[at-l] who's ready?

[rambleon@email.unc.edu (Jeremy Reiter)]

In regards to being "trail ready" for a thru-hike, it's near
impossible (IMHO) to get "in physical shape" FOR A THRU-HIKE
beforehand. Unless you are doing a lot of hiking up and down steep,
tough, rocky, mountainous terrain, with a XX pound pack on your back,
your body is not going to be "in shape" before you start. You can get
in better cardiovascular shape before you start, and there are
certainly advantages to this, but that is by no means the total
package. My advice would be to start with low mileage and give your
body a chance to adjust to the rigors of long distance hiking. They
are numerous. Even though i felt good enough to start increasing my
mileage pretty early on, i made myself keep the mileage down because i
felt that it would increase the chances of my body withstanding the
rigors for the long haul. A lot of hikers feel good enough to start
pushing the big miles early on, and then end up with stress fractures
or tendonitis or shin splints etc. I think my "prime hiking shape" was
reached somewhere in Northern Virginia. I was in some sort of pain for
about 99% of the hike, but i never suffered any type of serious
injury. One of the main things i attribute this to is allowing my body
plenty of time to adjust in the beginning. 

My pre-hike training consisted of ordering a lot of Domino's Pizza in
the hopes of putting as much fat on my body as i could. It was all
gone by the time i got to New York :-) 
Just my .02$

Walk with light,

-Rambleon-


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