Mind games
Taking them in turn. The laziness stems from the fact that a worthwhile training walk takes, and this is going to sound ridiculous, about 8 hours. That’s 6+ hours of walking, some brief breaks, and getting to the start of the walk and back. That’s 2 rounds of golf; a working day; the length of time it takes my Dad to tell a story; or a transatlantic flight. It’s a long time. So, not being flush with huge amounts of spare time, and figuring it’s “8 hour walks or there’s no point”, I’ve settled for “there’s no point”. In the short term, this means I get to see the kids and Mrs Longley. In the long-term of course it may mean I’m under prepared, or suffer some equipment failing that would have come out in the training wash. Que sera sera.
The other issue is what I think of as “event related psychosomatic symptoms”.
I’ve recently started open water swimming, and my preoccupation has been cramp in my legs. The preoccupation comes from an article I read about open water swimming panic attacks, in which the author recounts in spectacular detail how he’d overcome his panic attacks, only to suffer from a devastating cramp attack.
Now, I’ve done a reasonable amount of pool swimming, and never once had cramp. But now, in the hours leading up to open water swimming, my hamstrings involuntarily give off the signs of cramping. For no obvious reason. At all. Thanks legs.
The connection? Well, since signing up for the London to Brighton trek, and having only done relatively modest walks, my legs, knees, hips and toes have all started demonstrating what are quite frankly ridiculous symptoms.
As I write this, my ham-strings grumble and my calves twitch unhelpfully.
Assuming my legs don’t fall off, my next training is a longish walk that I’ve titled 500 Miles (Proclaimers fame).