Tag: Walking

I achieved a great level of carnage with my newest white shoes

~ Veselin ~ 6 Comments

Back in June, I mentioned that I got a fresh pair of comfortable white shoes. This is how they look today:

Brooks Revel Max

I gave up trying to maintain the white color after about 10 days. I bought another pair (Adidas Terrex) with the intent of keeping these white, while doing the dirty things with the others, which have plastic and easy to clean top. However, the white shoes simply refused to stay white and the original color didn’t come back after washing. So rather than fighting a lost battle, I switched the pairs and did all the walks, hikes, and football with these, and kept the others for cleaner occasions. This above is the result.

The breathable mesh is significantly damaged. The sole shows signs of ungluing. The insides are still fine.

Overall, I had a good summer with these. I used them well outside of their intended purpose (running on asphalt). They were comfortable, the sole had good grip. My feet didn’t hurt, I didn’t slip, I could kick the ball. Two things I didn’t like:

  • Stepping on a fruit, like a plum or a cherry, which are very abundant in Sofia, would result in the fruit sticking to the bottom. I’ve not experienced this level of stuff gluing to the sole in years.
  • They were white. The ideal color for this model is poop-brown. I tried washing and cleaning with foam with no luck. If we ignore how they look and that I managed to destroy them in less than 3 months, pretty good shoes.

I will probably keep using them as football shoes until my toes drill a hole.

The little hut

~ Veselin ~ 2 Comments

Every real construction has to start with this little building. Found one in the mountain, not quite where I expected to see it. My kids were disappointed that I didn’t take a photo of the horses on the opposite direction of this hut, and looking back into the morning, I think the horses would’ve made a better blog post 🙂

Malyovitsa

~ Veselin ~ 2 Comments

The low cost airlines have brought lots of tourists to Sofia, so many that entire areas become foreigners-only. Thankfully, they stay away from Malyovitsa because it doesn’t have a gondola.

This peak is one of my long-term hiking goals. Last time we made it, it took us 8 hours both ways. This is about 2 hours more than my current abilities so I don’t expect an attempt this summer.

Breaks from counting steps

~ Veselin ~ 2 Comments

Regular fitness activities require healthy breaks. The body needs to recover from the micro injuries. Muscles grow, the tendons heal. It also feels good.

Walking is not quite the same. We are made to move and we are also not made to not move. Walking doesn’t generate the same stress as strength training. It’s a light activity.

As a result of this thinking, I adopted the strategy to only have breaks when it’s simply not possible to go out. Got Covid or a knee pain? Break. It rains, snows, life is stressful, the project must ship this week, or I really feel like having a break? Go out and walk.

This approach simplifies decision making. I don’t need to ask myself if I am above or below an imaginary line that lets me do steps. I just hope it’s sustainable. Doing something wrong every day comes with consequences. Walking too much could be that as well.