I’ve been working at my goal of walking 4 metric miles every day in an hour – around 7,500 daily steps – a marathon weekly – for 365 days now as exercise to keep me fit in lieu of going salsa dancing 6 nights a week which was my raison d’être until it was rudely interrupted by lockdown in March 2020.
From the beginning I wore headphones and walked to the beat of salsa music to make it more interesting and, because I‘ve always found walking hard work, this made my walking smooth like dancing and therefore easier for me to do!
However, as I reduced the time taken from a very slow 90 minutes to reasonably fast 80 minutes (3 miles per hour) it became clear that the salsa music I was using (my favourite Africando Mix) was too slow on 1-3-5-7 (93bpm) and too fast on 1–2–3-4 5–6–7-8 (186bpm) to improve my speed still further as I needed to use something nearer my natural stride rate which I had worked out to be around 120 strides a minute. So I started walking without music.
My time was down to 70 minutes at this stage. Apparently British soldiers walk 4 miles with a 25kg back pack in 60 minutes so that’s my ultimate target though I’m wasn’t sure how that could ever happen because I already felt like I was walking as fast as I could for a 74 year old man at least! But a target it remains . . .
After a few days I found walking without music boring so for Day 106 I downloaded the Simple Metronome app to my mobile phone and set it to 120bpm to help me keep walking at a good speed. That seemed a little fast for my liking so I reduced it to 117 which seemed about right. On the way back I discovered that 116 was nearer my natural rhythm and I was able to walk back 20 seconds faster at this beat despite the strong wind being against me! I think this is because it gave me more time to complete my natural stride length. My times were 33:42 + 33:23 = 67:05.
I was walking from where I live to Frydays near Gosport Ferry, eating a snack sitting on a bench in Falkland Gardens overlooking Portsmouth Harbour and then walking back home again. I thought at that stage it was 3km (2 metric miles) but later it turned out to be only 2.75km so I wasn’t walking as fast as I thought.
Having got bored with listening to the metronome all the time, on Day 114 I downloaded the Music Speed Changer app which slows music down without changing the pitch. I discovered that if I played the Africano Mix I had used since I started salsa walking 113 days previously at 68% of it’s normal tempo this was equivalent to average of 116 beats per minute which is ideal for the pace at which I was walking then! I also ordered a blue-tooth handsfree set so that I don’t have wires hanging around my body.
Anyway – skipping forward a bit – I am now walking a 6k clockwise circular route to Africando Mario at 66% of normal tempo which is 123bpm. The track lasts for 13 minutes so it loops 5 times while I walk the 6km in less than 65 minutes which is a lot better than it sounds because the 67 minutes I recorded on Day 114 was for 5.5k not 6k which means my real time for 6k was 73 minutes. I have managed to walk the 6k in less than an hour a couple of times but my goal is to walk it in less than an hour 7 days in a row. I have used the MapMyWalk app to record each walk since 1 September which was Day 171. It’s very useful because it gives me instantaneous feedback on my current walking speed and records my split times for each half km so that I can analyse them afterwards to see how I performed which helps me improve.
I produce a report on facebook every day. You can follow this link to see the latest for Day 365 (14 March 2021) and scroll up to see previous reports if you are interested!
Here’s a copy of the report for that milestone day!
Philip Wake
Day 365 Salsa Walk
On 15 March 2020 I went for my first salsa walk – 1.8 miles to Gosport Ferry in an hour listening to salsa music on the loudspeaker of my phone walking on 1-3-5-7. Today I went for my 365th salsa walk – 6km (3.75 miles) in 61 minutes listening to salsa music on my blue tooth necklace walking on 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 using an app which plays Africando Mario at 66% of normal speed which is 123 beats per minute. I’m using the MapMyWalk app to monitor my progress so that I now know to the second how fast I went and to the 10m how far I went.So I’m walking twice as fast as on the first day using better technology to enjoy my favourite salsa music while I step on every beat of the music. I was feeling very strong today and walked in a straight line with energy all the way – ie placing each foot directly in front of the other to maximise the length of each step in the direction of travel. My 1k splits were: 10:29, 10:11, 10:10, 9:58, 10:09, 9:59 for a total time of 60:56 at an average speed of 5.91kph (10:09mpk, 3.69mph, 16:15mpm).
www.mapmywalk.com/workout/5570302519
In case you cannot see the MapMyWalk link above here’s the route that it shows:
The records below are just for the current 6k clockwise circular route. Here’s the Google Map version of the route (6km = 3.75miles which at 3mph takes 75 minutes).
| DAY | TIME | KM | KPH | MINS PER KM | MPH | MINS PER MILE | TEMPO % | SPM | STRIDES | STRIDE LENGTH FEET & INCHES |
| 365 | 1:00:56 | 6.00 | 5.91 | 10:09 | 3.69 | 16:15 | 66% | 123 | 7,479 | 2′ 7.6” |
| 364 | 1:01:55 | 6.00 | 5.82 | 10:19 | 3.63 | 16:31 | 66% | 123 | 7,599 | 2′ 7.1” |
| 363 | 1:06:27 | 6.00 | 5.42 | 11:04 | 3.39 | 17:43 | 65% | 121 | 8,032 | 2′ 5.4” |
| 362 | 1:02:01 | 6.00 | 5.81 | 10:20 | 3.63 | 16:32 | 65% | 121 | 7,496 | 2′ 7.5” |
| 360 | 1:01:33 | 6.00 | 5.85 | 10:15 | 3.66 | 16:25 | 65% | 121 | 7,440 | 2′ 7.8” |
| 359 | 1:02:47 | 6.00 | 5.74 | 10:28 | 3.58 | 16:45 | 65% | 121 | 7,589 | 2′ 7.1” |
| 358 | 1:02:14 | 6.00 | 5.79 | 10:22 | 3.62 | 16:36 | 65% | 121 | 7,522 | 2′ 7.4” |
| 357 | 1:01:11 | 6.00 | 5.89 | 10:12 | 3.68 | 16:19 | 65% | 121 | 7,396 | 2′ 7.9” |
| 356 | 1:06:29 | 6.00 | 5.42 | 11:05 | 3.39 | 17:44 | 65% | 121 | 8,036 | 2′ 5.4” |
| 354 | 1:04:26 | 6.00 | 5.59 | 10:44 | 3.49 | 17:11 | 65% | 121 | 7,788 | 2′ 6.3” |
| 353 | 1:02:26 | 6.00 | 5.77 | 10:24 | 3.60 | 16:39 | 65% | 121 | 7,547 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 352 | 1:00:35 | 6.00 | 5.94 | 10:06 | 3.71 | 16:09 | 65% | 121 | 7,323 | 2′ 8.3” |
| 350 | 1:01:33 | 6.00 | 5.85 | 10:15 | 3.66 | 16:25 | 65% | 121 | 7,440 | 2′ 7.8” |
| 349 | 1:01:32 | 6.00 | 5.85 | 10:15 | 3.66 | 16:25 | 65% | 121 | 7,438 | 2′ 7.8” |
| 348 | 1:02:26 | 6.00 | 5.77 | 10:24 | 3.60 | 16:39 | 65% | 121 | 7,547 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 347 | 1:00:03 | 6.00 | 6.00 | 10:00 | 3.75 | 16:01 | 65% | 121 | 7,259 | 2′ 8.5” |
| 346 | 1:02:37 | 6.00 | 5.75 | 10:26 | 3.59 | 16:42 | 65% | 121 | 7,569 | 2′ 7.2” |
| 345 | 1:00:55 | 6.00 | 5.91 | 10:09 | 3.69 | 16:15 | 65% | 121 | 7,363 | 2′ 8.1” |
| 344 | 1:00:21 | 6.00 | 5.97 | 10:03 | 3.73 | 16:06 | 65% | 121 | 7,295 | 2′ 8.4” |
| 343 | 1:04:28 | 6.00 | 5.59 | 10:45 | 3.49 | 17:11 | 65% | 121 | 7,792 | 2′ 6.3” |
| 342 | 1:01:27 | 6.00 | 5.86 | 10:15 | 3.66 | 16:23 | 65% | 121 | 7,428 | 2′ 7.8” |
| 341 | 1:04:19 | 6.00 | 5.60 | 10:43 | 3.50 | 17:09 | 65% | 121 | 7,774 | 2′ 6.4” |
| 337 | 1:00:04 | 6.00 | 5.99 | 10:01 | 3.75 | 16:01 | 65% | 121 | 7,261 | 2′ 8.5” |
| 336 | 1:00:59 | 6.00 | 5.90 | 10:10 | 3.69 | 16:16 | 65% | 121 | 7,371 | 2′ 8.0” |
| 335 | 1:00:57 | 6.00 | 5.91 | 10:10 | 3.69 | 16:15 | 65% | 121 | 7,367 | 2′ 8.1” |
| 334 | 1:01:11 | 6.00 | 5.89 | 10:12 | 3.68 | 16:19 | 65% | 121 | 7,396 | 2′ 7.9” |
| 333 | 1:04:00 | 6.00 | 5.63 | 10:40 | 3.52 | 17:04 | 65% | 121 | 7,736 | 2′ 6.5” |
| 332 | 1:02:07 | 6.00 | 5.80 | 10:21 | 3.62 | 16:34 | 65% | 121 | 7,508 | 2′ 7.5” |
| 330 | 0:59:57 | 6.00 | 6.01 | 10:00 | 3.75 | 15:59 | 65% | 121 | 7,247 | 2′ 8.6” |
| 329 | 1:00:35 | 6.00 | 5.94 | 10:06 | 3.71 | 16:09 | 65% | 121 | 7,323 | 2′ 8.3” |
| 328 | 1:00:40 | 6.00 | 5.94 | 10:07 | 3.71 | 16:11 | 65% | 121 | 7,333 | 2′ 8.2” |
| 327 | 1:00:45 | 6.00 | 5.93 | 10:07 | 3.70 | 16:12 | 65% | 121 | 7,343 | 2′ 8.2” |
| 326 | 1:01:04 | 6.00 | 5.90 | 10:11 | 3.69 | 16:17 | 65% | 121 | 7,381 | 2′ 8.0” |
| 325 | 1:02:30 | 6.00 | 5.76 | 10:25 | 3.60 | 16:40 | 65% | 121 | 7,554 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 324 | 1:04:31 | 6.00 | 5.58 | 10:45 | 3.49 | 17:12 | 65% | 121 | 7,797 | 2′ 6.3” |
| 323 | 1:00:56 | 6.00 | 5.91 | 10:09 | 3.69 | 16:15 | 65% | 121 | 7,365 | 2′ 8.1” |
| 322 | 1:02:36 | 6.00 | 5.75 | 10:26 | 3.60 | 16:41 | 65% | 121 | 7,566 | 2′ 7.2” |
| 321 | 1:05:43 | 6.00 | 5.48 | 10:57 | 3.42 | 17:31 | 65% | 121 | 7,942 | 2′ 5.7” |
| 320 | 1:05:50 | 6.00 | 5.47 | 10:58 | 3.42 | 17:33 | 65% | 121 | 7,957 | 2′ 5.7” |
| 319 | 1:04:37 | 6.00 | 5.57 | 10:46 | 3.48 | 17:14 | 65% | 121 | 7,810 | 2′ 6.2” |
| 317 | 1:03:18 | 6.00 | 5.69 | 10:33 | 3.56 | 16:53 | 65% | 121 | 7,650 | 2′ 6.9” |
| 316 | 1:06:25 | 6.00 | 5.42 | 11:04 | 3.39 | 17:43 | 65% | 121 | 8,027 | 2′ 5.4” |
| 315 | 1:02:13 | 6.00 | 5.79 | 10:22 | 3.62 | 16:35 | 65% | 121 | 7,520 | 2′ 7.4” |
| 314 | 1:04:20 | 6.00 | 5.60 | 10:43 | 3.50 | 17:09 | 65% | 121 | 7,775 | 2′ 6.4” |
| 313 | 1:02:58 | 6.00 | 5.72 | 10:30 | 3.57 | 16:47 | 65% | 121 | 7,610 | 2′ 7.0” |
| 311 | 1:03:02 | 6.00 | 5.71 | 10:30 | 3.57 | 16:48 | 65% | 121 | 7,618 | 2′ 7.0” |
| 310 | 1:04:13 | 6.00 | 5.61 | 10:42 | 3.50 | 17:07 | 65% | 121 | 7,761 | 2′ 6.4” |
| 309 | 1:03:27 | 6.00 | 5.68 | 10:34 | 3.55 | 16:55 | 65% | 121 | 7,669 | 2′ 6.8” |
| 308 | 1:03:03 | 6.00 | 5.71 | 10:30 | 3.57 | 16:49 | 65% | 121 | 7,620 | 2′ 7.0” |
| 307 | 1:02:36 | 6.00 | 5.75 | 10:26 | 3.60 | 16:41 | 65% | 121 | 7,566 | 2′ 7.2” |
| 306 | 1:01:48 | 6.00 | 5.83 | 10:18 | 3.64 | 16:29 | 65% | 121 | 7,469 | 2′ 7.6” |
| 305 | 1:02:59 | 6.00 | 5.72 | 10:30 | 3.57 | 16:48 | 65% | 121 | 7,612 | 2′ 7.0” |
| 304 | 1:01:57 | 6.00 | 5.81 | 10:19 | 3.63 | 16:31 | 65% | 121 | 7,487 | 2′ 7.5” |
| 303 | 1:04:37 | 6.00 | 5.57 | 10:46 | 3.48 | 17:14 | 65% | 121 | 7,810 | 2′ 6.2” |
| 302 | 1:01:26 | 6.00 | 5.86 | 10:14 | 3.66 | 16:23 | 65% | 121 | 7,425 | 2′ 7.8” |
| 301 | 1:02:28 | 6.00 | 5.76 | 10:25 | 3.60 | 16:39 | 65% | 121 | 7,550 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 300 | 1:03:13 | 6.00 | 5.70 | 10:32 | 3.56 | 16:51 | 65% | 121 | 7,640 | 2′ 6.9” |
| 299 | 1:00:59 | 6.00 | 5.91 | 10:10 | 3.69 | 16:16 | 65% | 121 | 7,371 | 2′ 8.0” |
| 298 | 1:00:53 | 6.00 | 5.91 | 10:09 | 3.70 | 16:14 | 65% | 121 | 7,359 | 2′ 8.1” |
| 297 | 1:02:21 | 6.00 | 5.78 | 10:23 | 3.61 | 16:38 | 65% | 121 | 7,537 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 296 | 1:02:05 | 6.00 | 5.80 | 10:21 | 3.62 | 16:33 | 65% | 121 | 7,504 | 2′ 7.5” |
| 295 | 0:59:25 | 6.00 | 6.06 | 9:54 | 3.79 | 15:51 | 65% | 121 | 7,182 | 2′ 8.9” |
| 294 | 1:00:46 | 6.00 | 5.93 | 10:08 | 3.70 | 16:12 | 65% | 121 | 7,345 | 2′ 8.2” |
| 293 | 1:01:28 | 6.00 | 5.86 | 10:15 | 3.66 | 16:23 | 65% | 121 | 7,430 | 2′ 7.8” |
| 291 | 1:01:42 | 6.00 | 5.84 | 10:17 | 3.65 | 16:27 | 65% | 121 | 7,458 | 2′ 7.7” |
| 290 | 1:06:21 | 6.00 | 5.43 | 11:03 | 3.39 | 17:42 | 65% | 121 | 8,020 | 2′ 5.5” |
| 289 | 1:06:18 | 6.00 | 5.43 | 11:03 | 3.39 | 17:41 | 65% | 121 | 8,014 | 2′ 5.5” |
| 288 | 1:04:29 | 6.00 | 5.58 | 10:45 | 3.49 | 17:12 | 65% | 121 | 7,794 | 2′ 6.3” |
| 285 | 1:04:06 | 6.00 | 5.62 | 10:41 | 3.51 | 17:06 | 65% | 121 | 7,748 | 2′ 6.5” |
| 284 | 1:02:26 | 6.00 | 5.77 | 10:24 | 3.60 | 16:39 | 65% | 121 | 7,547 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 283 | 1:02:40 | 6.00 | 5.75 | 10:27 | 3.59 | 16:43 | 65% | 121 | 7,575 | 2′ 7.2” |
| 281 | 1:03:20 | 6.00 | 5.69 | 10:33 | 3.55 | 16:53 | 65% | 121 | 7,655 | 2′ 6.9” |
| 280 | 1:03:13 | 6.00 | 5.70 | 10:32 | 3.56 | 16:51 | 65% | 121 | 7,641 | 2′ 6.9” |
| 279 | 1:03:54 | 6.00 | 5.64 | 10:39 | 3.52 | 17:02 | 65% | 121 | 7,724 | 2′ 6.6” |
| 278 | 1:01:54 | 6.00 | 5.82 | 10:19 | 3.64 | 16:30 | 65% | 121 | 7,482 | 2′ 7.6” |
| 277 | 1:00:47 | 6.00 | 5.92 | 10:08 | 3.70 | 16:13 | 65% | 121 | 7,347 | 2′ 8.2” |
| 276 | 1:00:21 | 6.00 | 5.97 | 10:03 | 3.73 | 16:06 | 65% | 121 | 7,295 | 2′ 8.4” |
| 275 | 1:04:36 | 6.00 | 5.57 | 10:46 | 3.48 | 17:14 | 65% | 121 | 7,808 | 2′ 6.3” |
| 273 | 1:02:28 | 6.00 | 5.76 | 10:25 | 3.60 | 16:39 | 65% | 121 | 7,551 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 272 | 1:03:18 | 6.00 | 5.69 | 10:33 | 3.56 | 16:53 | 65% | 121 | 7,651 | 2′ 6.9” |
| 271 | 1:01:38 | 6.00 | 5.84 | 10:16 | 3.65 | 16:26 | 65% | 121 | 7,450 | 2′ 7.7” |
| 270 | 1:01:05 | 6.00 | 5.89 | 10:11 | 3.68 | 16:17 | 65% | 121 | 7,383 | 2′ 8.0” |
| 268b | 1:05:11 | 6.00 | 5.52 | 10:52 | 3.45 | 17:23 | 65% | 121 | 7,879 | 2′ 6.0” |
| 267 | 1:00:42 | 6.00 | 5.93 | 10:07 | 3.71 | 16:11 | 65% | 121 | 7,337 | 2′ 8.2” |
| 265 | 1:01:38 | 6.00 | 5.84 | 10:16 | 3.65 | 16:26 | 65% | 121 | 7,450 | 2′ 7.7” |
| 263 | 1:01:57 | 6.00 | 5.81 | 10:20 | 3.63 | 16:31 | 65% | 121 | 7,488 | 2′ 7.5” |
| 262 | 1:02:25 | 6.00 | 5.77 | 10:24 | 3.61 | 16:39 | 65% | 121 | 7,545 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 261 | 1:02:22 | 6.00 | 5.77 | 10:24 | 3.61 | 16:38 | 65% | 121 | 7,539 | 2′ 7.3” |
| 260 | 1:00:44 | 6.00 | 5.93 | 10:07 | 3.71 | 16:12 | 65% | 121 | 7,341 | 2′ 8.2” |
| 259 | 1:00:38 | 6.00 | 5.94 | 10:06 | 3.71 | 16:10 | 65% | 121 | 7,329 | 2′ 8.2” |
| 258 | 1:01:13 | 6.00 | 5.88 | 10:12 | 3.68 | 16:19 | 65% | 121 | 7,400 | 2′ 7.9” |
| 257 | 1:03:51 | 6.00 | 5.64 | 10:38 | 3.52 | 17:02 | 65% | 121 | 7,718 | 2′ 6.6” |
| 256 | 1:02:40 | 6.00 | 5.75 | 10:27 | 3.59 | 16:43 | 65% | 121 | 7,575 | 2′ 7.2” |
| 255 | 1:03:58 | 6.00 | 5.63 | 10:40 | 3.52 | 17:03 | 65% | 121 | 7,732 | 2′ 6.6” |
| 254 | 1:01:25 | 6.00 | 5.86 | 10:14 | 3.66 | 16:23 | 65% | 121 | 7,424 | 2′ 7.8” |
| 253 | 1:01:11 | 6.00 | 5.89 | 10:12 | 3.68 | 16:19 | 65% | 121 | 7,396 | 2′ 7.9” |
| 252 | 1:03:34 | 6.00 | 5.66 | 10:36 | 3.54 | 16:57 | 65% | 121 | 7,684 | 2′ 6.7” |
| 251 | 1:04:29 | 6.00 | 5.58 | 10:45 | 3.49 | 17:12 | 65% | 121 | 7,794 | 2′ 6.3” |
| 250 | 1:01:38 | 6.00 | 5.84 | 10:16 | 3.65 | 16:26 | 65% | 121 | 7,450 | 2′ 7.7” |
| 249 | 1:04:01 | 6.00 | 5.62 | 10:40 | 3.52 | 17:04 | 65% | 121 | 7,738 | 2′ 6.5” |
| 248 | 1:05:04 | 6.00 | 5.53 | 10:51 | 3.46 | 17:21 | 65% | 121 | 7,865 | 2′ 6.0” |
| 247 | 1:01:15 | 6.00 | 5.88 | 10:12 | 3.67 | 16:20 | 65% | 121 | 7,404 | 2′ 7.9” |
| 246 | 1:05:05 | 6.00 | 5.53 | 10:51 | 3.46 | 17:21 | 65% | 121 | 7,867 | 2′ 6.0” |
| 245 | 1:04:21 | 6.00 | 5.60 | 10:43 | 3.50 | 17:10 | 65% | 121 | 7,778 | 2′ 6.4” |
| 244 | 1:03:20 | 6.00 | 5.69 | 10:33 | 3.55 | 16:53 | 65% | 121 | 7,655 | 2′ 6.9” |
| 243 | 1:02:09 | 6.00 | 5.79 | 10:21 | 3.62 | 16:34 | 65% | 121 | 7,512 | 2′ 7.4” |
| 242 | 1:03:05 | 6.00 | 5.71 | 10:31 | 3.57 | 16:49 | 65% | 121 | 7,625 | 2′ 7.0” |
| 241 | 1:05:40 | 6.00 | 5.48 | 10:57 | 3.43 | 17:31 | 65% | 121 | 7,937 | 2′ 5.8” |
| 240 | 1:05:05 | 6.00 | 5.53 | 10:51 | 3.46 | 17:21 | 65% | 121 | 7,867 | 2′ 6.0” |
| 239 | 1:01:17 | 6.00 | 5.88 | 10:13 | 3.67 | 16:21 | 65% | 121 | 7,408 | 2′ 7.9” |
| 238 | 1:01:48 | 6.00 | 5.83 | 10:18 | 3.64 | 16:29 | 65% | 121 | 7,469 | 2′ 7.6” |
| 237 | 1:04:08 | 6.00 | 5.61 | 10:41 | 3.51 | 17:06 | 65% | 121 | 7,752 | 2′ 6.5” |
| 236 | 1:02:14 | 6.00 | 5.79 | 10:22 | 3.62 | 16:36 | 65% | 121 | 7,523 | 2′ 7.4” |
| 235 | 1:04:47 | 6.00 | 5.56 | 10:48 | 3.47 | 17:17 | 67% | 125 | 8,071 | 2′ 5.3” |
| 234 | 1:02:31 | 6.00 | 5.76 | 10:25 | 3.60 | 16:40 | 67% | 125 | 7,789 | 2′ 6.3” |
| 233 | 1:00:59 | 6.00 | 5.90 | 10:10 | 3.69 | 16:16 | 67% | 125 | 7,598 | 2′ 7.1” |
| 232 | 1:02:43 | 6.00 | 5.74 | 10:27 | 3.59 | 16:43 | 67% | 125 | 7,814 | 2′ 6.2” |