I haven't been very consistent in the exercise department for the last three months. Or rather, I've been consistently NOT exercising for the last three months. Instead of walking three or four days a week, I've been walking only one day a week--or less. My excuses weren't very original (It's too cold; I have too much work; There's snow on the ground), but they worked.
This week I'm making an effort to change that, trying to get back on the horse...again. I've walked for three consecutive days now. My one concession to the cold is that I'm not walking my full route. Instead of walking down to the beach and back, I've only been around two blocks: mine and the next one over.
Out of curiosity, I used Google Maps to calculate the distance of each of my routes. The beach route turned out to be about what I expected--1.9 miles. (I'd estimated two.) I figured the walk around the blocks would be much shorter--half to three quarters of a mile. Oh, was I wrong! Turns out, my two-block walk is just over a mile. One-tenth over, to be exact.
In my defense, the walk around the blocks is far less strenuous than the walk to the beach, which is down one steep hill and up another. The block-walk, by contrast, is relatively level--just a slight decline away from the house and a slight incline on the way back. Guess that's why it seems like a piece of cake by comparison.
So what is the moral of this little story?
Do not trust me to estimate distance. Ever. When it comes to that particular skill, I am most obviously disabled.
This week I'm making an effort to change that, trying to get back on the horse...again. I've walked for three consecutive days now. My one concession to the cold is that I'm not walking my full route. Instead of walking down to the beach and back, I've only been around two blocks: mine and the next one over.
Out of curiosity, I used Google Maps to calculate the distance of each of my routes. The beach route turned out to be about what I expected--1.9 miles. (I'd estimated two.) I figured the walk around the blocks would be much shorter--half to three quarters of a mile. Oh, was I wrong! Turns out, my two-block walk is just over a mile. One-tenth over, to be exact.
In my defense, the walk around the blocks is far less strenuous than the walk to the beach, which is down one steep hill and up another. The block-walk, by contrast, is relatively level--just a slight decline away from the house and a slight incline on the way back. Guess that's why it seems like a piece of cake by comparison.
So what is the moral of this little story?
Do not trust me to estimate distance. Ever. When it comes to that particular skill, I am most obviously disabled.