“How much walking are you doing to get ready?”

In the words of a former colleague… “A f%ckton.” Of course, I’d never use language like that. 😉

Interestingly, some pilgrims don’t train for the Camino. Instead, they “walk themselves into shape” on the trail. To me, that seems like a recipe for blisters and sore feet. I’ve taken the opposite approach. I figure if I put in the miles now, I can enjoy more of the Camino later.

“How’s your old man body holding up?“

I haven’t fallen apart yet. I’ve had some foot soreness and a couple small blisters, but overall, doing pretty well.

“Is your fully loaded backpack crushing your soul?”

I thought it would, but it turns out backpacks are designed to put nearly all the weight on your hips, which makes carrying it much easier than I anticipated.

“How do you keep from getting bored on your long walks?”

I listen to books, podcasts and music. I even listened to a 48-hour biography of Ulysses S. Grant by Ron Chernow. Which begs the question…. doesn’t that man have an editor?

“Are you ready?”

I think so. Now I just have to avoid injuries, COVID and cars.

I say “cars” because in June, I was hit by a car while riding my bike. The driver turned left in front of me as I crossed legally at a crosswalk. She was going so fast that her wheels squealed, but somehow she swerved enough to just hit my front tire, and miss my body. It was really, really scary, but I’m happy to report no injuries. Another few inches, and my Camino (and maybe more) would have been history.

“Can you share your training program?”

The table below summarizes my weekly walking targets. I try to take one rest day each week.

My long day was last weekend. I ended up doing 21 miles. Over 51,000 steps.