Log in
Register
UI.X
Search
Search titles and first posts only
Search titles only
By:
Search titles and first posts only
Search titles only
By:
UI.X
Forums
New posts
Search forums
Tag Topics
Online Guide
Camino Francés
Camino Portugués
Camino del Norte
Via de la Plata
Camino Primitivo
Camino de Invierno
Camino to Finisterre and Muxía
Camino Ingles
Camino de San Salvador
San Olav
Caminho Nascente
Caminho da Geira e dos Arreiros
Camino Olvidado
Camino Aragonés
Camino de Levante
Via Podiensis (Le Puy Route)
Camino de Madrid
Services by Casa Ivar in Santiago
Luggage Storage Services in Santiago de Compostela
Camino Forum Store
Official Camino Passport (Credential)
Altus Poncho
Forum Rules
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Resources
Latest reviews
Search resources
Members
Current visitors
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search titles and first posts only
Search titles only
By:
Search titles and first posts only
Search titles only
By:
Menu
Install the app
Install
⚠️ Emergency contact in Spain - Dial 112 and AlertCops app.
More on this here
.
Get your
Camino Frances Guidebook
here.
Forums
Camino Routes
🇪🇸 Routes in Spain
🇪🇸 Camino FRANCÉS (Most popular route)
Judging Fitness Level
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
[QUOTE="eviemonkey, post: 498870, member: 60025"] A certain degree of training as a means of physical preparation is certainly better than none at all. As someone who rarely walked or exercised previously, I managed five days worth of 15-20km walks in a flat park in London before I left. Going like that from 0 kms to 20 km, my legs began to cramp and I could barely move after that second day in London. By the fourth day I was fine so I definitely think those five days had some value. I still struggled majorly on that first day's climbing out of St Jean and considered stopping more than once. But I then met the first members of what turned out to be my Camino family. Between us we made it to Orisson, then to the highest point of that day's walk, on to Roncesvalles and weeks later to Santiago. And that is the magic of the Camino. No physical preparation could have helped me as much as those pilgrims did. I believe at some point the Camino stops been a physical test, and becomes a mental one. Fitness levels become secondary to motivational levels. By the middle of the second week, most people build up their fitness levels naturally just by walking each day. But that in itself is no guarantee of making it as far as Santiago when the road signs still show you have 464 kms to go. Somewhere along the way, the Camino transcends the walking between A and B. Getting up early and walking in the dark, or through the mesata heat becomes easier if you are doing it with someone you've had that heart to heart conversation with the night before. It becomes easier when you are rewarded with that chance encounter with someone you met back in Zubiri and the opportunity to now catch up. Easier when you turn that corner and see a field of sun flowers or golden hay off in the horizon. Easier after a shared picnic lunch in the shade of those trees overhanging the gentle river. Easier after a private moment of reflection in a random church you've decided to visit along the way. Easier after yet another magical Camino sunrise or sunset. Easier to keep going when you see that pilgrim ahead who you know has bad blisters is able to keep going too. It is impossible to replicate the conditions or demands of the Camino in our home environments. Equally impossible however to experience in advance its magical moments, its little surprises or its rewards. All forms of pre-Camino planning, be it physical or logistical has a certain amount of merit, but I wouldn't be a slave to it. 'The Camino will provide' became a well-worn slogan on our walk, and not without good reason. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
❓How to ask a question
How to post a new question
on the Camino Forum.
Latest posts
Camino Frances 2024 Biking Accident
Latest: lovelyshell
9 minutes ago
🇪🇸 Camino FRANCÉS (Most popular route)
Be careful with phones.
Latest: jrewins
53 minutes ago
⚠️ Safety & Security on the Camino
LIVE from the Camino
Luka on the Sanabrés
Latest: Camino Chrissy
Today at 5:52 AM
🇪🇸 VÍA DE LA PLATA & Sanabrés (from Sevilla)
Solar Storm Aurora Photos on the Camino?
Latest: VNwalking
Today at 5:48 AM
Life on the Camino - Miscellaneous Topics
Alternatives to walking if injured
Latest: Valleygirlhikes
Today at 5:36 AM
Life on the Camino - Miscellaneous Topics
This site is run by Ivar at
in Santiago de Compostela.
This site participates in the Amazon Affiliate program, designed to provide a means for Ivar to earn fees by linking to Amazon
Official Camino Passport (Credential)
|
2024 Camino Guides
Check out our
Online Guide for the Camino Francés
here.