Last night around 10 pm I suddenly decided to exercise. I wasn't planning to but I was like, "Eh, whatever." I lifted and included leg exercises. It was tiring.
This afternoon I ran stairs getting up to my 11th rep. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Usually when I run stairs, I am running forward on the ball of my foot but because I have shin splints, I concentrated on landing my feet flat on each stair instead of putting so much pressure on my calves. It worked and my legs didn't hurt. Strategy!
I think I am going to take a whole week off starting Saturday. I've been crashing every weekend after a full week of exercising and I've heard that taking a week off can increase strength gains by as much as 30%.
Also, I canceled my pre-trip in April. I need to save more money and that pre trip would cost about a hundred bucks. So I am going to stick around here and take a long Sunday afternoon run. Absolutely kill myself. That should make up for it. I figure the pre-trip isn't as necessary because I am more and more confident I can make it. I'll have my maps with me so if I need to readjust my trip, I can and it won't be that difficult.
March 29, 2009
I found a website called trailjournals.com. You can post journal entries from your backpacking trip. Its basically a collection of blogs. As soon as I learn how to navigate it, I'll find someone who has done 20 miles of trail a day.
Since I suck balls at math, I decided to try an internet version of math flash cards. I basically did that for an hour today. I started out small with simple addition and worked my way up to more complicated multiplication. I try to do it as fast as possible. It sounds odd, but I am so bad at math, these flash cards are probably going to help. The goal is to do them a few times a week and build on the basic math skills then maybe MAYBE if I care in another month I'll try harder stuff.
I hope my shin splints are gone cause I want to run tomorrow. My legs were so sore this whole weekend. I drank lots of water, stretched 4 or 5 times a day and ate 4 bananas. That seemed to help.
A list of the books I have read since January:
Advanced Backpacking by Karen Berger
Daily Life in Ancient Rome by Florence Dupont
Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright
GloboChrist by Carl Raschke
Home by Marylinne Robinson
Philosophy: The Classics by Nigel Warburton
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
I think I'm missing a book but I can't recall what it is. I've got 250 pages left in The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky. My mom got me another book recently: The Consequence of Ideas by R.C. Sproul. Sproul is, in case you didn't know, a Calvinist and this is the second book from this author my mom has bought me. I think she is trying to convert me.
Since I suck balls at math, I decided to try an internet version of math flash cards. I basically did that for an hour today. I started out small with simple addition and worked my way up to more complicated multiplication. I try to do it as fast as possible. It sounds odd, but I am so bad at math, these flash cards are probably going to help. The goal is to do them a few times a week and build on the basic math skills then maybe MAYBE if I care in another month I'll try harder stuff.
I hope my shin splints are gone cause I want to run tomorrow. My legs were so sore this whole weekend. I drank lots of water, stretched 4 or 5 times a day and ate 4 bananas. That seemed to help.
A list of the books I have read since January:
Advanced Backpacking by Karen Berger
Daily Life in Ancient Rome by Florence Dupont
Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright
GloboChrist by Carl Raschke
Home by Marylinne Robinson
Philosophy: The Classics by Nigel Warburton
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
I think I'm missing a book but I can't recall what it is. I've got 250 pages left in The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky. My mom got me another book recently: The Consequence of Ideas by R.C. Sproul. Sproul is, in case you didn't know, a Calvinist and this is the second book from this author my mom has bought me. I think she is trying to convert me.
March 29, 2009
The General Motors CEO, Rick Wagoner, is stepping down at the request of the White House. Awesome. I don't even know how he has a job. He has done a lot to single-handedly torpedo the economy and I'm glad to see him go.
March 28, 2009
I am participating in Eatht, Earth Hour. It is very hard to tepy , I mean type with no lights on. So whatever I type I don't correct, I keep it.
I definitle got shin splints. pretty bad too. My legs are sooo sore right now. I've been stretching all day and drinking lots of water but it still feels lrough. Gay.
Randomly, I was inspired to work on this idea for a book I've had since...a long time. Senior in highschool I think. I know, I know, EVERYONE wants to right, I mean write a book. Everyone thinks they're a writer. And they are all probably worong. But oh well.
By the way, the whole purpose of this blog post was to see how mny times I would mess up typing with not lights on. I think I did prety good.
I definitle got shin splints. pretty bad too. My legs are sooo sore right now. I've been stretching all day and drinking lots of water but it still feels lrough. Gay.
Randomly, I was inspired to work on this idea for a book I've had since...a long time. Senior in highschool I think. I know, I know, EVERYONE wants to right, I mean write a book. Everyone thinks they're a writer. And they are all probably worong. But oh well.
By the way, the whole purpose of this blog post was to see how mny times I would mess up typing with not lights on. I think I did prety good.
March 27, 2009
A blog I follow has a list of 10 absolutely essential books for Christians. I've seen top ten lists before, but this is probably the best.
He has another, different and much funnier list here.
He has another, different and much funnier list here.
March 26, 2009
I searched for some exercise tips for backpacking. Didn't find much, but there are a couple sites that range in the amount of useful information they have.
Backpacker Magazine tips: Good stuff.
Another: Large parts of this workout program are crap. A brisk walk twice a week? Seriously... Some of the Muscle Strengthening tips are bogus too. The Balance Training is ok, but some of the exercises seem unnecessary. Like multidirectional lunges. Regular lunges will work fine.
And another: This one is pretty good. It provides a sample month of training. It lacks in a lot of ways, but it gives measurable goals which is something the other two sites don't do.
I realized a couple days ago that I'm making this up as I go. There isn't a real training program for backpacking because backpackers aren't considered legitimate athletes (which is true, unless you are a long distance hiker). I feel how my body responds to such and such exercise and I adjust from there.
A couple weightlifting exercises I have found to be invaluable:
Wide-grip overhead split squats. They work your thighs but also the section of your thighs closest to your knees. When you are climbing hills, you'll feel it in that part of your leg. Besides your legs, the exercise builds balance and total body strength.
Regular squats. Probably in the top three best exercises of anything out there. You should always do these.
Planks. Regular planks and side planks both. They work the stabilizing muscles of your abs.
Pullups. Up there with squats in importance. Do the kind where your wrists are facing out and you have a wide grip.
Back extensions. For your lower back. Important for anything.
Bicycle crunches. Supposed to be one of the best abs exercises you can go. I hear varying opinions about what is best, but for me, these are good.
Backpacker Magazine tips: Good stuff.
Another: Large parts of this workout program are crap. A brisk walk twice a week? Seriously... Some of the Muscle Strengthening tips are bogus too. The Balance Training is ok, but some of the exercises seem unnecessary. Like multidirectional lunges. Regular lunges will work fine.
And another: This one is pretty good. It provides a sample month of training. It lacks in a lot of ways, but it gives measurable goals which is something the other two sites don't do.
I realized a couple days ago that I'm making this up as I go. There isn't a real training program for backpacking because backpackers aren't considered legitimate athletes (which is true, unless you are a long distance hiker). I feel how my body responds to such and such exercise and I adjust from there.
A couple weightlifting exercises I have found to be invaluable:
Wide-grip overhead split squats. They work your thighs but also the section of your thighs closest to your knees. When you are climbing hills, you'll feel it in that part of your leg. Besides your legs, the exercise builds balance and total body strength.
Regular squats. Probably in the top three best exercises of anything out there. You should always do these.
Planks. Regular planks and side planks both. They work the stabilizing muscles of your abs.
Pullups. Up there with squats in importance. Do the kind where your wrists are facing out and you have a wide grip.
Back extensions. For your lower back. Important for anything.
Bicycle crunches. Supposed to be one of the best abs exercises you can go. I hear varying opinions about what is best, but for me, these are good.
March 25, 2009
I've been listening to podcasts on the Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire. In The History of Rome, the editor has upwards of 60 different episodes from the early republic to where he is now - the second triumvirate and the rise of Augustus. For me, Augustus is by far the most fascinating figure in Roman history.History has more war than politics (unless you consider war a more brutal form of politics) so the episodes always mention a famous general in that time period.
In The History of Rome, the most famous generals discussed so far have been: Hannibal (who was a general of Carthage), Scipio Africanus (who eventually defeats Hannibal), and Caesar.
In 12 Byzantine Rulers, there is Belisarius, who fought for the emperor Justinian.
I've been thinking about who might be the greatest general ever (because I'm a nerd). I read a few articles and found some lists online:
Generals of Western History: Joan of Arc is on this list....How she made it, I don't know.
Famous Ancient Generals
I've found Belisarius to be one of the most interesting generals I've heard of yet. All the other generals I know of were after some sort of personal gain. Caesar wanted to be king of Rome, Scipio wanted money and fame, Hannibal wanted revenge, Alexander the Great was bored so he picked fights, Attila the Hun and Genghis Khan were just effing insane, Napolean was a self-important ass (he was French), and Patton was a dick who loved war. They all sought some sort of glory for themselves, using war to advance their careers. I get the idea that Belisarius is different (although Robert E. Lee comes to mind, too).
Here is an article about him.
In the 12 Byzantine Rulers podcast, the editor described how often Belisarius was sent against enemies completely outnumbered yet managed to win almost every time. He was always loyal to Justinian, never seeking glory for himself but was distrusted by the emperor. His command was undermined in an expedition in Italy, he was plotted against, his victories were ignored and others received credit for them and he was put in prison for a supposed plot against Justinian. Yet he was always loyal.
I've read a lot of history and men who were capable generals usually ruled, one way or another. Their ambition is what made them great generals and untrustworthy men all at once. Generals like Caesar were equally great at conspiring for power. Their ambition would drive them to do anything to have it. Belisarius is intriguing because he never conspired and I wonder what made him different from others. I've heard that absolute power corrupts absolutely. Belisarius seemed to defy corruption.
Anyway, just a thought that's been on mind for a while.
March 25, 2009
Odd news: my mom and her boss are trying to set me up with a chick outside of the U.S.
I stopped by my mom's office after an eye appt. yesterday and her boss thought I would make a good candidate for her niece, who is visiting America soon. My mom sent me an email complete with photos of the chick. She's pretty attractive, but no way is it going to work out, even if I do meet her when she arrives.
I think I have shin splints...Boo
I stopped by my mom's office after an eye appt. yesterday and her boss thought I would make a good candidate for her niece, who is visiting America soon. My mom sent me an email complete with photos of the chick. She's pretty attractive, but no way is it going to work out, even if I do meet her when she arrives.
I think I have shin splints...Boo
March 24, 2009
I did regular running tonight instead of the stairs. Yesterday was sort of a shitty day, preceded by a confusing weekend so I said, "To hell with exercising" and didn't do anything at all Monday. But today I wanted to run.
I started at a pretty fast pace right out of the door and kept it up to the end. Before I reached the half mile point, I was grinning. Something about the run washed all my frustrations away and I felt joy in doing it. Might sound odd, but it felt like I was worshiping God.
When I got back home, I retraced my route with my car to see my exact mileage. I ended up running a hard 2.2 miles. I didn't jog it, I actually ran it. And on the way home I ran another mile at the same speed. My legs weren't even tired afterward. All those stairs made them tougher. My lungs, though, were in pain. So I am going to run the rest of this week to get my lungs up to speed with the rest of me.
But back to the spiritual thing. While I was retracing my route, I almost cried out of sheer thankfulness for the run. The whole experience was....beautiful. It reminds me of reading good poetry. Something about it was exactly what I needed...
God gave me a good run.
I started at a pretty fast pace right out of the door and kept it up to the end. Before I reached the half mile point, I was grinning. Something about the run washed all my frustrations away and I felt joy in doing it. Might sound odd, but it felt like I was worshiping God.
When I got back home, I retraced my route with my car to see my exact mileage. I ended up running a hard 2.2 miles. I didn't jog it, I actually ran it. And on the way home I ran another mile at the same speed. My legs weren't even tired afterward. All those stairs made them tougher. My lungs, though, were in pain. So I am going to run the rest of this week to get my lungs up to speed with the rest of me.
But back to the spiritual thing. While I was retracing my route, I almost cried out of sheer thankfulness for the run. The whole experience was....beautiful. It reminds me of reading good poetry. Something about it was exactly what I needed...
God gave me a good run.
March 20, 2009
My legs are dying and sore. I had this stitch in my right inner thigh all day. Finally got rid of it from so much walking. The back of my left thigh is sore. I think I am on the verge of getting shin splints. My whole upper back is sore from pullups and bent over rows. On the plus side, I got rid of all my lower back pain. I added romanian deadlifts and superman exercises and that took care of it.
Because of all my leg pain, I decided not to run stairs today through Sunday. I'll do some Yoga tonight and lift tomorrow but I won't run stairs. Monday I'll start out with 11 reps and hopefully this time I will work my way up to being able to run 5 days in a row. We'll see. By the middle of April, I'll be running stairs upwards of 45 minutes. Ridiculouuuuus.
Only a month and a half left until I can quit Pizza Hut forever....God I can't wait.
Because of all my leg pain, I decided not to run stairs today through Sunday. I'll do some Yoga tonight and lift tomorrow but I won't run stairs. Monday I'll start out with 11 reps and hopefully this time I will work my way up to being able to run 5 days in a row. We'll see. By the middle of April, I'll be running stairs upwards of 45 minutes. Ridiculouuuuus.
Only a month and a half left until I can quit Pizza Hut forever....God I can't wait.
March 19, 2009
Exercising is getting tough. This whole week has been rough. The only thing that gets me running or lifting is remembering my goals. I just finished lifting so I'm about to reward myself with a smoothie...then I have to run the stairs. Blah.Today I'll be up to 10 "reps" in running. I think I'm getting to know the people at the apartment complex I run in because they same couple kids always yell at me. I don't know what they're saying because I'm listening to my iPod. I'm sure I look odd with a 45 lb pack on my shoulders. I notice I run differently too. It's goofy, my toes are pointed inwards more and it's hard to compensate for that.
One "rep" (for lack of a better term) is this: run to the top of third floor, over to the other side, down those stairs, back up the same stairs, then over to the other side and down those stairs, ending where I started. When I first began I was doing 5 reps and it took about 8 minutes. But yesterday I was at 9 reps and 16-18 minutes. By tomorrow, I'll be at 11 reps and 20-21 minutes.
My thighs and calves are starting to adjust too. Because of the severity of the workout, I don't do squats or any other leg exercises of any kind. This is plenty. By the time I set out for my trip my calves are going to be as big as my head.
Even though it is encouraging to know what I am accomplishing, it has become increasingly harder to get out the door and throw the pack over my shoulders. I don't quit but I think about it. I know have to put my body through hell so I can enjoy the challenge of the trail. Otherwise, it's gonna suck.
On the days I run and lift (such as today), I focus a lot on practical exercises. For abs: bicycle crunches (although I am looking for something new cause I can do 130 of these now), side plank and regular plank and swiss ball crunches. For back: Pullups and neutral grip pullups, barbell bent-over rows, romanian deadlifts, superman (not sure what its called). For the rest of the upper body: explosive pushups, swiss ball pushups and push press. It takes about 45 minutes and I do it Tuesdays and Thursdays.
On the days I just run, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I am going to add some Yoga. Certain poses are reparative to muscle and excellent for athletic conditioning. Warrior poses especially. There are also a few poses that have really helped with my ankles. They have the tendency to twist but since doing Yoga it has happened only once in the last year and a half, and that's because I've been slacking on the exercises. Twisting your ankle can be a real trip killer and I want to avoid that by training them to better adjust to heavy weight and constant movement.
On a different note, some exercises that magazines like Mens Health list for building muscle are absolutely useless. They aren't practical. It's like buying a SUV and then never going off-road. It's just for looks.
I'm learning a lot about myself through all this exertion. I'm placing myself under physical stress and my resolve is being tested. It's a test of the body as much as it is of the mind. I'm not only building muscle for the physical journey but also the mental strength needed to endure it.
March 17, 2009
I watched Kings last night on Hulu and loved it. I could see allusions to the biblical story everywhere. It is a modern day retelling of David and Goliath.
King Silas is King Saul.
His son Jack Benjamin is Jonathan (I think Saul was from the tribe of Benjamin). And in the show he is gay.
His head general (Wes Studi!) has the same name as Saul's general, Abner.
The capital city is Shiloh (which was the first capital before Jerusalem, I think).
They are at war with a country called Gath, meant to represent the Philistines, who had a city called Gath.
There is a Reverend Samuel, who represents the prophet Samuel.
David Shepherd represents David and in the show is a mechanic. And he plays a piano instead of a harp.
David saves Jack while destroying a Goliath tank and quickly becomes a star in the eyes of the nation, Gilboa. Silas makes him a captain and the story unfolds from there.
I was hooked about 20 minutes in. The characters are excellent, really good acting. This show has a lot of promise and I think it bumped Heroes from the list of shows I watch. It's been sucking for a while anyway.
But still, nothing replaces Lost. Lost is television God.
March 16, 2009
I found this in an article on the link between the face and personality:
"If you want a sensitive guy who is emotionally available, go for a big mouth and full lips."
I win in this category. My lips are enormous.
Hiking gear is expensive. I am buying up all the stock stores are getting rid to bring in their new shipments on Sierra Trading Post. Yesterday I bought a $100 dollar fleece for $30. And Teva sandals that were $85 for $40. I still have to buy a headlamp (about $20), a tent (I found a good one for $80), and a few other odds and ends like an emergency whistle, extra parts for my water filter, a micro fiber towel and a bandana. None of this includes food for the actual trip. I plan on eating a Mountain House meal every night so 14 of those times about $7 equals $98. I expect another $150-175 will cover the rest of the food: dried fruit, trail mix, Powerbars (1 a day), other bars, oatmeal, instant soups, teas, supplements, etc. Plus, I eat more than anyone I know so not only will I bring more food, but I will lose lots of weight.
Halfway through The Brothers Karamazov. Really interesting but odd. The people in this book have such exaggerated actions. The characters represent ideas so in order to see those ideas cleary, Dostoevsky had to exaggerate their mannerisms. It borders on overly dramatic at times but I feel the purpose behind it in the book and Dostoevsky makes it interesting so I don't mind.
Heard of the new television series, Kings? It's based on 1 and 2 Kings in the bible. Odd, huh?
"If you want a sensitive guy who is emotionally available, go for a big mouth and full lips."
I win in this category. My lips are enormous.
Hiking gear is expensive. I am buying up all the stock stores are getting rid to bring in their new shipments on Sierra Trading Post. Yesterday I bought a $100 dollar fleece for $30. And Teva sandals that were $85 for $40. I still have to buy a headlamp (about $20), a tent (I found a good one for $80), and a few other odds and ends like an emergency whistle, extra parts for my water filter, a micro fiber towel and a bandana. None of this includes food for the actual trip. I plan on eating a Mountain House meal every night so 14 of those times about $7 equals $98. I expect another $150-175 will cover the rest of the food: dried fruit, trail mix, Powerbars (1 a day), other bars, oatmeal, instant soups, teas, supplements, etc. Plus, I eat more than anyone I know so not only will I bring more food, but I will lose lots of weight.
Halfway through The Brothers Karamazov. Really interesting but odd. The people in this book have such exaggerated actions. The characters represent ideas so in order to see those ideas cleary, Dostoevsky had to exaggerate their mannerisms. It borders on overly dramatic at times but I feel the purpose behind it in the book and Dostoevsky makes it interesting so I don't mind.
Heard of the new television series, Kings? It's based on 1 and 2 Kings in the bible. Odd, huh?
March 15, 2009
I've done two things:
1. I changed the name of my blog. "Seattle, Ho" was temporary because I lacked creativity to come up with a good name. At the time. This morning, though, I started reading Walt Whitman's Song of Myself and found this tucked into one of the verses: "Nature without check with original energy." I liked it and I do not feel that I changed the name of the blog to "Original Energy" cause it sounds cool. That would be gay. I think I've read enough Whitman to know what he is saying and appreciate it on a deeper level.
2. I wrote a poem based on that phrase from Whitman. I'm a little timid about sharing though. I've written sucky poems and I've read sucky poems and they can be painful. And I've read lots of sucky published poems, too so I don't have any illusions about how good my poem will be. But then again, maybe two people read this blog so who cares?
I like the poem. It didn't start out as a poem but when I read through what I had written I realized I could make it into that format. I was drinking coffee at Starbucks and listening to Jon Foreman when I wrote it. Those are always inspiring things so if the poem turns out to be good, I'll know who to thank.
I'll post it tomorrow....meanwhile, photos of two of my favorite poets of all time:
Walt Whitman
Dylan Thomas
1. I changed the name of my blog. "Seattle, Ho" was temporary because I lacked creativity to come up with a good name. At the time. This morning, though, I started reading Walt Whitman's Song of Myself and found this tucked into one of the verses: "Nature without check with original energy." I liked it and I do not feel that I changed the name of the blog to "Original Energy" cause it sounds cool. That would be gay. I think I've read enough Whitman to know what he is saying and appreciate it on a deeper level.
2. I wrote a poem based on that phrase from Whitman. I'm a little timid about sharing though. I've written sucky poems and I've read sucky poems and they can be painful. And I've read lots of sucky published poems, too so I don't have any illusions about how good my poem will be. But then again, maybe two people read this blog so who cares?
I like the poem. It didn't start out as a poem but when I read through what I had written I realized I could make it into that format. I was drinking coffee at Starbucks and listening to Jon Foreman when I wrote it. Those are always inspiring things so if the poem turns out to be good, I'll know who to thank.
I'll post it tomorrow....meanwhile, photos of two of my favorite poets of all time:
Walt Whitman
Dylan Thomas
March 14, 2009
I found this church on the web 4 or 5 months ago called Quest. I visited some people in Chicago with my old roommate, Dan, and one of them worked at a church apart of the Evangelical Covenant denomination. I was fascinated with the denomination so I looked up churches in Seattle that are affiliated with it and found Quest.
When me and Dan were in Seattle interviewing for grad school, one of the other interviewees mentioned that she goes to a church called Quest. I raved about how I had heard of it and she said a lot of Mars Hill students go there.
Today, I found Quest mentioned again and discovered the blog of their pastor, Eugene Cho. I watched a video about the church and read some posts.
I think I am destined to be a member of Quest...not really but I will check it out when I get there because it looks super cool.
On a side note, I hate my job but I'm thankful for it in this economy.
When me and Dan were in Seattle interviewing for grad school, one of the other interviewees mentioned that she goes to a church called Quest. I raved about how I had heard of it and she said a lot of Mars Hill students go there.
Today, I found Quest mentioned again and discovered the blog of their pastor, Eugene Cho. I watched a video about the church and read some posts.
I think I am destined to be a member of Quest...not really but I will check it out when I get there because it looks super cool.
On a side note, I hate my job but I'm thankful for it in this economy.
March 12, 2009
I filled my pack with 45 pounds of weight and stuffed a couple jackets and a sweater in there to make sure the weights weren't rolling around. I tried 60 pounds but that felt impossible.
I drove around looking for bleachers near a school or something I could run up and down on but I didn't find anything. So I went to an apartment complex near my house and ran the stairs there.
I ran up to the third floor and then over to the other stairs, running down them and then back up and over to the other side again, ending where I started. I did this five times and I was DONE. Took me like 7 minutes.
From now on, I'm going to do this exercise every day. I was doing leg exercises like squats, split squats and deadlifts but running the stairs with a 45 pound pack was a beast on my legs. I could barely stand, my legs were shaking so bad. Plus, simply lifting weight won't prepare me aerobically. This will, and I can throw in straight running every once in a while at the gym if I need to.
I also spent a couple hours setting up my schedule for the trip. It's tough to do because there isn't a lot of room for error. I will have to be in great physical shape to accomplish it because most days I will have to average 17-18 miles with a full pack. I've heard this is an extraordinary amount of mileage to accomplish. I've had several people tell me its overeager.
While that's probably true, I do have one significant advantage: physical preparation. Most backpacking trips are short and most hikers aren't serious about trail performance or high mileage. Two night trips are common and may, at the most, cover 30 miles. Whereas, my pre-trip in April will cover 40-46 in one night.
The difference between me and them is most backpackers don't prepare for their trips and most are not challenged by the length and difficulty of it. While the difficulty of my trip is a problem it is also an encouragement to train. I'm exercising like never before, eating healthy, running and setting my mind on my goals. In all the backpacking trips I have been on, I have never trained nor known anyone else who has either. There was never a reason too because the goal was accomplishable. But this trip is different. My mileage will be better because this isn't an overnight backpacking trip. I will have trained consistently and readied my mind for the intensity of the journey.
There are a lot of things that could go wrong between now and then but at the moment I am confident I can do this and expecting a great adventure.
I drove around looking for bleachers near a school or something I could run up and down on but I didn't find anything. So I went to an apartment complex near my house and ran the stairs there.
I ran up to the third floor and then over to the other stairs, running down them and then back up and over to the other side again, ending where I started. I did this five times and I was DONE. Took me like 7 minutes.
From now on, I'm going to do this exercise every day. I was doing leg exercises like squats, split squats and deadlifts but running the stairs with a 45 pound pack was a beast on my legs. I could barely stand, my legs were shaking so bad. Plus, simply lifting weight won't prepare me aerobically. This will, and I can throw in straight running every once in a while at the gym if I need to.
I also spent a couple hours setting up my schedule for the trip. It's tough to do because there isn't a lot of room for error. I will have to be in great physical shape to accomplish it because most days I will have to average 17-18 miles with a full pack. I've heard this is an extraordinary amount of mileage to accomplish. I've had several people tell me its overeager.
While that's probably true, I do have one significant advantage: physical preparation. Most backpacking trips are short and most hikers aren't serious about trail performance or high mileage. Two night trips are common and may, at the most, cover 30 miles. Whereas, my pre-trip in April will cover 40-46 in one night.
The difference between me and them is most backpackers don't prepare for their trips and most are not challenged by the length and difficulty of it. While the difficulty of my trip is a problem it is also an encouragement to train. I'm exercising like never before, eating healthy, running and setting my mind on my goals. In all the backpacking trips I have been on, I have never trained nor known anyone else who has either. There was never a reason too because the goal was accomplishable. But this trip is different. My mileage will be better because this isn't an overnight backpacking trip. I will have trained consistently and readied my mind for the intensity of the journey.
There are a lot of things that could go wrong between now and then but at the moment I am confident I can do this and expecting a great adventure.
March 11th, 2009
I have five exciting events this year:
1. Graduation and quitting Pizza Hut
2. Backpacking trip on the AT
3. Camp
4. Cross country road-trip to Seattle
5. Living in Seattle and attending Mars Hill Grad School
I could flip out right now about any one of these but the one I am most excited for at the moment is the backpacking trip. It's two weeks and 240 miles of God and trail...I wish I was there now.
Today I got two important things in the mail pertaining to that trip: Teva sandals and a guidebook, complete with maps for my journey. Oh boy! Just two months away...
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