Walking as Transportation

[Arbo]

I'm wondering if anyone has walked as a primary mode of transportation? I'm feeling a bit discouraged here, since as some people here know, I'm without a car and in a semi-rural area and just in not very good living conditions, BUT, one way that I think I can get out of it involves me basically walking 10 miles per day

I'm wondering if this is far fetched and is going to result in me basically losing time and getting unhealthy, as it might be too much strain doing that level of walking -- IE, I've heard from people who 'run commute' that they've done damage to their bladders or kidneys and pee'd blood, etc. Something I'm a bit paranoid about after looking into run commuting to simply cut down on the time of this journey

Basically, 3 miles to the bus, then a short bus ride, then 2.2 miles to the destination -- The problem is that even after 3 miles I'm normally tired, and I can't seem to expand my bodies ability to deal with walking. I almost feel as if walking or running are both equally draining on the body(or at least my body), and just as running 10 miles is 'far fetched', so is walking

I'm looking for some kind of inspiration here, trying to find a potential benefit to the walking. I definitely do have some pounds to lose, I'd say 20 to be exact, but I'm worried about showing up at the community college basically in a dead and vampire state. Like if walking three miles is hard for me, how can I get to walk 10?

So I guess I'm wondering if it's possible to do this without some kind of elite training, etc, and I'm wondering if walking as transportation is really do-able. I sincerely hope it is, but I'm doubting it

[fips]

Walking
I don't think that walking 2x 5 miles a day will kill you, unless you have problems with your legs, ankles or feet or need to walk on a hard surface (like an asphalt street) all the way. Timewise, it depends on how fast you (want to) walk. Personally, walking for 1.5-2 hours every day (for 10 miles, I assume) would eat up too much of my spare time. If you add the typical 8-9 hours of work, there's not much time left for the day. Also, consider if you enjoy such long walks (weather, landscape, walking with other people, listening to the radio/audio books etc.). In any case (for walking or running) make sure to get proper and comfortable footwear to avoid injuries to your joints and back.

Running
Running 2x 5 miles is also fun. Maybe it would be an "upgrade" after you have been walking for a few weeks/months. I don't know if you have a shower at work, if you can store clothes to change, if you sometimes bring food (or other things to work) or use the way to and from to take care of other things (like going shopping). So it's faster compared to walking, but comes with some limitations. On the other hand, you could alternate between walking and running, depending on the weather or other plans.

Third Altenative
Riding the bike might be the silver bullet. It's faster than walking, less strain to your body and provides more flexibility for transportation purposes in general.

[jacob]

@GhettoErasmus - Not to worry, you're simply out of shape. Most people are and have low expectations to match. 10 miles a day is respectable but nowhere near elite levels. I do 9M/day on average (62M/week) . Only 6-8 miles of that is running. To do internal damage, you need to run FAST and do so for 120M/week consistently.

Walking is more about stamina than anything else. I'd easily pit a 65 year old who consistently walks 5M/day against an 18 year old basketball player who plays a lot but never walks further than the garage in a 25M walkathon... or a 100M/week load. Stamina builds slower than both muscles and endurance. Expect it to take several months before adding mileage doesn't affect your energy levels.

Build volume slowly. The standard rule is no more than 10%/week. Unless you know what you're doing (experienced athlete), just stick with that. E.g. first week, do 2M/day. Next week, do 2.2M/day. Next one, do 2.4M/day, etc. Don't speed the increase up if you're feeling fine but do back off if you're not.

People who rarely walk more than a block have an average speed of about 2.5MPH (military: easy march) and they tire out after about an hour. People who walk a lot are closer to 3.8MPH (quick time) and they can hold this pace for 8-10 hours. I find the former in downtown, but once I leave downtown the people who are still walking to get around are a lot faster. It's possible to go even faster for extended ranges (like hours) through a combination of quick time and double time, essentially walking 4 steps and then jogging 6-8, repeat. It takes some practice to do it smoothly, but you can go at 4.2MPH for this.

Walking burns about 100kcal/mile. There are 3500kcal to a pound of body weight, so you have about a 700 mile reserve to burn.

[lilacorchid]

I walk primarily for transportation. My work is about a mile from where I live, and I walk to and from work 2x day. (I go home for lunch, woo!) Some days I walk to the store and haul groceries home too. This adds another mile and the additional weight of the groceries. My range of distance for walking is 30 minutes before I will think of using the car. (This works for me because there is not much outside that range that I need).

Just keep going. It will get easier, and this is really the simplest form of exercise to get started. I used to think it's far, but it's all what you get used to. Lots of people think what I'm doing is too far or I'm crazy, but it's normal for me and I don't think anything of it. You could be that way too about your commute once you get going. Also, if you went to the gym, how much time would it take to get there, do your work out and get home?

[walker]

I also walk as my main form of transportation, anywhere from 5-9 miles a day. It definitely takes longer than running or biking, but doubles as my time to meditate, do errands, listen to books and podcasts, think through work-related issues, or even make a phone call or two. Once I get to work I actually find it easier to sit down and focus -- I don't have that "jumpy" feeling and even have a few endorphins going from moving at a good pace. Injuries have never been an issue beyond the occasional blister.

@GhettoErasumus, if you're interested, there are training programs for endurance walking that might be useful -- for example, this site for marathon walkers (something I aspire to do post-ERE). Good luck whatever you decide, it's not always easy to make healthy choices in car-centric areas.

[Holgersen]

Walking is all about mindset. If you spend the entire time thinking about your destination and how much farther you have to go than walking is going to seem terrible. You need to take the time while your walking to look at nature, listen to the birds, say hello to neighbors, listen to audiobooks and just take some time to think about whatever is going on in your life.

It's just a simple change in mindset, but it works.

Another cool think about walking is that you discover a lot of new things in your area, because you're not just flying by them in a car or on a bike.

[Arbo]

Walking
I don't think that walking 2x 5 miles a day will kill you, unless you have problems with your legs, ankles or feet or need to walk on a hard surface (like an asphalt street) all the way. Timewise, it depends on how fast you (want to) walk. Personally, walking for 1.5-2 hours every day (for 10 miles, I assume) would eat up too much of my spare time. If you add the typical 8-9 hours of work, there's not much time left for the day. Also, consider if you enjoy such long walks (weather, landscape, walking with other people, listening to the radio/audio books etc.). In any case (for walking or running) make sure to get proper and comfortable footwear to avoid injuries to your joints and back.

Running
Running 2x 5 miles is also fun. Maybe it would be an "upgrade" after you have been walking for a few weeks/months. I don't know if you have a shower at work, if you can store clothes to change, if you sometimes bring food (or other things to work) or use the way to and from to take care of other things (like going shopping). So it's faster compared to walking, but comes with some limitations. On the other hand, you could alternate between walking and running, depending on the weather or other plans.

Third Altenative
Riding the bike might be the silver bullet. It's faster than walking, less strain to your body and provides more flexibility for transportation purposes in general.

I think walking 10 miles is about 4 hours of walking for me, maybe slightly less -- I think that I'm RIGHT at the Google Maps estimated speed of walking which is 3 MPH, but I may be a bit slower after one hour of walking

I'm actually going to a community college, HOPEFULLY, and I should be able to get Pell Grant money for at least this one Summer semester -- Which won't be a lot, but in my situation, it will help A LOT and hopefully open some opportunity

[Arbo]

@GhettoErasmus - Not to worry, you're simply out of shape. Most people are and have low expectations to match. 10 miles a day is respectable but nowhere near elite levels. I do 9M/day on average (62M/week) . Only 6-8 miles of that is running. To do internal damage, you need to run FAST and do so for 120M/week consistently.

Walking is more about stamina than anything else. I'd easily pit a 65 year old who consistently walks 5M/day against an 18 year old basketball player who plays a lot but never walks further than the garage in a 25M walkathon... or a 100M/week load. Stamina builds slower than both muscles and endurance. Expect it to take several months before adding mileage doesn't affect your energy levels.

Build volume slowly. The standard rule is no more than 10%/week. Unless you know what you're doing (experienced athlete), just stick with that. E.g. first week, do 2M/day. Next week, do 2.2M/day. Next one, do 2.4M/day, etc. Don't speed the increase up if you're feeling fine but do back off if you're not.

People who rarely walk more than a block have an average speed of about 2.5MPH (military: easy march) and they tire out after about an hour. People who walk a lot are closer to 3.8MPH (quick time) and they can hold this pace for 8-10 hours. I find the former in downtown, but once I leave downtown the people who are still walking to get around are a lot faster. It's possible to go even faster for extended ranges (like hours) through a combination of quick time and double time, essentially walking 4 steps and then jogging 6-8, repeat. It takes some practice to do it smoothly, but you can go at 4.2MPH for this.

Walking burns about 100kcal/mile. There are 3500kcal to a pound of body weight, so you have about a 700 mile reserve to burn.

When you say you average 9 Miles per day, are you saying that based on some pedometer that just adds up your foot steps and tells you how many miles you've walked? I find it hard to believe that someone can walk 9 miles per day, not only does it seem like it would take so long in hours, I just can't imagine someone being able to do it and not really be broken down at the end(especially day after day)

For myself, I notice that after my exhaustion point, which I really do think is 2.5 or 3 miles, my back starts really slouching and I kind of start 'hobbling' forward, or better yet, lurching forward. But for some reason the back of my neck, my upper back muscles, get really tired after this amount of walking

If people are really walking this amount, I'm just shocked at how unfit I am and it brings up a lot of questions to my mind -- Like, I would consider myself in decent shape! I cannot jog, but since I was 19, about 6 years ago, I did HIIT with running, and even just about 5 months ago I was doing a kind of modified HIIT training to lose fat(Running like 100m-150m, so not really a proper HIIT, which I think is 200m or 20 secs of all out running followed by rest) -- Actually, it wasn't HIITs but more Sprints. I took long rests in between

So what this is having me wondering, what system is worked by walking? I mean, maybe this extreme walking is actually going to give me some kind of health benefit or fitness benefit that 'modern' trainees ignore. Is it basically identical to running or endurance running, so it will work the VO2Max system?

I'm trying to somehow look at having to do 4 hours of walking, which seems to me to be close to impossible(especially since we're talking 5 miles in one 'set'), and give it a positive light. Someone else mentioned a bike, well, right now I'm down to $100 in PayPal and only $70 or so in my wallet, and $5 in my bank account. Thankfully I'm living with people who let me live here rent free and give me free food, internet, water, etc, but still at this point I don't think I can afford a bike so sadly walking is what it will have to be(if I can hit the deadline, I really slacked and have been in a kind of sleep state and may have waited too long to get some papers submitted to the college, if that's so, then it's GG, I'm finished)

Thought provoking response though Jacob, I am GOING to try to up my miles this morning because I do not think I have been increasing the distance by 10%, I've just been doing the same route, usually 2 miles one way, so just 4 miles in total. Also, do I need to do this every day to build up my distance? And BTW, I can for SURE say, I feel that running 2 miles is easier than walking 2 miles. I don't know why. I can't explain it. I believe I could walk out there today, put my ipod on, and be able to run 2 miles. WHY is it easier to run 2 miles than walk 2 miles, AND, why is it easier to run faster than it is to run slower? It feels that way to me, like I have had an experience of a 'slow jog' where I'm simply exhausted, tired, and then I decided to 'Kick it up' and when I increased my pace and speed, it got EASIER

Anyhow, I'm simply frustrated. I feel that 10 miles may become 'do-able', but it can never become 'meh' or easy

[henrik]

In fitness as in finance, it is always very hard to imagine the next level. That is until you've advanced a few levels and seen that what seemed impossible maybe just a few months ago can become normal.

I think the people you mentioned who are peeing blood after walking may have some serious health issues and simply blaming walking is probably a dangerous attitude.

The slouching and your back hurting comes from weak core muscles. You need muscles to keep your body upright for longer distances. Building your mileage up slowly will help with that. You might also want to check with a physician about your posture-- how your body weight is distributed between resting on your bones and being held up by force with muscles can probably make a big difference in energy expenditure.

Jacob explained it well. Take it one step at a time (no pun intended), don't increase your load more than by 10% per week (this concerns both distance walked and the time you spend on your feet). The 10% is not a mandatory training plan, it's the upper limit that is similarly the default advice in long distance running. Take it easy if you don't feel ready for an increase any given week. Take rest days as needed.

[bibacula]

I walk 8 mi/day, which takes a little over 2 hours at 3.5 mi/hr. It's my favorite form of transportation!

It sounds like you need to work on your posture as you walk. Slouching actually makes walking harder, so keep your head high, chest out and shoulders back when you walk.

Better posture and conditioning will make your commute a breeze. Just hang in there!

[Arbo]

Sigh, guess what? I just walked to my desired bus stop and back... You will NOT believe how long it took

I left at 4:15AM, maybe 4:16

I got back into the apartment at 6:41AM

That means that walking at my fastest, with some ankle and foot pain, It takes me about 2.5 hours, 2 hours and 26 minutes, to just do 6 miles

AND, I do not think I can keep up my speed like that, so what if I get slower after each mile? If it's 2.5 hours for 6 miles, then I think I'm walking at 2.6 MPH

At 2.6MPH, 10 miles would take me 4 hours and 26 minutes(if I'm right in doing this math), and that's just... insane IMO. Too much for me, and I'm also wondering if my feet and body can handle it! So it's Time + The Strain on the body

[JasonR]

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[jacob]

At 2.6MPH, 10 miles would take me 4 hours and 26 minutes(if I'm right in doing this math), and that's just... insane IMO. Too much for me, and I'm also wondering if my feet and body can handle it! So it's Time + The Strain on the body

10M/2.6MPH is 3:50 hours. The body can't handle an immediate ramp-up. Well, it can handle it (you won't pass out or die), but you'll be quite sore.

At 4MPH, it would take you 2:30 hours ... 1:15 hour in the morning and 1:15 hour in the evening. That's a fair time. Long-distance is mainly a head game. When I moved out here the commute was driving me nuts. I used to walk 10 minutes to get to the train. When I moved getting to work now felt like a journey. That feeling took a couple of months to get over. It was also physically tiring. I do have a pedometer and I also have a map. Google will tell you distance.

The perception of time and distance is relative. If you're used walking 10M per day, the first 3M is going to feel like a warmup. You won't even notice it before you're already 1/3 of of the way in. If you're not used to walking, even a mile feels long. Part of this is in going faster and in not feeling any kind of exhaustion/tiredness anymore.

People who walk 10M won't keep doing it at 2.5MPH. They'll up their speed. VO2Max is not a factor below 4MPH. Stamina is. This is why, in terms of walking, I'd pit an experienced senior walker against a short-distance athlete any day. Once you have the stamina, it's a matter of taste as to whether you count walking a form of exercise. I don't.

Consistency is your friend. One mile per day every day will do much more for your stamina and "work capacity" than 7 miles in one day followed by six days of nothing. If you get behind schedule, don't try to catch up. Instead, don't do it again. Failing to commit to consistency is what destroys most exercises, financial, diet, etc. plans.

[jacob]

@walker -

You might want to check out "volksmarching" (people's march)
http://www.imlwalking.org/agenda.htm
http://www.imlwalking.org/cal.html
It's more popular in Europe but I see they have a US event too now. These are usually 2-5 day events. In several of these events, there will be 5-10000 participants. It's typically a mix of civilians and military teams with a very international flavor. Put a flag on your backpack and see what happens. I did the Danish one five times when I was young.

This one is legend:
http://www.dodentocht.be/en (100km in 24 hours)

[JohnnyH]

I like walking, more than biking, and do it basically everyday... On my 30 minute lunch break I can walk 3 miles. This slows if it is raining or if there is snow on the ground. Also I do not have to interact/wait for traffic during this at all.

I sometimes do a 10 mile loop for fun and last time it took me about 1hr:50mins. I'd guess my heart rate is around 140 when I do this and I sweat a little but it does not feel exhausting during or after and my well broken in boots don't hurt my feet... However, if I were to run I think it would be around 1hr:20mins and I would be sore for days. Maybe I just have a weird skeletal structure and/or am not a great runner.

Get some audiobooks and work towards 20 minute miles and I think you can become content with such a walking commute... Or just find a good spot to chain up an inexpensive bike at your bus stop.

[walker]

@Jacob, thanks for those links! The Dodentocht sounds like a real adventure -- adding that to the bucket list.

[theanimal]

Similar to the Dodentacht there's also the legendary Alaska Mountain Wilderness Classic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Mo ... ss_Classic

A multi-day wilderness adventure race from point A to point B. You pick the route. Must be completely unsupported and human powered. Popular means of travel is by foot and packraft. The winners usually end up travelling up to 60 miles a day over rough terrain (depending on location). That's obviously at the higher end of the spectrum, but it'll show you that 10 mi is really not that much. Follow Jacob's advice and you'll be set.

Now, time to go for a walk!

[jacob]

I notice a lot of you like to fill your head with something while walking, e.g. podcasts, thoughts, phone calls, observations of nature, people ...

Over the years I've tended towards filling my head with 'nothing' while walking. I switch my mind off. None of that meditative "focus on your breathing" either. Just off. This also makes time pass faster, subjectively.

[lilacorchid]

I agree with @jacob. At first it seemed like forever to walk half a mile to work. Now it's a short jaunt and I hardly notice. It's nice to zone out too. Solutions to problems sometimes just pop into my head. I doubt I that would happen if I was listening to a podcast or something.

[George the original one]

9 miles per day is not that much. If you had ancestors who took the Oregon Trail or California Trail, they typically walked that far (and further!), set up camp, took care of their livestock, tore down camp and repeated for another day all summer long.

Military marches of 20 miles with a battle pack are considered normal. 10 miles with a couple books would be a cakewalk to soldiers.

Your legs and feet will get used to it. If you don't have proper fitting shoes, get them! If your have proper fitting shoes, replace them when they become uncomfortable due to wear!

***
My own walking rate is 4 miles per hour for the first hour, but I drop it down to 3 miles per hour if the trip takes much over an hour. Last time I really tested my walking ability, I was out fishing and locked the car keys into the trunk. Was a 6 mile hike back home in my waders (see point about shoes above), not the most comfortable of walks and I hurt afterwards!