shameless ask for praise for walking

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badatmath

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Aug 22, 2017
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I mentioned to an acquaintance I had walked a new record (over 11 miles) the other day and got a reply of "That is so unhealthy. Why can't you just read a book or something?"

I care nothing for their opinion and barely know them in reality but calling it "unhealthy" when I thought walking was WHAT DOCTORS RECOMMEND OLD PEOPLE DO (partly) . . . was a bit much.

So as I am feeling a little blue anyway I am asking for some encouragement from my virtual friends here. . .

I really wonder why people are so nasty. . . Like even if you think it is stupid can't you just say "That's nice". . . . It wasn't like I revealed I had a drug addiction. . .

Just reminds me why I talk to so few people to begin with!
 
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PS. I wasn't expecting a medal. Just "good job" or something polite anyway.
 
Hard for me to believe anyone would seriously make such a comment. Are you sure they weren't just joking?
 
Well done! That surpassed my longest walk last summer of over 10 miles.

I've never heard anyone refer to walking as being unhealthy. I mean, lot of people are out walking all the time. That person must be really out of touch.... or any chance of just being sarcastic?
 
Good for you! I’m unable to walk or stand for more than 20-30 minutes. I wish I were able to walk like you!
 
braumeister said:
Hard for me to believe anyone would seriously make such a comment. Are you sure they weren't just joking?
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Yep. I used to work with this person though I never met IRL as we were in different states . There is one way to live. HIS way. BTW he isn't particularly healthy or fit - just has a narrow view of things. I have run up against it before but had forgotten and it just happened that I had made my new to me record and blurted it out in a text.

I would have even understood if he had said "yuck" like he didn't want to do it. . . like okay sure lots of things I don't want to do. I will certainly never run 11 miles . . . or 1 mile. :)

Tact is not his strong suit.
 
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I can't tell you how many times non-runners would tell me that I'd ruin my knees by running. I think what you experienced, as I have, is some sort of visceral need some people have to be contrarian. I still exercise virtually every day.........and I had 5 cardiac stents 2 years ago, and have another stable cardiac vessel issue that needs to be monitored. My doctors are 100% supportive of my exercising. You're doing the right thing; walking is a wonderful exercise. I'd just ignore a comment like you just got, or give a simple reply that "my doctor would disagree."
 
Eleven miles is fantastic. Walking is a great form of exercise. I think you know that already. It's just frustrating when strangers express unsupported opinions.
 
Trailwalker said:
Eleven miles is fantastic. Walking is a great form of exercise. I think you know that already. It's just frustrating when strangers express unsupported opinions.
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Yes exactly. Some things I shake off in 2 seconds and some it will take a little more time to process - depending on my mood I suppose.
 
Eleven miles is great. Some people are just jerks, and your acquaintance apparently is one of them. He's probably just jealous and it makes him feel better to critique something he'll never be able to do.
 
Walking is unhealthy? News to me. Great job. It’s hard to ignore ignorance sometimes. Don’t take it personally.
 
I would be inclined to think they were joking. If you can walk that far without being stopped by pain, it's great! Congrats on the effort.
 
badatmath said:
I mentioned to an acquaintance I had walked a new record (over 11 miles) the other day and got a reply of "That is so unhealthy. Why can't you just read a book or something?" <snip>
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Is there any chance this person was being sarcastic?

I wield sarcasm frequently, but ONLY in person, and only with a few very good friends who know me, and who share my strange sense of humor and fondness for sarcasm. I might occasionally use it on phone calls, but again, only with my close friends, who have the verbal context of the call and who understand it is not meant seriously.

I found out the hard way over the years that even the slightest bit of sarcasm is VERY easy to misunderstand completely in any written form (emails, texts).

If you don't think they were being sarcastic, then I agree that it likely the comment sprang from jealousy.
 
I haven't walked that distance since I was a teenager hiking the Appalachian Trail. Even in the Army I was in the Cavalry so no-one walked any appreciable distance. :LOL:

Thats quite an accomplishment. BTW, how long did it take to walk 11 miles?

_B
 
Did he provide a link to the research that supports his conclusion? Didn't think so.

Eleven miles is awesome! Keep it up.
 
mystang52 said:
I can't tell you how many times non-runners would tell me that I'd ruin my knees by running.
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Same here. But I have a comeback for them. About 12 years ago I had a ski accident and tore my ACL, MCL and meniscus. The surgeon was able to repair the meniscus rather than remove, which I thought was good news for my running. I asked the surgeon afterward if he could tell how much wear I had done to my knee, being 50 years old and having run 24 marathons or longer to that point. He said my knee looked great, no real signs of wear at all.

I know some runners wear down their knees, but not everyone does, and I am proof of that. I've since run another 39 marathons or longer, with another coming up at the end of this month. I ran/walked 17 miles today and only feel a little bit sore. I think doing a run/walk combo will help extend my running career, which is my main form of exercise.

Yet people walk away, unconvinced, because they "know better" than me. And I don't let it bother me. I just never bring up running with them again, and if they ask I try to change the topic or avoid that line of discussion.

And yes, 11 miles of walking is awesome!
 
Thank you everyone. :) I can always count on my virtual family here to jump in to help.

I don't know the exact time other than "over 3 hours".

Definitely not sarcastic - the his exact comments were a bit longer but I edited them out as irrelevant. Basically anything beyond 3 miles is a little bit whacked and even that is too much to do more than a few times a week.

I didn't have a goal in mind for today beyond "walk" I just was doing okay and kept going.
 
RunningBum said:
Same here. But I have a comeback for them. About 12 years ago I had a ski accident and tore my ACL, MCL and meniscus. The surgeon was able to repair the meniscus rather than remove, which I thought was good news for my running. I asked the surgeon afterward if he could tell how much wear I had done to my knee, being 50 years old and having run 24 marathons or longer to that point. He said my knee looked great, no real signs of wear at all.

I know some runners wear down their knees, but not everyone does, and I am proof of that. I've since run another 39 marathons or longer, with another coming up at the end of this month. I ran/walked 17 miles today and only feel a little bit sore. I think doing a run/walk combo will help extend my running career, which is my main form of exercise.

Yet people walk away, unconvinced, because they "know better" than me. And I don't let it bother me. I just never bring up running with them again, and if they ask I try to change the topic or avoid that line of discussion.

And yes, 11 miles of walking is awesome!
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I'm too lazy and unfit to run but i admire those that do!
 
An eleven mile walk is very impressive! Great job.
 
Hey badatmath,

11 miles is awesome! 👏

Haters gonna hate. Don't give them any attention, don't let them get you down.

13.1 stretch goal is within walking distance. 🙂 Fully expect you to post your new PR here!!
 
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