One Step At A Time

The morning walk to work has been a good part of my day. I notice I walk very fast with a wide stride and find I feel great once I get to my chosen destination. It’s inspiring me to get more serious about walking and I’m now interested in shifting gears and moving up to ‘speed-walking.’ Speed-walking is just as it sounds, walking at a faster speed than a normal stride, but is still down a notch from the competitive sport of ‘race-walking.’ The benefits of speed-walking (also called power-walking and many other variations) are many and I can see how they would fit beautifully into my planned program and could easily include Sweet Roast. Speed-walking, first and foremost, is an activity, which will increase my caloric burn without the pounding my joints would get from jogging. While I’d love very much to get back into jogging, for now I think speed-walking will give me the same benefits without the extra stresses on my body (and knees). Speed-walking is basically walking very fast without breaking into a run or jog. One foot remains on the ground at all times and you swing your arms in pace with the stride. With the Trans-Canada Trail just yards away from our front door, and it’s paved throughout the town we can use that as our speed-walking route without encountering highway traffic and the beautiful countryside the trail cuts through should keep us interested in using the same path frequently without getting bored. I know when I jogged years ago I used to jog along the same stretch of highway all the time and logged hundreds of miles. The fact that I used the same route all the time did not bore me at all, in fact, it enabled me to establish ‘markers’ along the way for pacing with my stopwatch. I can see the Trans-Canada Trail providing the same opportunity with speed-walking. I can hardly wait for the snow and ice to melt away so I can get started with my speed-walking program. All I need is a good pair of walking/running shoes (I’m due for a new pair anyway) and my stopwatch and pedometer. I’m also excited that Sweet Roast may be a regular speed-walking partner!