16 March 2009

Walking for a cause

So Cathy requested that I mention how my walking training for the AFSP is going... and here's where I'm giving it!

Background:
When Susan died, I lost it utterly. An old college friend contacted me about the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) and how they have a 20 mile Overnight Walk to raise awareness of depression and suicide. This year it's the last weekend of June in Chicago. We leave at dusk and end our walk at dawn - bringing suicide into the light so people can talk. I thought about doing it for a long time but figured I'd never manage the logistics since it's literally 2 weeks after I get back from my Ecuador / Galapagos vacation. Except then some of Susans other friends decided to do it and form a team in her memory - so one morning I decided to go for it and sign up! Ever since I've been raising money. I need to raise $1000 in donations to be elligible to officially walk and I'm nearly there. My personal goal is $2500. http://www.theovernight.org/fundraising/yvette

So that's the background.

Now I'm working to get the endurance up to walk 20 straight miles through Chicago against my body's desire to sleep. I know I can do it. We have about 10 hrs and there are pit stops every 2 hrs with porta potties and water. In the middle they serve us lunch/dinner/snack/something.

I joined up at the new gym that opened down the street when it was still on it's gaining enrollment sale. I've gone just about every other day - only missing a day for skiing (mmmmm). So I've done a lot better than before.

I'm not a fast walker - never have been - and I hate running. But the difference is I *like* walking. So walk I have been. I can easily maintain a 20-ish min mile which is far faster than I have to go for the walk for a few hrs. I'm not sure yet that I can maintain it for 20 hrs. But I have a plan and I've stuck to it. I plan to walk 350 miles (ish) including the last 20 in Chicago in order to get ready and do this. This is around my vacation. I've walked 14% of that so far - aka 15 miles. I'm behind what I was supposed to be for training - but a big chunk of that is yesterday & today since yesterday I spent the day skiing and today I spent it recovering since I couldn't move my neck after a nasty fall. I expect to get further and further behind due to skiing in the next few weeks (since next weekend I go to Whistler).

And that's how it's going. I'm super excited and glad that I'm doing this - both the training and the actual walk.

Good for ya Cathy? *grins*