As I declared in my post last week, it is my goal to do an 11.4-mile hike in Glacier National Park this August. I’m as out of shape as I have ever been in my whole life. I blame menopause. It has sucked my will to live. Alas…
Until the last couple of years, I have exercised religiously. However, the throes of menopause have made that harder and harder. My exercise routine has dwindled. I still walk a couple of miles most days, but I used to run or walk five. I also did strength training with weights. I’ve not picked up weights in quite a while. Both my physical and mental health have suffered from this. However, I’m back on the wagon! I really want to make this hike.
I made the mistake of telling my daughter the 11.4-mile hike was my goal. She is now hell-bent on doing it. She is also insanely fit and training for a half-marathon anyway. I try to remind myself that I once ran a half-marathon and this hike is shorter. It is still quite daunting.
Knowing I needed backup, I enlisted the help of a good friend who is also a fitness trainer. Coach Shellie is a godsend (look her up on IG @coachshellie). She prepared me a detailed training schedule that is doable but challenging.
I’m about a week into training. I only have two months. I’m walking my ass off—lots of hills. I’m also strength training again. It’s a lot. I’m very sore. I don’t know that I can get there in a mere two months—I trained for five months for that damn half-marathon, but I’m on giving it my all.
I’m not young, but I am too young to give up. Believe me, shit hurts. My calves are mooing from a three-mile hike in the woods yesterday. Nevertheless, I will persist. I want to do this for myself and I don’t want to let my daughter down.
The one thing I keep telling myself in all of this is: if I manage to get back into decent shape, I’m never getting out of shape again!
We didn’t get to do a vacation last summer because everything in our house stopped working at once. Repairs drained our savings. So, I’m super stoked about a trip this year. I’m especially happy that my daughter’s schedule allows her to join us and we will be going out west. I will get to mark two more states off my list—Idaho and Montana. That will bring me to a total of 41 states I have visited. That is exciting!
I have talked to a couple of people who have been to Glacier for pro tips. I want to be prepared. I also want to be rejuvenated. This year has been really hard so far. I want the nature of this great country to envelope me and help me heal.
I felt very much the same way before we went out west in 2017 and visited three national parks. I’ll let you all draw your own parallels to the similarities of the state of the world at these two times. Needless to say, I need a win with nature.
I plan to keep pushing myself as hard as I can. I know I will have bad days, but tomorrow is always another day, Scarlett!
Life is all about looking forward to something. I’m really looking forward to this trip. My soul needs it. I’m going to give that 11.4 miles my all, but even if I don’t make it, I will be surrounded by some of our country’s most amazing landscapes. I’ll call that a win.
Angela Traver
What is this blog about? Well, it's a general blog, but it is also a very specific blog. If you get that reference, you get a gold star! I have been a public relations professional and writer of press releases for more than 20 years—primarily in the booze biz. I decided to do some writing for fun and embrace the humor that gets me through most days. Hopefully it will make you chuckle—or at least smile. I’m a certified crazy magnet, and more than a little nutty myself, so buckle up. Also, I have two vices—profanity and red wine/whiskey. You’ve been warned. It should also be noted, that I’m a HUGE Bob & Sheri fan. I’ve been a listener for more than 20 years. This opportunity is a dream come true and it may have made me cry. That being said, I cry at everything. If you are into booze, dogs, food and/or knitting, hit me up on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter (although I’m terrible at Twitter and it scares me) @kyspiritsgal. You can also find all my previous blog posts at www.kyspiritsgal.com.
