Training for VDLP

[AussieJan]

What training / preparation did you do for VDLP? How does it compare to Camino Frances in terms of degree of difficulty?

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, Aussiejan,

I have to confess that I have not "trained" for a camino since my first camino in 2000, and I have a lot of Caminos under my belt. For my first camino I sought out places to walk up and down with my pack for 25+ kms. After my first camino,I changed my day to day level of activity and that was enough. On my first camino, I remember asking other pilgrims (in 2000 they were mostly European) what they did to train for the camino, and the response was usually -- "what? How do you "train" to walk? Isn't that what you do every day? " Of course, for most of us in the US, the answer is no, we don't walk, we drive.

I think the Vdlp differs from the Frances in that the distances are longer but very flat. There is very little elevation gain until Ourense. If you have walked the Frances without mishap, I think you can easily walk the Vdlp. And it is wonderful! Buen camino, Laurie

 

[AussieJan]

Thanks Laurie - I did quite a bit of prep last year for the CF. All went very well. Hope to do VDLP in April May, but work commitments will mean preparation is limited. Plan to start slow and build fitness as I go.

 

[billmclaughlin]

Daily walking is far from appropriate training. So consider training for

1. Distance -- set a target max and build up to it. Steadily.
2. Consistency -- walk several days in a row. Two or three times a week is nice, but not quite training for the day in day out of the camino.
3. Loaded -- start with at least a small pack with water and a book and a sweatshirt. Build up. Your first day on the camino will be surprising enough without discovering for the first time what 15 pounds or more feels like after 10 miles.

Cheers.

 

[LTfit]

Although we may be in the minority, I tend to agree with Laurie. Except for a few back-to-back week-ends walking up to 6-8 hours, I never "trained" per se for my Camino in 2010. And I never used a back-pack during those walks. I used those walks rather as a trial run for my shoe/sock combo. But...my normal weekly routine does include spinning 2x per week, yoga/pilates 3x per week and my physiotherapy work which is non-sedentary.

Prior to walking the VdlP in 2011 I didn't do much walking preparation either but I knew what my body could handle from the previous year. The BIG difference was the heat (walked in July), not so much the distances. Whereas 2x 750 ml bottles were sufficient on the Francés, on the VdlP I carried a 2L platypus hydation system and 2, 750 ml bottles. I drank every drop and even that was insufficient by the color of my urine -sorry folks- which was orange (and in the 3 weeks that I walked I NEVER had to take a pit stop).

Everyone is different but IMHO, the Vdlp (at least up to Zamora) is not difficult. But you need to be prepared to walk 30+ km without a town in sight. I'd say go for it!

Enjoy preparing and Buen Camino!
LT
p.s. this may sound strange coming from a physio (and a former long-distance runner) but some way overtrain prior to starting the Camino

 

[AussieJan]

Thanks LTfit - my daughter and son in law are physios also and they think I'm good to go. Obviously I walk most days anyway for about 10 - 15 km so hopefully that will suffice, along with some extra step work... (Very flat where we live , so they're my pseudo hills)

 

[AJ]

Although we may be in the minority, I tend to agree with Laurie. Except for a few back-to-back week-ends walking up to 6-8 hours, I never "trained" per se for my Camino
...Everyone is different but IMHO, the Vdlp (at least up to Zamora) is not difficult. But you need to be prepared to walk 30+ km without a town in sight. I'd say go for it!

This is my approach too. My first camino was the Mozarabe/VdlP and I did no training. However I do walk quite a bit anyway, but not with a backpack and rarely more than 6 km at a time.

The only "training" I have ever done for a camino was to walk from Leon to SdC as preparation for the Norte.

 

[LTfit]

Obviously I walk most days anyway for about 10 - 15 km so hopefully that will suffice, along with some extra step work... (Very flat where we live , so they're my pseudo hills)

Even more reason to believe that you will be sufficiently prepared and I love the "obviously"...

As far as hills are concerned: I live below sea-level in The Netherlands and the only inclines I encounter are bridges over the canals! But we do have lots of wind which I hear from visitors is just as challenging. A bit off-topic but I was quite amused reading my guide the first time around during the Francés, especially about the Meseta which is described as flat...nothing is FLAT on the Francés, not even on the Meseta!

Cheers,
LT

 

[Donovan]

Jan, I’m with Laurie and ltfit on this one. My experience is that a lifetime of reasonably regular sport, running and walking has been more than adequate camino preparation. Your regular 10-15 km per day should allow you to nail it. Starting slowly has worked for me as well. That said, day three on the VDLP is a must-do 29 km from Castilblanco to Almaden . The first half is on a bitumen road which is a bit tiresome, after that it’s lovely. The hill at the end is short and sharp, but well worth it for the views
Donovan

 

[Stephen Nicholls]

Thanks LTfit - my daughter and son in law are physios also and they think I'm good to go. Obviously I walk most days anyway for about 10 - 15 km so hopefully that will suffice, along with some extra step work... (Very flat where we live , so they're my pseudo hills)

Hi Jan!
Be prepared to walk a bit more than 15 kms a day - very occasionally you may need to walk 25-30 kms in order to reach available accommodation. And try to practise with your back-pack on.
I understand completely about lack of hills. I live in Suffolk [UK] and there are very, very few hills, though the county is beautiful. It makes training difficult. I guess I could walk up and down our stairs 50 times a day, but - hey, that's so boring!

Buen camino!
Stephen
http://www.calig.co.uk/camino_de_santiago.htm

 

[alansykes]

Anybody who does 10-15km a day will have little difficulty in adjusting upwards - I did no training on my last camino. There are some quite long stages on the VdlP but the really long days for me were after over a week of walking, so I had literally got into my stride - Alcuescar to Cáceres, Carcaboso to Aldeanueva del Camino and four other days all showed over 40km on my pedometre. But I think there are shorter alternatives all along the way.

I knew I'd really got into my stride when I looked around a bar in a panic thinking I'd lost my rucksack, before realising it was still on my back and I no longer noticed it.

I'm not sure I'd call the VdlP "very flat". There's nothing as extreme as crossing the Pyrenees, and there are some very flat sections - just north of Zafra to Merida and Salamanca to Zamora in particular. But there are also some quite significant bumps along the way, including the northern part of Andalucia, the northern bit of Extremadura and the western part of León, where the alto of Padornelo is higher tha Ben Nevis.

 

[peregrina2000]

Just to add a personal p.s. -- One of the real gifts of the Camino for me has been that kind of without knowing it, I made a lot of changes to my lifestyle. The Camino requires endurance, and though you can build up endurance in a burst of pre-Camino training, for me it was much easier to become less sedentary and know that my level of fitness is now much higher and not something that waxes and wanes with the Camino. Why would I want to train for the Camino, walk the Camino, and then fall back to my pre-Camino lack of fitness, only to have to re-train for my next Camino? That was my thinking at least. I'm not a super athlete by any means, but I have a good amount of cardio endurance built up that I try to maintain.

I live in a not so beautiful part of the US, many would say, with a pretty lousy climate. But my Caminos showed me how much happier I am if I just "embrace the climate" and take what the day provides. Now there are only a few days that keep me from being outdoors -- ice, heavy snow, or a thunderstorm (which I can usually work around). It's really an antidote to the cabin fever that comes from the bad weather the climate gods have doled out to the midwestern US.

buen camino everyone. Laurie

 

[bsewall]

I'm 65 and starting on the VDLP on April 5. There is a compulsive side to me and I've been in "training" for the pilgrimage for a year - learning the principles of hiking, finding the right gear, testing how much I can handle, etc. Actually, it doesn't feel like training any more. To my surprise I fell in love with hiking and now do it every weekend.

My question is about how much preparation to do. I've read that I should take it slow the first few days and many of the comments in this thread suggest that I should avoid over preparation. My problem is the 30 km walk between Castilblanco de los Arroyos and Almadén de la Plata is on the 4th day. That's not much time to get acclimated and build up endurance. Any advice on how to handle that stretch and how to prepare for it?

 

[grayland]

30 km is only 5 km (3.5 mile) further than the 25 km that we usually consider a "normal daily distance.
Not really something to be over concerned about. It will be a bit longer day..but should not bring you to your knees.
Start earlier and stop more often.

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, bsewall,

The real problem with the day from Castilblanco to Almaden is that the first 16 (?) kms are on the side of a road. The road isn't heavily traveled, and there is no elevation gain to speak of, but it is kind of uninspiring. If you are seriously concerned about being able to make the full distance, there are always people who get a cab from Castilblanco to the turn-off into the park at km 16. That makes for a very manageable day, with one ascent a few kms on, followed by a descent into Almaden. But I think Grayland is right that you will be able to make it without too much of a problem.

 

[camino07]

I,m afraid lots of us last year got taxis to the park gates. I was in private accomodation but I heard that someone went into the Albergue the evening before and asked who wanted taxis and booked up people. In fact there was a big hoohaa because the pension used its own minibus not the local taxis!!

 

[ramble-on]

Bsewall,

It sounds as if you're in very good form from your efforts over the past year. So a 30 km day shouldn't be a problem at all, but go as slowly as you need to, at whatever your natural pace is, drink lots of water, enjoy the springtime scenery and the beauty of the walk. The times I've obsessed about the distance I have to walk that day have been the most problematic - when I just get going and forget about the mileage, it seems much better. The strength of the mind over the weakness of the body (I'm hoping).

I'm planning my VdlP for this autumn - now trying to roughly establish the stages, one or two of which may be a bit longer than 30 km. There seem to be stretches where you can decide to go really short or really long, but not 25 +/- km. But all the prep in the world is nothing like the real thing... For what it's worth, I don't train for my long walks any more (not since the first one in 2010).

¡Buena suerte!
Dick

 

[bsewall]

Thank you all for the sage advice. It looks like I need to add "trust" on to the list of things I need to work on.

 

[LTfit]

Those first 16 km from Castilblanco de los Arroyos to Almadén de la Plata are indeed uninspiring but the upside is that it is flat. We left in the dark in order to avoid the heat of the tarmac and just when I started to think: 'ok, now I've had enough of this' voilà - we were at the entrance of the the park! The rest of the walk is lovely but keep hydrated. You guys are walking in the spring or fall so it shouldn't be a problem. I was still trying to acclamate to the heat and had to stop several times prior to the final short but very steep incline. The final stretch into Almadén was a piece of cake.

Grayland: I saw your name on the Camino Calendar for August. Where are you starting?

 

[mmm042]

Boy, I must be a wimp or something! I'm really surprised that everyone is saying the VDLP is flat. I consider the VDLP to be mostly rolling hills, with a few flat stretches and a few pretty steep climbs. (I come from an area that's very hilly, but no mountains.)

Also, I'd definitely say that first 16km out of Castilblanco is moderately rolling hills. In one stretch, you walk uphill for a full mile. Another time there's a sign warning trucks of the 7% grade. I'm not saying it's awful, and it's certainly not like the Pyrenees, but it really is not flat. Of course, a hill to one person isn't a hill to another. Here's a photo so AussieJan can have an idea what this stretch is like.

Melanie

 

[AussieJan]

Thanks for the photo - mmmmm doesn't look flat to me either! Anyway, I really can't wait to get into it. I know it'll be a huge physical and mental challenge - bring it on.

 

[grayland]

Grayland: I saw your name on the Camino Calendar for August. Where are you starting?

I am not sure what is on the Calendar now...I messed up the information I gave to Falcon.

The actual schedule now is arrive Sevilla on 6 August.
I will start in Seville....but I have to meet my wife about 22 August around Zamora. I am not sure if this is possible or whether she will have to bus back to where I am or if I will skip ahead to Zamora from where ever I am at that time.
I have not been able to work out a daily "stage" schedule that feels right yet. For some reason I find the VdlP confusing as the information from people difers greatly.
I really would like to see what some of you have worked out for you coming VdlP Camino.

I didn't see any other VdlP entries in August....anyone else crazy enough to try it in August??

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, grayland,
Here is a post with my Vdlp stages:

camino-mozarabe-and-via-de-la-plata/topic8961.html

My pre-Vdlp plan was somewhat different, as always, but this is what I wound up walking. Let us know what's confusing or what doesn't feel right. The one slightly confusing part is how to avoid a long stage on the day that you walk to the Arcos de Caparra. I used a forum member's suggestion and it worked out very well.

You're a brave man to set out in August, that's all I can say! Buen camino, Laurie

 

[grayland]

Thanks Laurie.
I had looked at your stages earlier and now have printed them out. The first stages of everyone's list seem to be pretty much the same...but began to differ in time later.
I am not so much confused as unprepared and have not yet done my homework. I guess I am just hoping someone will hand me an easy list. :?
The heat will probably have a big effect on my distances but I was a bit limited in time choice and also thought to try something a bit more difficult. I guess like doing the Primitivo in the dead of the Winter. :shock:

 

[peregrina2000]

Hi, greyland,
Looking back at your earlier post, I can say with a pretty high level of confidence that for most mere mortals, walking from Sevilla to Zamora in 16 days (Aug. 7-22) would be impossible.

I can squeeze out a few days from my 25 day saunter.
-- Combine Days 4 and 5 and walk Almaden to Monesterio. I did that one year and it's not too bad but there is this annoying long slow slog up a never-ending hill right before you get to Monesterio. But that would be a 34 km day.

-- Combine Days 11 and 12 and walk Merida to Alcuescar. Lots of people do that, but I didn't because I wanted to spend time in Alcuescar to visit the amazing 9th centur church, Santa Lucia de Trampal. But that would be a 38 km day. Another option right around the same place would be to combine Days 10 and 11 and walk Torremegia to Aljucen, but then you can't spend much time in Merida and walking through there without visiting the museum and the theater, etc etc, would be a shame, but that's just my opinion.

-- You can shave a day off my 3 day (days 17-19) Galisteo to Banos de Montemayor. I took the circuituous route with a really short day in Carcaboso.

-- And Salamanca to Zamora can easily be done in two days, I had time to kill because a friend was coming to meet me in Zamora.

That would cut 4 days off my 25, but that only gets you to 21. And I had an incredible advantage of walking in such cool weather that I remember wearing my lambswool gloves for a number of days before Merida till at least 10 in the morning. You know that's not in the cards for an August walk. Good luck with this! Buen camino, Laurie

 

[LTfit]

Hi Grayland,

Just to confuse you a bit more here is a list of my stages (given the heat can't imagine doing it in less than 19 days + albergue options would make it difficult):

Day 1 -- Guillena (22.8 km)
Day 2 -- Castilblanco (17.8 km)
Day 3 -- Almaden (29.8 km)
Day 4 -- Monesterio (36.3)
Day 5 -- Fuente de Cantos (21.2 km)
Day 6 -- Zafra (24.9 km)
Day 7 -- Almendralejo (33.8 km)
Day 8 -- Merida (33 km)
Day 9 -- Aljucen (16.3 km) walking companion wanted a short stage
Day 10 -- Aldea del Cano (36 km)
Day 11 -- Casar de Caceres (34.3 km)
Day 12 -- Canaveral (33 km)
Day 13 -- Galisteo (28,6)
Day 14 -- Camparra (owner Hotel Asturias picked us up) (29.4)
Day 15 -- Baños de Montemayor (21.8 km)
Day 16 -- Fuenterroble de Salvatierra (32.9 km)
Day 17 -- Salamanca (+/- 50 km) NOT recommended, was a last minute 'let's go for it' moment
Day 18 -- Rest day Salamanca
Day 19 -- El Cubo de Vino (36.4 km)
Day 20 -- Zamora (32 km)

July was extremely hot so I can imagine that August will be even worse! Don't be surprised if very few pilgrims are walking (and those walking will most likely be Spanish, at least that was my experience). Seven of us arrived in Guillena on July 8th and within 2 days 2 of them dropped out due to the heat - surprising considering one was from the Canary Islands and the other from Southern Spain. I walked with an Italian up until Zamora and more often than not we were alone in the albergues. Speaking Spanish was a bonus.

What worked for us was to start out at about 6 a.m. and stop around 2 p.m. just in time for lunch.
It started to get hot by 10 a.m. and didn't cool off EVER - not even in the evenings. And a siesta was a must (and this comes from someone who never took a siesta or a rest day during the Camino Francés).
I am good with the heat but even I needed about 3-4 days to acclamate to the extreme conditions - I had difficulty eating (lived on gazpacho and ensalada mixta) and so nibbled on dried fruit along the way. Around Salamanca it started to cool off.

I will miss you as I plan on starting off from Zamora mid-July, the exact date depends on my hospitalero placement during the first 2 weeks of July.

Let me know if you would like any further details regarding my stages, etc.

 

[grayland]

Actually, I misspoke. It is Salamanca that my wife is meeting me.
That still appears to be a hard walk in the 16-17 days so an adjustment will no doubt have to be made.

I have been in Merida and Caceres a couple of times (not walking) so the sight seeing is low on the list this time.

Ltfit's stages seem to fit my time schedule especially if my wife just waits a day or so in Salamanca or buses back to my location.
It may actually work. :shock:
After a number of Camino's, I am pretty loose about this one so I will just play it as it comes.

 

[Saint Mike II]

Hola - LTfit that post with the km to walk each day is fantastic. I plan to walk from Merida starting around mid-May. I happen to see a guide book for the VDLP (in Spanish) that showed the various daily contours for the route. So I am uping my daily/weekly kms - at least 15-20 twice a week. Having read a couple of books by Aussies who have walked this camino they mention that there are some days when you have to climb over 1000 metres and having trekked Mt Kilimanjaro ascending such distances does require some preliminaries.
(Jan hope you don't mind I have sent you a PM). Regards and Buen Camino.

 

[LTfit]

My pleasure! One thing you can be sure of: you won't have to worry about altitude sickness on the Camino :wink: ! It sounds like you will be more than prepared.

I just downloaded my "proposed" stages for this summer starting from Zamora to Santiago (via the Sanabrés) using http://www.godesalco.com/plan/plata:

Start Sunday July 14, 2013:
Day 1: Riego del Camino (34.4 km)
Day 2: Tábara (32.2 km)
Day 3: Santa Croya de Tera (21.1 km)
Day 4: Rionegro del Puente (28.8 km)
Day 5: Asturianos (25.6 km)
Day 6: Puebla de Sanabria (15.5 km)
Day 7: Lubián (31 km)
Day 8: La Gudiña (24.4 km)
Day 9: Laza (34.1 km)
Day 10: Xunqueira de Ambía (32.7 km)
Day 11: Orense (21.6 km)
Day 12: Oseira (30.8 km)
Day 13: A Laxe (28.5 km)
Day 14: Ponte Ulla (29 km)
Day 15: Santiago de Compostela (20.3 km) Sunday July 28, 2013

Day 16-19 via Muxia to Fisterra (not yet sure of stages but did SdC-Vilaserio-Corcubión-Fisterra in 2010 and would like to go first to Muxia this time around).

Nothing is of course set in stone and I will let the day govern what I end up doing but does this seem realistic? Any comments or suggestions regarding the proposed stages? Although not yet booked, I need to catch a flight back to The Netherlands from Madrid latest Day 22 (Sunday August 4) which gives me a couple of days breathing room just in case.

Thanks for help!

 

[peregrina2000]

Thanks for posting your Sanabres stages, LTfit. I was hoping to change mine up a bit from the last time and you gave me a couple of new ideas.

And if you are going to head for Muxia first, I'd suggest that Vilaserio-Dumbria-Muxia is a good way to break it up, rather than Negreira-Oliveiroa-Muxia. The albergue in Dumbria is pretty palatial -- unfortunately I was all alone there in mid June last year though. It makes for a very easy day 3 into Muxia and there's lots to see and do there, so that's a nice plus.

And Saint Mike, I don't think there is any day on the Vdlp with more than 400 or 500 m elevation gain, unless I'm forgetting something. But surely there's nothing approaching 1000 m. Lots of undulation and long gentle (and sometimes annoying) ascents, but that's about it.

 

[LTfit]

Thanks Laurie, that's in fact what I had in mind after SdC. And although the old school house in Vilaserio is very basic, I've heard that the albergues both in Dumbria and Muxia are great. I am really looking forward to seeing El Santuario de la Virgen de la Barca and surroundings. Who knows, should I have some extra time I would like to pop in to visit Tracy.

By the time you reach Zamora you will be VERY fit ! As I will be just starting out I may end up doing Zamora-Montamarta-Granja instead.

I hope that you will have some company along the Levante!

Cheers,
LT

 

[Donovan]

Ltfit, there is now an albergue in Vilaserio – it is above the bar which is right at the entry to Vilaserio village. I’ve been to the bar a couple of times and rate it highly. I did not look at the albergue, but have heard good reports. It’s called Restaurante Albergue O Rueiro and has an informative website.

I endorse Laurie’s comments to go via Dumbria. The albergue is wonderful and the route is very attractive. Coming off the VDLP last year I was astonished at the number of people on the trail after Santiago. Most were going direct to Finisterre, so the route through Dumbria after the trail divides at Hospital was delightfully empty, with only three people at Dumbria albergue. Muxia is lovely. and the santuario is a gem. I would have loved to have gone inside, but it was unfortunately locked. Donovan

 

[LTfit]

Thanks Donovan, I know about the albergue as I stopped there prior to going over to the school house. I didn't like the owners attitude when I asked where the albergue was: "oh no, don't go there, it is awful!". Of course she just wanted business so I don't really blame her but the school house is just fine - as long as you don't mind sleeping on mats on the floor. The shower was wonderful and hot! What else do you really need as a pilgrim? I did go back though for a glass of wine and an order of raciones as there is nothing else around. If I recall correctly I even had a second glass of wine :wink:

Although I stopped in Zamora my walking buddy continued on to Santiago and then to Muxia/Fisterra. He went Negreira-Oliveiroa-Muxia-Fisterra and was also in shock meeting up with all the pilgrims heading to Negreira after the solitude of the VdlP.