Author Topic: Commuting on foot - running/walking  (Read 6888 times)

Mercer

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Commuting on foot - running/walking
« on: December 03, 2015, 02:06:39 AM »
TLDR: I’m going to start ‘commuting by foot’ 5 miles home, initially on an ‘at least twice a week’ basis with an aspiration to make this significantly more frequent, perhaps turn it into a regular daily thing. Who’s with me?

Longer personal story:

I live in London, and while I live under 5 miles from work, the nature of London rush-hour commuting (by bus) is that it usually takes me over an hour door-to-door to get to or from work.

I don’t find this awful in itself – I can read on the bus! But I was finding that my motivation to do exercise before/after work was rather blunted by those extra hours at each end of the working day.

Until I realised “wait a sec, ‘under 5 miles from work’, what’s my problem?”… last night I tested out coming home from work on foot. Mixture of running and walking (I haven’t run for best part of a year, 5 miles is well out of my range!) and I got somewhat lost(!) on the way back which added a mile to my journey, but even then didn’t take much longer than the bus (about an hour and a quarter for 5.8 miles. Hardly fast, but over 5 miles that would mean about an hour with no increase in average speed).

It’s a bit of a faff as I don’t have shower/locker at work, plus I’m pretty out of practice and so a bit sore today, but my aim is to do this at least twice a week from now on. If I can sort out logistics and get a bit more in practice, I don’t see why I shouldn’t do this at least coming home as my usual homewards commute, and maybe (big need for locker/shower at this point!) on the way in too. Builds exercise into the day… and the money saved is just gravy! I'll just have to see how I deal with weather changes - I was lucky that last night was dry and cold but not freezing!

Sure loads of you already run longer distances to work - but if there are any exercise neophytes out there in a similar situation to me, please do join me!

Kouhri

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #1 on: December 03, 2015, 04:03:08 AM »
I live about a km from the hospital  (student doctor) and aim to walk in and walk home every day. I often end up running in if I push my leaving time. I don't get too sweaty but it's nowhere near as long a commuting distance as your contemplating

Doubleh

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #2 on: December 03, 2015, 04:39:19 AM »
Definitely go for it! I live about 3 miles from work, also in london and don't currently walk but used to walk one way and get the tube the other. Even getting the tube invovles probably about 1 mile each way. It would take me about 1 hour to walk vs 45 mins by walking and tube, so not a big time penalty.

My Mrs has regularly run about 4-5 miles as part of her commute, either all the way to work or across town to the train station depending on her location. Its definitely do able and a great way of getting extra activity into your day for little or no cost in terms of time

Mercer

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #3 on: December 04, 2015, 03:05:14 AM »
Thanks - good to know it can be doable as a regular thing. My legs are still recovering from Wednesday, but I'm sure they'll adjust. And if I can normalise it it will save time and money as well as lifting my exercise to 5 miles (10 if both ways) running from the current base of maybe 1 mile total walk to bus stop and back...

okits

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #4 on: December 04, 2015, 06:27:54 AM »
Good for you, five miles is badass!

I bus in and walk home (2km, takes 40 minutes.) It's a good way of forcing low-impact exercise into my life.  It seemed long the first few times, but now it's normal and I just automatically start walking. I think predictions are calling for a mild winter so I may be able to keep this up if the sidewalks don't get too icy.

AlanStache

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #5 on: December 04, 2015, 06:50:40 AM »
Thanks - good to know it can be doable as a regular thing. My legs are still recovering from Wednesday, but I'm sure they'll adjust. And if I can normalise it it will save time and money as well as lifting my exercise to 5 miles (10 if both ways) running from the current base of maybe 1 mile total walk to bus stop and back...

Just be sure to transition in slowly to ovoid injury; and listen to your body.  GF got all hardcore about running recently and within a week had hip pains. 

I live ~5miles from work and have run home once after cycling in last month, then I drove the next day to get my bike home in the car.  I could take the bus in then run home but the bus takes over an hour while driving take ~10min; is just hard to justify that time differential.  But yeah walking or running home is a good way to build in exercise to your day.  I just dont have the fitness to run to work then run home, hopefully in time.

StetsTerhune

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #6 on: December 06, 2015, 09:34:12 AM »
I used to do my ~5 mile commute walking most friday mornings and the occasional after work on nice days, I picked up a friend from work about half way. It was a good time, and a pretty efficient way to get some extra exercise in (1.5 hours walking but only took 45 minutes longer than my usual train commute).

I never ran though, too difficult logistically. I could walk in my work clothes and not be too sweaty when I got to the office. If I'd ran I'd need a new set of clothes and a shower, adding time and trouble to the cost of the endeavor.

A colleague once told me this story: Her husband always walked home (about an hour) from work, which always annoyed her because she'd have to wait for him to do stuff. Then one week it was bad weather and he drove to work and back. Only then did she realize that he was always in a horrible mood for the hour after work and had been walking home to blow off the work-anger before he got home. She stopped being annoyed

G-dog

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #7 on: December 06, 2015, 09:46:21 AM »

A colleague once told me this story: Her husband always walked home (about an hour) from work, which always annoyed her because she'd have to wait for him to do stuff. Then one week it was bad weather and he drove to work and back. Only then did she realize that he was always in a horrible mood for the hour after work and had been walking home to blow off the work-anger before he got home. She stopped being annoyed

That is a great story - glad she had this 'aha!' moment. 

goldenboy

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #8 on: December 06, 2015, 10:03:29 AM »
Yeah, I've found running home to be a great way to build exercise into the day. As part of training for my first marathon (which unfortunately my legs didn't end up holding up for) I ran home from work one day a week for a few months - 11 miles one way. It didn't actually take thaaat much longer than commuting by bike or metro (50 minutes for those vs. 1.5 hours for running), but the first few times I did it I was pretty wiped for the rest of the evening.

I never ran both to and from work because it was more difficult to plan and I never quite got in that good of shape. But nonetheless I found run-commuting quite enjoyable and hope to pick the habit back up when my legs heal up.

chweezzy

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #9 on: December 06, 2015, 08:58:34 PM »
I only live a km away from work and have been walking to and from for at least 2 months. Feel better than ever. Even when it's pouring out as it usually does during this time of the year I just suit up through on the headphones  (audio books) and just giver. Great for the mind body and soul.

Doubleh

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #10 on: December 07, 2015, 03:31:58 AM »
5 miles is certainly do able. It is pretty bad ass and certainly worth building yourself up to in order to avoid injury, but you'll be surprised how quickly it gets easier the more you do.

As your in London you can use our great picnic transport system to build yourself up - rather than trying to do the whole 5 miles in one go find a tube station that is a 2 mile walk away and increase it as you comfort zone develops. Also a second to audio books or podcasts, walking is my quiet time to catch up on my favourite podcasts and instead of dead commuting time is one of the highlights of my day

Mercer

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #11 on: December 08, 2015, 12:53:43 PM »
Thanks for the encouragement, guys! Was aiming to start Monday but had friends staying over Sunday night which rather disturbed my plans - so went for tonight instead.

Just got home and managed to jog the whole way this time! Albeit at barely over 5 miles an hour, and only by convincing myself at each stage that I was going to let myself give up and get on a bus any... minute... now... but still - I think the longest I've run before is probably a couple of miles in 20 minutes, and I've now just spent an hour running 5 and a quarter miles home (and beat my bus in the process)! So really chuffed :-)

Doubleh

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #12 on: December 08, 2015, 04:25:52 PM »
Fantastic work - now don't forget to stretch!

BarbeRiche

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #13 on: December 11, 2015, 12:35:07 AM »
Nice thread!

I do bike commuting (4km) and we have a gym/showers on site so I'm basically doing pre-cardio warm up before getting to the gym.

I usually take my bike for 2-3 weeks after it snows but when there's too much snow I kind of get discouraged. 

I'm planning on walking/running 2-3 times a week this winter.  I really love walking outside during winter.


Mercer

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #14 on: December 14, 2015, 11:52:21 AM »
Checking in as it keeps me motivated... just came back from another run-commute, again managed the whole 5 miles though if anything felt more difficult (I think because I knew that I would be trying to go the distance from the start!)

Only been once a week so far due to unusual number of unusual circumstances. And the problem that I work from home Fridays and I doubt my laptop enjoys being jiggled as I jog, so twice a week would basically have to be Monday/Wednesday. I might try for running a bit of the way back on Wednesday, but to be honest I'm chuffed that the 5 miles wasn't a fluke!

@BarbeRiche: Agree getting outside in winter is  good! Have avoided rain so far, will see if I enjoy it then. But running today in the cold was much nicer than running in the height of summer would be I suspect!

BarbeRiche

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #15 on: December 14, 2015, 07:00:00 PM »
...but to be honest I'm chuffed that the 5 miles wasn't a fluke!

@BarbeRiche: Agree getting outside in winter is  good! Have avoided rain so far, will see if I enjoy it then. But running today in the cold was much nicer than running in the height of summer would be I suspect!

5 miles is a pretty good distance!  Good job

I actually ran to work today (4km) because I had a flat tire and no replacement tube left.  I have to carry extra clothes, lunch and wallet/cellphone/keys which adds a bit of weight.

I started playing ice hockey this year and to train my legs, I was thinking about carrying a tire sometimes for my running commute when it stars snowing.  90% of the distance is on a bike way next to the water (not in the street).

Liggy

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #16 on: December 22, 2015, 06:40:09 AM »
I was commuting by a 3km mile walk (6km round trip) to a company provided bus stop in a job role I left in August 2015, that's the only thing I miss about the role... the walking I managed everyday!

smalllife

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #17 on: December 22, 2015, 07:20:34 AM »
Our office is moving from biking distance (4.5 mi) to walking distance (1.8 mi) at some point this year - I'm excited to be able to walk to work in the rain!  I'm hard on shoes as it is with just normal life activities and having limited pairs of shoes.  How does that play into the costs as I compare walking with biking?

Mercer

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #18 on: December 29, 2015, 04:10:44 AM »
Personally I run in the trainers I've owned for I think over a decade. If you walk lots  in work shoes, you definitely need to buy the shoes with that in mind - I've worn through loads of shoes just with walking.

Captain Mars

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #19 on: December 31, 2015, 09:00:00 AM »
I'm also living in London, lucky enough to be living about 5 miles from where I work and I am going to try and do the same thing for 2016. I may not be able to live where I am past 2016 so I need to take advange of it while I can. I'm a total beginner at Mustachianism, trying to start the process of adapting my life, and this is where I'm starting.....

Current commute cost for me is £6.40 per day, as I take a bus to a nearby tube station and go from there. That's roughly £160 per month. The distance is 5 miles and I've only managed to walk it once so far. I'm not very fit, and this is something I also want to work on this year as part of the whole overhaul. Here's what I realised:

   -   I hadn't actually looked at how close the bus I take goes to where I work. It stops exactly 1 mile away. So instead of switching, goodbye Underground, I'm going to stay put on the bus all the way and walk that final mile.

   - However, as this isn't just about the cost saving, it's about becoming healthier, I've also mapped the bus' entire route. There are different points at which I could hop on and I've done the walk from work to a stop 3 miles away several times, which is the point I would say is 'comfortable' in terms of getting exercise but not getting sore. This can be extended over time.

COST SAVING: Two bus rides a day, at £1.50 each, is £3 per day or £60 per month. That's a saving of £100 per month!
HEALTH BENEFIT: If I hop on/off at the nearest point, that's still adding 2 miles of walking which I wasn't otherwise doing.
LONDONER BENEFIT: Goodbye tube overcrowding and strikes.
« Last Edit: December 31, 2015, 09:05:43 AM by wintersoldier »

onlykelsey

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #20 on: December 31, 2015, 09:08:48 AM »
I occasionally run home from work (~6.5 miles, including all of Central Park) and when I was training a couple years ago actually started taking the 12 mile route home occasionally to sneak exercise in. I have thought about making it a weekly occurrence, at least.  I somehow have always forgotten some crucial item (ie I have no socks, or no sports bra, or in the summer, no water bottle) but making it more regular would probably fix that.

Seems like a great idea so long as you take it easy at first.


cerat0n1a

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Re: Commuting on foot - running/walking
« Reply #21 on: December 31, 2015, 09:37:07 AM »
I occasionally run to/from work, although more as a fitness thing than to save money (my commute is around £2 in petrol daily) and I tend to do it much more when the days get longer between March & October.

It's around 9-10 miles each way, so doing both ways every day would be a bit too hardcore. It's a very pleasant cross-country route, very flat (this is Cambridge) and takes me 80-90 minutes, plus 10-15 minutes for shower & changing at work. I tend mostly to run home one day and run to work the next, leaving the car at work, but sometimes do it both ways, or get a lift from someone one way. I leave clothes, shoes, laptop etc. at work, so typically only carrying keys, phone & money. Biggest issue for me is the time it takes. Leaving the house at 6:30/7:00 is fine, but getting home after 7pm is not ideal.