Still walking

I make sure I am still carrying out my duties as as a walk leader every Wednesday & Thursday, Sad to say although the walking is still a pleasure, I do not have stamina I used to have. Could this be something the drugs are doing to me? The first 1/2 mile is the worst, legs feel heavy, then I get back into the swing of it. I am missing out on the 'Longer Distance walks' with U3A 6-8 miles is an average walk with then. I think I will have to plan out a route of roughly the same distance to see if I will be able to cover the distance. I know that when the radiotherapy treatment kicks in I could well be feeling like a wet rag at best from what I have read. It may or may not happen, I shall have to wait and see. Advice from the cancer websites & booklets strongly advise keeping up the exercise, as this can only improve the recovery process. I certainly do not intend sleeping on the job, in the past I have had no option to walk and the recovery took a very long time indeed. When I took my Archery coaching course back in 2000 I remember being told that it takes "6 weeks to build it, and a week to lose it" this is certainly very true.
Sometime back in the late 90's, I had a major back problem, I was off work for 6 months, I was bed-ridden for the first fortnight with a spastic back. It took a further two weeks just to walk to the kitchen door, a further two weeks to get to the end of the drive, then another 3 weeks or thereabouts to reach the top of my street, some 50-60 yds. A full 3 months pushing myself got me to walking as near as I could get to a reasonable standard. The other 3 months were spent completing a daily 5 mile round trip to the leisure centre for a 5 mile swim. On the last Friday of my self imposed exercise regime, the leisure centre was closed for a major overhaul, so I packed a flask and food, drove to Foremarke Reservoir, parked up, and completed a 25 mile walk, calling in at Calke Abbey (NT) then into Melbourne for a pint and a pasty before returning to my car. I was well spent, shattered, but extremely happy, I was back to what I considered a my old self.
Two years ago, I bought a set of walking poles, and started walking 'Nordic Style', It sets up a rhythm when walking, which encourages a steady walking speed both on the flat and uphill. great for using as brakes going downhill as well. A full body workout for an hour or so sets me up a treat, if you have never tried it, give it a go, I think you will be pleasantly surprised with the outcome.