The morning after.

I can still walk!

This has come as a pleasant surprise after the state I was in when I got home after finishing the Cross Wales Walk yesterday. My feet do something very odd after a very long distance walk. Yes, its usually painful walking on them towards the end of a walk but not really a big issue, what would you expect? However, when i stop walking they simply seize up and it's immensely painful to walk on them. The soles of my feet just scream at me "for goodness sake just sit down and give us a break". It's nothing to do with blisters. The blisters I had after last weekend have healed and yesterday I only got one small one on the top of one big toe. I'm sure there's a medical explanation. All I know is that BY FAR the most painful part of my day yesterday was the 10 metre walk from my car to the house!

Injury wise my only problem is "shin splints" in my right shin. This is inflammation of the tissue which connects to the shin bone and it causes intense pain down the front of the shin, especially when putting weight on it and ESPECIALLY coming downhill. It's just the result of prolonged impact and stress on the lower leg and this was certainly aggravated yesterday by the fact that large parts of the route were on hard stone tracks or minor Tarmac roads. These solid surfaces just intensify the shock going through the legs and in my case the result is shin splints.

The good news is that all the pain has been worthwhile and I hope my final total will be about £650 meaning that I have raised enough for WaterAid to provide continuing access to clean water and sanitation for more than 40 people. That can change lives. So thanks to all my sponsors. If you'd still like to donate then please go to www.virginmoneygiving.com/stu_walks_for_water
You can also learn about WaterAids great work at www.wateraid.org