[pct-l] Break Strategies

[Robert Henry]

I only did the "experiment" of the thru hike once, so I can't say if I was
more or less broken down based on different independent variables -:)

I know that psychologically I'm prone to keep pushing on ("the view around
the next turn is bound to be better"), so working off the clock, as
anal-retentive as that is, was a way I could manage the resting and
calories.

I should add that I would adjust my breaks to coincide with water
availability.

Keeping shoes and socks and feet as dry as possible, especially in the
first month (hot sands, tender city feet, etc) is really crucial.

I found I got bad blisters on the inside of my heels only when my shoes
started breaking down.  I wore Brooks Beast shoes, marketed to the
ultramarathoner crowd, for the entire trip.  The glue in the heel box
softens up, especially in hot weather, and the stitching begins to emerge
at about 350 trail miles.  To counter this I cut up plastic milk jugs and
inserted them as additional layer of protection between my sock and the
inside of the heel box, and also had my resupply person overnight me new
shoes.

Data point:  I'm 57 with low grade Achilles tendonitis, so keeping
stretched was even more important.


On Fri, Nov 22, 2013 at 10:22 AM, Michael Irving
<michaeljirving at gmail.com>wrote:

> Very interesting. This is the type of info I was particularly interested
> in hearing about. (It's all good though) Do you have any sense if your body
> was less broken down assuming identical total miles for the day compared to
> a more traditional approach? (I know that's kind of speculation and
> anecdotal but that's ok by me). You imply with your British military
> reference that the answer is likely "yes".  And how do you think that
> impacted blisters? (My guess is that it helped)
>
> Thanks
> -GoalTech
>
> On Nov 22, 2013, at 10:10 AM, Robert Henry <rrh.henry at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> For my thru hike in 2012, I hiked for 50 minutes and rested for 10
> minutes, the only exceptions being when there was a spectacular view.  (One
> of the factoids I picked up in my youth was that was how the British Army
> marched at a steady pace of 2mph.)
>
> Those 10 minutes were pretty busy: Pack on ground, sit down immediately on
> the ground with my legs stretched out in front of me.  Put sleeping pad
> under knees. Take off shoes and socks and let air.  Take out wet clothing,
> if any, and let air.  Grab a bite to eat if after 11AM.  Consult map. Enjoy
> view for a few minutes. Repack food and clothing.  Put socks and shoes on.
> Stand up, pack on, and off I went. By following this strategy I was never
> stiff on restart.   If, however, I spent those 10 minutes sitting on a
> rock, log, chair or bench, it took me 15 minutes to get limber and back up
> to speed.
>
> This strategy also was somewhat amusing.  I would play leapfrog all day
> long with my fellow hikers, as I would normally hike faster than they, but
> would rest longer.  So our VMG (velocity made good) was identical.
>
>
> On Wed, Nov 20, 2013 at 9:54 PM, Michael Irving <michaeljirving at gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> OK, here's an actual hiking question to mix things up.
>>
>> To provide some context, I'm not a thru-hiker but a MYTH (multi-year thru
>> hiker) hopefully.
>>
>> When I hike I tend to want to power through with pretty short breaks that
>> may not even involve taking my pack off or sitting down. I usually have a
>> short lunch but that may only be 20-30 min. I read/hear about thru-hikers
>> often times having more formal breaks. (I tend to eat steadily through the
>> day rather than set eating/break times).
>>
>> So, my question is if there is any info or opinions on how a break
>> strategy or lack thereof impacts the average persons body in ability to
>> hike longer miles and/or the same miles more comfortably. Sometimes it
>> seems that breaks can make it even harder due to tightening up.
>>
>> Any experienced thoughts on this one? I don't recall it being discussed
>> since I've been reading about the PCT over the last few years.
>>
>> Thanks!
>> -GoalTech
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