Well, now the new year is here. No excuses, no major holidays, and really, no time to mess around. With just over 100 days until I plan on stepping out of the societal norm, and into a lifestyle of doing nothing but walking everyday for 15, 20, 30 miles a day, it is time to get serious and prepare myself for the rigors of what i will put myself through for 6 months straight. Anyone that is familiar with me on a day to day basis, knows i can be a fairly lazy person. I admittedly have not done very much to better myself since getting laid-off from my job. That is one of the main reasons I have decided to follow my dream and hike this year, and see where it will lead me next.
Hiking the PCT will put me in the absolute best shape of my life, returning me to a level where i can compete on a level playing field in the sports and team things i once loved and excelled at so much. Allowing me to be proud of my body and what i am physically able to accomplish. Right now, it is not much. I am in horrible shape, and quite a bit overweight. It would be extremely easy for me to not do much training before i leave. I could sit around just day dreaming of being on the trail and doing the other necessary steps of preparing like the meal-plans and food-bags i will be sending myself, where, and when. But I already sort of have that stuff under control. Really now it is more just a matter of affording to go the store and get the food, cooking, dehyrating, vacuum sealing, and planning my own 150 mre's (meals ready to eat). Now that the holidays are over, i should be able to get this done by the end of February hopefully.
What I really need to focus on is the physical training. It is possible just to get into shape on the trail, which some people do entirely. I plan on doing most of my fine tuning once on the trail. But it is imperative to me to be able to put on some decent miles without it killing myself right off the bat. By training now, consistently just going for walks of 5 miles or more, i am getting my body used to walking for extended periods of time. I live about 5 minutes from Folsom Lake and have already found a loop i enjoy and have been walking it regularly. I plan on hitting it up 3-5 times a week through January. The great thing about the trail is that i can follow an actual trail, through the Oak trees and rolling hills one way, and i can follow the waters edge the opposite way. And the trail in its entirety could make for over a 30 mile loop. Walking out my front door and being able to hike all day and return to the luxury of my bed at night is something i MUST take advantage of before in training before I leave, and will be sleeping while hanging from trees from six months straight(yes, i am a hammock camper).
I know it wont take much for me to get into shape. My main problem is just being lazy. I can lose weight really quick if i eat right and put in some decent effort into it. That is why i know the trail will whip me up real quick. By the time I reach Lake Tahoe and spend a week off trail with family and friends, I will be in a physical shape that they have never seen me in. Shit, i have never been in shape my entire adult life. Since i started gaining weight towards the end of high school, i have never been in the shape i wanted. Now is the time.
That being said, i think it is time for my daily hike.......
