7/22/15. The post where I walk faster.

7/22/15: prior to my blogging hiatus, I had just started really working out again for the first time since my surgery.  I continued the trend during the hiatus, with a few breaks for flare ups and nerve blocks.  I even rode 20 miles in a charity cycling event.  I was very happy to ride and proud that I made it to the finish line, but I'm not anxious to do it again, at least in the near future.  It felt like my pedals were covered in metal spikes.  (#terribleproductideas)  I decided I'd better concentrate on walking for awhile.  

I have returned to walking two miles every morning and I'm walking my previous, hilly route rather than on a flat track.  My speed, however, has not increased significantly.  In fact, my walking has been more like this:  https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XYoBOhZvBEw. So this week, I decided it was time to do something about it.  I understand that I will probably never get back to my pre-RSD fitness level, but I'm going to keep trying.

The first step (Get it? "Step"? I kill myself...) is to concentrate.  While some people listen to music when walking or jogging, I use the quiet time to solve the world's problems.  Which may be good for the world, but it's not so good for my stamina.  The more I think, the more slowly I walk.  Guess multi-tasking is not my thing.  But for the last four days, I have spent my walks concentrating on increasing my speed and heart rate.  And it seems to be working.  I've taken two minutes per mile off my walk and my heart rate is staying consistently higher.  Sorry world, you are going to have to solve your own problems for awhile.

Does walking faster hurt? Yes, it hurts. But not any more than walking slowly. Or sitting.  And my pain level has continued to be mercifully low over the last few weeks, so I am taking advantage of it.  I feel certain that at some point my current stimulator strategy will cease to be effective, but so far, so good. For a brief period this afternoon I thought about turning off the stimulator for awhile to give myself a break from the pins and needles, but I lost my nerve.  I'm going to keep riding this wave for as long as I can.  And no lollygagging.