Week 48 – Walk Hungry
This chapter discusses the potential benefits of going for a short-measured walk (not a hike) before breakfast. It talks about recent scientific studies that have concluded a walk before breakfast whilst the body is still in fasting mode burns off more fat and improves the way the body reacts to insulin.
I would not normally have chosen to walk before breakfast but my car was booked in for a service on a drop-off-and-leave-it-there for the day basis. Unfortunately, due to Mr C’s car breaking down and the subsequent engine fire as the car was removed from the tow truck towards our driveway, he was unable to give me a lift.
This meant I had to resort to shanks pony and train to get home after the drop off and back again to pick up my car after servicing.
Mr C had told me of the pathway I needed to take to get to the railway station without crossing or walking down busy roads. As I walked along ‘motor mile’, I spotted a pathway and took it. I realised I was on the wrong pathway when I first walked over the railway and shortly afterwards the motorway. However, before retracing my steps to find the correct pathway curiosity got the better of me, I couldn’t resist walking a little further to see where the path came out.
Once I was back on track, the path to the station was obvious because it was signposted. I found the pathway rather seedy and not a pleasant place to walk. At the station I purchased tickets from the ticket office and crossed the bridge to catch the train home. Only one stop.
Whilst I sat on a bench and waited, a couple asked me about purchasing tickets. I pointed them to where I thought the ticket machine on that platform was situated. The ticket office is across the bridge on the other platform.
A few minutes later the couple returned, they had located the ticket machine but unfortunately the machine had not printed off all the tickets, giving them a message to ‘seek help’ from the ticket office. The lady sat next to me on the bench whilst her husband crossed the bridge to try and sort out their tickets. The failure meant that they missed the train by minutes. It reminded me of a similar incident that I had many years ago. Some things never change!
Back in Wellington and walking home, a walking group caught up with me and we had a little chuckle that I was joining the group. The leader waited for the rest of her group and I continued to the pedestrian crossing, pressing the button. The group caught up with me and we bantered and chuckled, the walk leader joking that I had pressed the button for them.
I knew they would be walking as part of the Wellington Walking festival and found out that they were going to Dothill via the Wellington Loop to find out more about the trees in the Dothill nature reserve.
I continued walking home by the direct route. After no breakfast and just a cup of tea I was rather hungry when I got home and was looking forward to lunch.
Unusually, the garage phoned up just after lunch to say my car was ready. They don’t normally phone up until later in the afternoon. If I had known my car would be ready so quickly, I would not have gone home!
My second walk of the day led me back to the station for my return journey to the garage to pick up my car.
