On Tuesdays, I have been running but today I was faced with a massive downpour from the storm that came in from the coast last night. There have been many times that I will still run in the rain. I would put in some water resistant pants and jacket and go for it. However today, I decided to change it up.
My daughters have told me about the benefits of walking on the treadmill at a steep incline and I have also read about this. I know it is good to vary routine so I figured I would try it today. I jumped on the treadmill, put in on 12 incline at 3.2 mph and decided to try 30 minutes.
Let me tell you, what a burn. My legs were burning hard at periods throughout and I have thought about lowering the pace or incline but I decided to push through. As I was getting around the 25 minute mark the pain and stress were very real, but I told myself to push to 30 minutes. I worked up a pretty strong sweat and when I got off the treadmill my legs felt sore. It took me a little bit of walking around to get my legs underneath me.
That was actually a good experiment and I am thinking I should incorporate this workout in my workouts periodically. I remember David Goggins talking about performing very long distance races such as 200 milers. He said that you have to be able to walk at a good pace and up hills. He mentioned that you have to train to walk in addition to run because they are different and work different muscles. I believe him. Walking at an incline like that really showed that I lacked walking strength. I also remember hearing marathon runners talk about how they struggle to walk up stairs even though they can run 26 miles. I have the same problem.
I am now convinced I need to start incorporating walking into my training more deliberately. I was doing it some while walking with a 20 pound weight vest but the road is mostly flat where I live. Perhaps I need to work incline walking into my routine. Exercise and fitness is about experimenting, switching things up, and making sure you are strengthening every part of your body. Today was good and I learned something potentially valuable.
Have a good day.