One of my goals for 2021 was to walk a 5K every month in addition to the nearly daily walking I was already doing. My usual routes are either a double-helix around the neighborhood (approx. 1 kilometer), or a 1.5K zigzagging up the neighborhood and then over and around and down below the school, or a 2.5K which goes around the school, over into the village and all the way down the goats and back. It’s harder to keep up the commitment in the winter when the roads are icy, and they stay icy in our neighborhood for a really long time. I haven’t yet started walking on the treadmill again for the winter, but it will probably be this week.
Over the last 12 months, the 5Ks I walked each month added up to almost 1.5 marathons! I won’t ever RUN a marathon but spreading 1 and a half of them out over a whole year, walking, is definitely doable, haha! Karin was my walking buddy for much of the year. She walked my 5Ks with me from January to August in rain, cold, sunshine and heat. Her ex-girlfriend’s dog Mikkan walked with us in April and Brumma joined us a for part of the 5k in June.
After Martin came home in mid-September, he became my walking buddy as Karin was super-busy with soccer on the weekends. Martin walked with me in September, October, and November, and then Karin and Martin both joined me for the last 5K of 2021 in December, which was today.
Most of the walks were in and around Flyinge, sometimes over the same route twice. I went to Skrylle twice, once with Karin in July, and once with Martin in October. December’s 5K today was at Emporia mall, because I wanted to walk inside due to the icy/cold conditions we’ve been experiencing for the last 2 weeks. It worked decently well, though there was a lot of “traffic” on our route. So, I guess that officially makes me a mall-walker. One time, anyway.
It was a fun goal to have this year but I’m happy to go back to my regular daily walking. There were some months when it was hard to find time on the weekends to do the 5K and stressful as the end of the month started looming, and though I suppose I could have done them alone, it was so much more satisfying and fun to do them with my kids. I feel blessed and grateful that both of them were so willing and happy to walk with me. So kudos to all three of us for sticking to it and walking over 60 kilometers together!
