Walked again!

Okay, so it is starting to feel like I post a lot about the walks I take. I guess I do and you'd think I was in really good shape or something but that really isn't the case. I just keep pretending I will be in good shape some day. Actually my walks are therapeutic and often very spiritual as I find myself having long conversations with God when I'm walking.

On a recent walk I was questioning why I was out there. The thermometer said it was 96 degrees out. I don't know how high the humidity was but I'm guessing it was 99.9%. I only guess that because I think it actually has to be raining to be 100%. There was NO wind so despite the fact that it was late in the day it was stifling.

I was determined to burn more calories so I worked hard to do each mile of the four mile walk in 20 minutes. When I'm in good shape I can walk a mile in about 12 minutes but I'm not anywhere near that kind of shape. As I worked hard at my 20 minutes/mile pace I began to wonder if I was insane. No one else was out there. How crazy or desperate does a person need to be to walk in this kind of weather? And do you get extra calorie credits? And when the air is that thick and stagnant do you burn more calories? I have no idea.

When I was almost done with mile #3 I went through this little wooded area. Right in the middle of it there was this little spot of cool air. By cool I'm guessing it was about 90 degrees instead of 96. Just enough to notice it. Suddenly my memory took me back to summers in Wisconsin and swimming in the lake as a little girl. You'd be swimming along and every once in a while you'd hit a cool spot.

It was such a sudden surprise to swim into that little refreshing spot of cooler water. The same is true on my walk. To suddenly go through a spot where it was obviously cooler was a wonderful surprise and somewhat refreshing. But now that I'm home I'm left to wonder if it really happened at all. Was there really a cooler spot of colder air or did I just imagine it? Or was I overcome due to the heat and exercise? Maybe I was burning so many extra calories, walking in that thick stagnant air, that my mind was playing tricks on me. I guess I'll never know for sure.