Remember why we are doing this......

If I thought that getting up early on a Sunday was hard before, imagine how I felt today having lost that hour's sleep.....! But, at least the temperature was above zero today & apart from a little drizzle occasionally, we were lucky with the weather for a change....... So off Tracey & I went, looking forward (!) to attempting the 16 miles.
I have to say, that now I am sitting in my comfy chair, having had lots to eat & a welcome bath, I am amazed that we walked the full 16 miles and in 3 hours 38 mins as well. It was certainly not a walk in the park though........if only!!
We set off really well & the usual 10 miles went by relatively easily & it was nice to feel warmer after the cold thighs & snow of last Sunday. We then carried onto Trimley High Road for the final 6. The good thing about walking along the High Road is that you know that if you can do the 3 miles going, you HAVE to turn back for home to complete the final 3, no avoiding it. So I knew that I had to "just" do those 3 & then I would be able to turn for home, hoping that this would give me that usual boost.
I got through the first 2 ok, avoiding that awful wall but the 13th caused me a bit of a problem. I was very tired & I really ached, especially my legs. I was trying to think of something to help me pull through as I knew it wasn't far to being able to turn for home.
If you look at any of our justgiving pages & click on "the playtex moonwalk" in the top right hand corner, it will take you to a page showing people who have recently set up their own pages. I often do this as some of them are very inspiring (ok, maybe I am nosy as well!), and it was one of these that I thought about today.
This young woman has a picture of herself & her husband on their wedding day, she looks really happy & beautiful. Then you read about how she was diagnosed in April last year & that she is doing the walk in May with her husband & other members of her family. I remembered how I felt about a year after my own diagnosis. When you are going through your treatment, your life is planned & organised for you: you have no choice: the treatment rules your life for those months, it has to: you are literally fighting for survival. I found that it was about a year later, when life had almost "returned to normal" that the enormity of just what I had gone through really hit me. During treatment you only have time to think about one day at a time & once that is over, your mind has that time to think about everything else, especially your future & what it may hold. It is a very scary time.
So, here I was today, almost ten years on from diagnosis & I thought about how this woman would be having to get through her training just a year after her own. This was enough to push me on. How brave she was being along with the many other women who are doing the walk while they are actually going through their treatment.

Please just stop & think about that for a moment.........

If they could all do it, so could I.
And I did.

I am tired. I do ache. But, this was another hurdle to get through & we did it. I can honestly say now that I am looking forward to walking it again, maybe that's a bit strange?! It's only a few weeks away to the big 20 that we have to do & I know that I will really have to be strong to get through that, but I am feeling really positive. Of course, I am also very lucky having my own personal trainer to help me get through it! Thanks for today, Tracey xx
We have now booked our train tickets to London for the big day & have also paid the final money for the Costa del Sol holiday. We can't wait...time is marching on ....as are we.....!!
xx

ps. Have just looked at other justgiving pages, have a look at www.justgiving.com/walkthewalk2008 So much in common xx

Thursday again already.....

Where has the week gone?
Personal trainer & I walked a speedy 4 miles on Tuesday & then went for our usual swim. Loved it. Have had my leg pulled though as Gaz from work saw my attempts at powerwalking & has had a good laugh. Hubby also saw us & said that he didn't realise just how fast we walked! It makes a change for me to see people I know as it is normally Tracey who says hello to every other person...!!
Tonight, Trace joined the pair of us & we set off walking our 10 mile route but in reverse. It was a bit strange to begin with & I did feel a bit tired as I have had a busy week. It also meant that we had 3 long hills to walk up instead of down........that was hard! It certainly gave my legs a good workout.
Trace left us at the 7 mile marker & we then carried on. I did hope in a way that we would take a short cut & walk 9, but before I knew it, Tracey had said that we'd do the full 10.......ok Mrs Personal Trainer!! What's an extra mile anyway....
I'm glad she did though & I really found a new burst of energy for the final 2, even walking up the longest hill & surviving! We did the 10 in 2hrs 18mins. I did think it might be slower than usual, but looking back at my blogs, it's actually a very good time especially as Tracey was recovering from a cold, I was tired & it was quite damp towards the end. Also have to remember those hills we had to walk up. How can I forget! It's good to know that we have kept our pace up.
Our next walk will be our usual bright & early Sunday morning one & we are hoping for good weather to maybe do a 16...................
xx

Let it snow........

Oh yes, it's true..........Tracey & I walked in the snow today!! We thought that we should have a picture taken just to prove that it really did happen! I don't think that either of us can still quite believe that we did!

When we started our walk at 7.15 (!) it was a bright, sunny but cold morning, zero degrees to be exact. We set off not really knowing just how far we would walk, it just depended on the weather. We didn't want to forego our walk completely as we both feel the long Sunday walks are crucial to our training. We were cold though & I don't think our thighs warmed up at all. In fact, it was still zero degrees when we finished!

It started to snow lightly when we were into our eighth mile. It wasn't too bad, quite nice in a strange way & I guess just another weather experience.....but, it soon started to fall heavily. Not funny. It was hard to keep walking at times, a real battle against the elements, but we carried on with real determination, although I suppose you may say it was madness......

But, the walk was going really well despite the awful weather & I thought that we could walk along the High Road, play our distance by ear & turn back when we were ready as "the wind would be behind us", so we'd be pushed home..........

Famous last words. Sorry Tracey.

I think I may have wanted to go further just to walk that 12th mile again after the battle I had with it last Sunday. I didn't want it to become a mile that I would dread everytime, thinking that I would hit the wall again, so it was a bit of a mental challenge for me.

The weather just got worse & worse & by now we were very wet. We reached the 12th mile marker & I felt really good for getting through it but Tracey very sensibly said that we should turn back for home. A very good idea, after all the wind would surely be behind us now......

No.

It seemed to be even stronger now & we had to really put our heads down & step it out as the snow was really driving into our faces. We must have looked a right sight & I'm sure people thought we were mad as they drove past in their warm cars.

How glad we were to finally reach home & would you believe it, we did the 14 miles in 3hrs 5mins, 7 minutes quicker than last week. I was really shocked! I don't think I realised just how bad the weather was until I saw the photo & saw how much it had snowed, look at the roof & car in the backgound.

I hope that the smile on my face gives you an idea of how fantastic it feels to complete a good walk, it's such a good feeling despite all the hard times. I can't wait to have that picture taken at the end of 26.2 miles........................

xx

Thursday's walk......

It was just personal trainer & me off for a walk last night. Trace is away for the weekend & Dons was having a well deserved evening off after her walks & visits to the gym this week.
We didn't start until 7.30 as I had made a detour on the way home from work....well, I thought I was in need of a boost in the form of a Guinness.......
The weather was really awful: very windy & heavy rain. But, as you know, we can't choose the weather on the big night, so set off along the Trimley High Road for the original 6 miler. It was cold as well but I think that just made us walk at a faster pace. Again, knowing it was a "short" walk, helped as well. It seems funny calling a 6 miler a short walk, but that's how it is now!
It was hard going on the way as the wind was strong & as we got to the open fields by the road, it became very blustery & we had trouble walking in a straight line (it WAS the wind & NOT the Guinness!), but turning for home was great. The wind pushed us along & we decided to carry on past the 6 & walk me home to make it a 7 miler for me. Tracey then turned for home facing the driving rain & wind head on. But, as you know, I don't call her "personal trainer" for nothing....she did that final mile in 11 minutes!!
We did the 7 miles in 1 hour 31 mins, an average of 13 minutes per mile. Considering the awful weather conditions, I think we did really well. When we first started walking those 6 miles along the High Road, we were taking about 1 hour 36, so you can see how far we've come.
Us two are hoping to do our usual bright & early walk on Sunday morning but we will have to see how the weather is... I have my fingers crossed for fine weather as I am really in the mood for a long walk.

Just a bit of news on the sponsorship front: my oldest brother Paul, works for a haulage company called Ralph Morton in Felixstowe & he has been collecting money from his drivers & colleagues on my behalf. I just want to say a BIG thank you to him & to them, as they have very generously donated over £120 so far!! He is hoping to raise much more, so once he has finished, he will add the amount to my fundraising page & I will do a blog solely to do a very special thank you to him & his company. This amount has now pushed me past my target of £500, although it won't be added to my page for a while. I think it goes to show how breast cancer has sadly affected so many people in one way or another. It really is a very worthwhile & special cause to raise money for.....
XX

Walk & swim...

Tracey & I walked a speedy 4 miles last night before jumping (not literally) into the pool to swim 500m.
I enjoyed the walk as it was easy to step it out quickly knowing that it was only a short walk. The last two weeks leading up to the big night will involve speedy 5 milers, as we will (OH, YES, WE WILL!) have completed our 20 miler by then. We then just have to let our bodies recover (!) whilst still training, hence the shorter walks.
After the bit of rain we experienced on Sunday morning, we were a bit shocked to be confronted by pouring rain half way round. No caps to protect us this time & the rain was dripping off our faces. Quite an experience! I think we have now walked through all weather, except snow & with the weather forecast for Easter, who knows.....!!
Tracey, Dons & I will be walking tomorrow evening, hopefully an 8 or 10 one, depending on the time we start. Tracey & I are then going to do our early Sunday walk & you never know, I may jump over "my wall" & do a bit of a longer one....fingers crossed.
I think that we are all coming into our own with our training & now finding out what suits each of us individually. Tracy & Dons are walking & going to the gym more & hopefully have sorted out their injuries & problems. I am happy with my mixture of gym, swimming & longer (mostly, anyway!!) walks. As for personal trainer......she is just there for me & continues to be so encouraging & supportive in her special way.
My sponsor money is now starting to come in & that in itself gives me that extra encouragement to keep going..........just over 8 weeks to go...& dare I say it....I CAN'T WAIT...!!!!!! I am mad.
XX

Over half way there..............

Personal trainer & I started our walk at 7.15 this morning..........!
We woke up to a bit of a rainy morning & after talking to each other, we decided to try to do a walk and to see how the weather was as we went along, as the rain wasn't too bad & we were up bright & early. After all, it may be raining on the big night. I'm really glad we did as the rain stopped during our third mile.
We looked quite funny, waterproofs on & even a cap, so I guess we looked the part of a serious (mad maybe!) walker! It was also quite windy & on occasions, quite hard to walk. As the miles went by, we decided to try for at least a ten miler. It was going very well, we were keeping up a good pace & Tracey then said the immortal words....shall we do the ten & then carry on along Trimley High Road & do a 14 miler.........??
Oh.
Well, we originally started our training, all those weeks ago, with 6 milers along that straight road, so in a way, it made sense to use it to extend our distance as we knew all the mile markers. I knew we would be ready to do the 14 but I think it was a bit of a shock now that we were actually going to do it. It went well to begin with & I was fine to the 11th. But then I had a bit of a problem. During our walks I find that different parts of my body hurt at different stages, but for the first time, I found that ALL of my body hurt at the same time. I had hit my wall.
I know that I have mentioned about my mental battles before, but this was different. I really had to dig deep because that dreaded "I can't do this" thought came into my head for the first time. I told Tracey not to worry as I was ok really but didn't talk for a while. I had to think about all of the reasons why I am doing this & really concentrate on my walking. I felt very emotional at one point because I thought that if I couldn't do 14, there would be NO way I would manage the 26.2 miles. A very low point.
Getting to the 12 miles & turning back for the final 2 was such a good feeling though & I felt so much better knowing we were on the home straight. I decided to set myself little targets to reach instead of just the 13th mile & this really helped as the more targets I reached, the more I knew we were almost there. I managed to step it out & felt much better. I did the power walking arms for the whole walk today & I found this helped towards the end as you really do use your arms to push yourself along.
We did the 14 in 3 hours 12 & felt amazing.
I felt a real sense of achievement & I think that having that awful mile has helped me for future walks, having gone through it once, I CAN get through it again. Wow.
I really want to thank my very special personal trainer for today as she probably helped me more than she realised. At times, she stepped up the pace a little & that gave me the incentive to push on & at other times, she slowed just enough & that made me able to walk a little faster.
Thanks honey. You are a star & yes, maybe next time, we will carry on that "little" bit further & do the 16!!
xx

Oh what a night................

Not a walking update, more of a fundraising update.............
Us girls hit the town, well, Felixstowe (!), last night. We had a good laugh & it was a welcome break from all the training.
My pint of Guinness on the bar started a conversation with some businessmen which personal trainer amazingly managed to turn into a bit of a fundraising success!! She was able to drop the fact that we were doing the moonwalk into the conversation & ended up getting £64 in just a few minutes!! Well done Tracey!
I have also been set a challenge which, if successful, will bring me in a wonderful amount of money.....don't want to say too much as many drinks were flowing & I have to make sure it is a serious pledge from the person concerned now that he is sober!! He did give me £20 as a start so it does sound hopeful!
I still managed to get to the gym just after 8 this morning, although it was a bit of a struggle! I'm glad I did though as I had a good workout & felt refreshed after! I saw Tracey in there as usual & we have decided that we are going to attempt the longest walk of our training so far tomorrow morning. Fingers crossed for the weather.....................
xx