, extra-fluffy and unmotivated.
In my case, (this time) it was a combination of three things:
Seriously, all of those things at once.
I couldn’t train or eat normally for more than 6 weeks!!!!