A lot of people have asked me if and how I am going to train for the Appalachian Trail. When they ask this question they are referring to the physical aspect of the preparation and are usually surprised when I tell them I am trying to train more mentally then physically. I actually read from a hiker who swore that running 20 miles a week before the trail is the best thing you can do. Personally, I think a complete thru hike is more of an endurance of the mind rather than an endurance of the body. Don't get me wrong, definitely a whole lot of body endurance necessary, but it's normally your mind that ultimately convinces you to give up.
So when I say I am preparing mentally, I am not talking about meditation or research (which, I am actually doing a ton of) or anything like that. Its more that I am trying to prepare myself to being uncomfortable, tired, exhausted...overall, very far from being in my comfort zone. If I can understand that these are feelings I am likely going to feel, I think when it comes time that they happen, I've already anticipated it. It's not going to make that tired or pain go away, but at least mentally, I will have seen this coming and hopefully have more of an awareness to overcome the adversity.
A perfect example is this evening. Tonight I played pickup basketball with some friends and to say I'm tired would be an understatement. It was three hours of sprinting, high impact, physical sport, which has caused everything from my feet to my shoulders to ache. Sort of how I should expect to feel after 5 straight days of 20 mile hiking in 90 degree sun.
To make things worse, I have this lingering cold that has literally lasted over 2 weeks. I'm popping two Walgreen's brand nyquils as I type this. (Why pay an extra $3 for the brand name? Money saving tip brought to you by Frank Corrado!) So I really feel like crap.
I get home from basketball, tired, sore, coughing up a lung, and feeling completely drained. Even worse, our house is at its usual 64 during the winter. My teeth are chattering. All I want is some food and a hot shower. Perfect - half a DiGiorno's pizza left out for me, made by my roommate, Joe, earlier. Heated that baby up in the microwave and my stomach was full of cheesy deliciousness in no time. I even sat back and watched Anderson Cooper 360. Holy Crap - Libya seems a lot worse than people are were originally indicating!
So I got to relax and eat some re-heated, pre-packaged pizza. Then I took an amazing hot shower. Oh my God, it felt awesome. Just what I needed. But as I was drying off (sorry for all of these references about me being naked here) the stark reality of just how pampered I currently am, hit me like a ton of bricks.
I think there are a few events, feelings, and emotions that I felt tonight that I am expecting to feel on the trail. Tired. Cold. Hungry. In need of a hot shower. But on the trail, there is no hot shower. There is no DiGiorno's pizza. There is no Anderson Cooper 360. What I need to do is mentally except that my pampered lifestyle, at least in the short term, is quickly coming to an end.
So when I'm miserable, and want to quit, and hate life for a night or two, if I can call back to the fact that I expected this, I think I might have a better chance of continuing on, instead of running 20 miles a week.
Thanks for reading!
Frank
PS - Just thought of another one. Tonight, when I go to sleep, I can be comforted knowing that I just have to sit at my desk tomorrow. No physical movement to cajole my soreness. Whats going to happen on the trail - another 15 mile day with a 30lb pack. Bring it on! Woooo!
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