How to Walk (12 miles a day)(walkingtheworld.substack.com) |
How to Walk (12 miles a day)(walkingtheworld.substack.com) |
However, it would be cool if there was a way to get paid for walking. That would motivate a lot more people, even if it is minimal pay. Walk-to-earn crypto game anyone?
Dog walker
On my walks I regularly see a guy who seems to either be doing exactly that, or he just has meetings all day. I've never gone past him when he wasn't chatting away on a phone meeting.
As a daily walker, I have to say it is its own reward.
I think a lot of the smartwatches have done a decent job at that, though there of course is the overhead to buy and wear one of them.
But even as someone who has been getting daily exercise for at least a decade now and doesn’t need encouragement, the little awards my Apple Watch gives me for hitting my targets feels good.
I have a pair and as an avid hiker and trail runner... I'm not sure I'd walk 15-20 miles in them. I have other better-suited footwear for that!
But I considered getting some kind of MP3 player and have gone down the bizarre rabbit hole of trying to find out if those even exist now, do they use .m3u playlists, and so forth. I haven't had as much time to listen to my music and I am not a user of streaming services (I want to listen to what I want to listen to, rather than some kind of firehose of what someone else decides via algorithm), so this would be a nice time to do it.
I do try to pay a bit higher than the baseline $20 USD range to get a better quality player, and sort by newest-to-market first, to get fresher batteries & firmware.
For walking or hiking the ones with buttons and clips are really great. They are very easy to use without looking at the screen. Mine do support .m3u playlists and have built-in playlist systems as well. You can shuffle files or shuffle playlist entries.
The FM radio features are also usually really convenient if you have wired headphones and any good stations or scheduled programming near where you live.
(I also have a ton of songs on my phone's card and I use Musicolet for that, which is great, but completely different in terms of experience, and I prefer not to walk or hike while holding my phone)
The good news is, a microSD card on your phone can hold all your music, even in FLAC form (unless you have an insanely large collection).
There are many music player apps that can either shuffle randomly, or play albums in sequence if that's what you want.
Really? I don't think I've ever been stopped by police just for walking.
I did find, at Google, that almost every time I was out, someone would stop me and ask where the Google Store was. Weird.
If you mean streaming services like Spotify or Deezer, is that not exactly what they allow you to do?
Sure I have been walking for most of my life, but how do I make sure that I walk with a good posture, without slouching, without looking weird/with confidence/grace/poise/or whatever adjective is appropriate.
I'm sure there are people who walk better than me and I'd like to learn how to do so.
But one actual tip I would give is to lead with your chest when you walk. Oh, and let your arms swing freely, with your hands facing your legs (not turned backwards) and try to place your feet down pointing directly forwards, not having one foot turned outwards, as I often see.
> Walking twelve miles takes about three and a half hours. Most people don’t have that time, not people with kids, commutes, and full time jobs. A more realistic goal is around seven miles, which takes about two hours.
Maybe they mean spread out over the course of the day?
How did you deal with keeping yourself hydrated and filled? Did you drink caffeine to keep yourself awake?
I would love to try something similar when I'm in a new city once
I've read suggestions to keep it at about 10% per week to prevent injury. And more generally to increase in one dimension only (intensity, frequency or duration). Important to know as you get older ...
I have a day job. That said, it’s my favorite part of my day. If I need to think about things. Either personal or work related, I work it out. If not, I listen to podcasts, and learn more about the world or current events.
So far, every single audiobook I want to check out is reserved at least 6 months out and more commonly a year out.
Is there some other scheme for borrowing audiobooks? I used to subscribe to Audible but it wasn’t a very good deal.
With Overdrive / Libby I tend to sort by what's available, rather than searching for what I want. (It's similar to going to the library to browse shelves, in that way)
Anyway usually the local librarians know the smartest ways to combine apps and such.
Because the best secret tip is that overdrive doesn't encrypt their mp3's. They even admit it at [1]. I don't know about iOS but on android it's just stored plaintext in the android system. So you just get on hold for books and whenever they come in, download then, and don't have to worry about loans. I try to be nice about this and buy the book for author's books I've enjoyed because I want to support artists. But it's nice to not have the limitations of 21 days, especially for longer books
Overdrive is trying to go to libby where they obfuscate the mp3s but they might not push it through
Also don't discount text to speech. It's not as nice as a real narrator but I also walk 5+ hours on weekends and it's nice to be able to listen to arbitrary text. Google's TTS is pretty readable and has a generous free tier
The app I use is called Libby, but I imagine it is pulling from the same inventory.
Do the Teva XLT2 sandals provide enough shock absorption for walking on concrete?
I'm not sure what else would work for feet and toes, though asking on a running / distance-walking discussion would probably be useful. A chief problem is adding something else that irritates skin at the same time you're trying to reduce the problem.
Cyclists tend to swear by bag balm: https://www.rivbike.com/pages/saddle-sores
Ocean rowers and open-water swimmers also use various treatments against friction and salt rashes, though I'm not sure which specifically.
I’d say biking is (in the right environment). It’s certainly easier on the knees than walking.
Also, walking is weight bearing exercise, which is supposed to be better for bone strength.
Jogging for 45 minutes daily will actually improve your health.
Some changes I've noticed since doing this are listed below. Not that they are earth shattering, but just a few things I've observed.
* My resting heart rate fell by about 5 BPM.
* I can now run and walk in my dreams and rarely have the "legs in molasses" thing (if you know what I mean).
* I now wear trail running shoes all the time - a total shift from the old Birkenstock and whatever shoes I wore for years before.
* My town has a number of fun, curious little sidewalk shortcuts between neighborhoods that I did not know about. They aren't secret, just not obvious at all.
One of my favorite things to find in Santa Barbara are old concrete stamps marking which company/contractor poured that section of sidewalk. Often these are 100+ years old. I've currently found ~25-30 different ones.
I know exactly what you mean. That’s fascinating that it went away with more walking; maybe the brain is now better able to “simulate” walking?
I personally have walked 10 miles in a pair, but it was pretty casual walking.
Get them on sale, and send them in to get refurbished from time-to-time. They are fantastic.
My coworker and I worked like a year together at my place. He came around, we drank a coffee together and started working. Like 3-4 hours later, depending on schedule, we took a good 60 minutes+ walk with my dog. We talked project related things sometimes, but it felt never like "we have to talk about work", We were kind of friends so we had lots of other topics. Then back at my place we continued for 2,3 or even 5 hours. We had no issues stopping after 2 hours, but did often way more. We were very productive.
We were a good match, but those breaks outside enjoying life (forced by my habits to go at least 60minutes outside with the dog) helped a lot not burning out and making room in the brain.
Well. I suppose not all dogs. But get yourself some retriever mutt monster, and strap on those snow boots.
Backpacks are magic for longer trips. Food, water, coffee, all go in. Unsure about the weather? Layers layers layers, all in the pack. I also use LL Bean's PrimaLoft Packaway (I own two, one black and one orange), and have a shell for rainy/snowy weather. Unless it's both cold and rainy, one of the two goes in the backpack.
I've also never worried much about pocket preferences on my shorts and pants. I instead care about pockets on my packs. My current big pack is an Osprey Exos 58 (but the newer version doesn't have hip belt pockets or a shoulder strap pocket), and my daypack is an REI Flash 22 (with easily accessible side pockets, and a top pocket that you can reach with an awkward shoulder movement).
Edit: The big floppy hat comment was absolutely spot-on
That said, I agree with you -- I could imagine walking (or riding) with stuff in my pockets.
Fanny packs are sweet, except the part where you're wearing a fanny pack.
Biking is different, of course--you're not outside for as long (at least for a given number of miles), and you can store your water bottles on the bike itself.
[1] https://www.osprey.com/us/en/product/tropos-TROPOSF19.html
With that said, the college kids tend to prefer a backpack because it's their mobile office, and they don't want anything on their bike that can get stolen.
I have 2 small kids now, and they are really not in best shape for long hikes or anything more extreme. Son on baby backpack would be 20 kilos without any further equipment/food required.
So I switched to long evening walks during work week after they go sleep. 2-3h, up to 10km. Luckily there are some nice options around me, so I try to variate things a bit every time, join things in loops and so on. Often music in the ears, very dark, walking in the forests where path surface is not really visible, rather than just very weak line and I trust my feet (and know the surface is not really tricky since I walked it 100x already).
Walking fast, as fast as my legs allow it for prolonged time (one gets this sense after some time spent doing it, pushing oneself too much is very bad idea). Also not fan of backpacks for this, rather stuffing pockets of jacket with everything required.
Its magical, clears head, tons of ideas come to me, for family, work, anything. Sometimes I struggle to write it all down and not forget anything. Sometimes smoking a bit of weed which makes this process more smooth. One activity that keeps such previously-active person as me still sane, even if kids sometimes try hard to push me the other way.
I'm a fan of the small backpack when I'm out with my kids, particularly for a water bottle, tubs of snacks, a place to put that pinecone they found, etc. But just me? A wallet and phone in my pants pockets is more than enough.
Depends on how hot and humid it is outside. Even in breathable clothing like Nike Dryfit or any of the thousand knockoffs, in 90+ degrees, high humidity weather, a backpack blocks perspiration evaporating off. It literally becomes a hot spot on your back. He did have one tip I don't entirely agree with to use Vaseline, but instead I use Glide just because I don't care for the consistency of petroleum jelly. Although he mentions long sleeves shirts and a hat with neck guard, he said nothing explicitly about skin or eye protection; people in the sun day after day should be wearing polarizing lenses and high SPF clothing along with sun screen.
For multi-day trips I already have a small camping stove (MSR PocketRocket or an alcohol stove), and I pack instant coffee. I heavily prioritize saving weight on longer trips, so I generally drink my coffee out of the same light plastic bowl that I just ate oatmeal out of, which doubles as a decent way to clean the bowl.
For urban backpacking the more high end thermoses are really effective at keeping stuff hot once you've made it.
I have several friends that really like their Fellow Carter Everywhere mugs if you want an alternative.
[1]: https://projektco.com/products/gravy-silverado (can't recommend this high enough.)
Just thinking increases awareness of my surroundings, allows me time to process existing thoughts as opposed to consuming more inputs, and connects me to the people I would inevitably see on a semi-regular basis.
Personally, I have found that 1 hour + is a good threshold to aim for for some really quality thinking. After about an hour I've already processed normal stuff about family or work and have moved on to deeper topics.
He's either only walking in exceptionally safe areas, he's very large, or I have a particularly punchable face. I biked every road in St. Louis a few years ago, which required biking every street in some high-crime neighborhoods. I was frequently made to feel uncomfortable. I was never attacked or anything like that, but multiple times it was made clear to me that I was where I didn't belong. And I was on a bike and could quickly ride away. I think I would have had a lot more trouble on foot.
I remember being in a bar once and some guy started trouble with me for no reason and my buddy, who is 6'3'' and 250 pounds did not believe that detail, because "nobody would start trouble with you for no reason." To paraphrase Don Draper, "no, nobody would start trouble with you for no reason."
For the longest time I found walking even short distances insufferably slow and boring. I ride my bike--a lot. The distances and durations I cover have grown each year to the point that centuries (metric or imperial) are a regular weekend event. Boredom is always an issue when you're out for 5+ hours, but you'd be surprised at how much your sense of time can change if you normalize riding long distances. Interestingly, my mind's time-condensation for cycling never translated to walking.
This year I branched out into winter ultra fat biking, which, as it turns out, can involve a significant amount of walking. In bad snow conditions one can end up pushing a heavy bike for hours at a time. The two races I did this winter had their respective all time worst course conditions. So, I did a lot of walking.
This spring I've found myself opting walk to the gym and office, leaving the bike at home. My mind doesn't count the minutes the way it used to. I actually have no sense of how long it takes me to get to these places. I suspect the exaggerated stimulus of pushing a bike for hours through snow drifts has adapted my perception of everyday walking. I would hypothesize that the author's 20-mile weekend walks makes their long daily walks more doable. If you want to enjoy short regular walks, perhaps it would help to go out for a very long and hard walk from time to time.
Bingo. Adaptation can do wonders for our perception of an activity. How do you adapt? By pushing the limits a little bit at a time; getting in the zone of discomfort for a short while, and stopping before pain/injury.
Lately, I've been trying to enjoy discomfort by thinking of it as an indication that my limits are now shifting in the right direction.
The author mentions other (hostile) people as a potential problem, one could also mention wild animals or straight dogs in urban environments. I had a couple of encounters with lost dogs myself, thankfully they were not hostile. Advice on how to behave from "pros" would be welcome.
I was walking a little bit before, but not regularly. Since I started doing it every day I lost 35 kg and got much happier. I just can't continue to be angry about anything after walking for 1 hour with a good book on the headphones.
Now I'm usually doing about 5-10 km on work days and 20-35 km on free days. I skip if the weather is too bad but it's rare. For example I love walking when snow is falling as long as it's not the heavy wet variety.
I agree that sometimes it's better not to listen to anything - you can recognize these days by the fact you don't actually listen to the stuff on the headphones. Then I just turn it off or put some instrumental music instead.
As for where to walk - I prefer countryside nowadays, but that's probably because countryside here is very walkable. Small roads have pavements or the traffic is so low it doesn't matter. And the expectation is that people walk on them so it's pretty safe. There's only one road nearby that sucks for walking as I've learnt the hard way. Never again.
Did you change your diet and/or sleep habits too?
What was the weight you dropped down from?
Walking pushed me into negatives (walking was 500-700 kcal spent per day and I was usually 100-400 kcal in the negatives).
I started around 130 kg, now I'm under 95 kg, target is 85.
I've been developing severe osteoarthritis in my knees over the last decade since I hit my 40's, and now it's so bad, I'm unable to walk more than about 10 minutes. It's had a tremendous negative impact on my physical and mental health, especially as it was coincident with the pandemic. I've "replaced it" with biking, but for some reason, it just doesn't do as much for me as walking did. I've gained about 30 pounds, I'm tired all the time, and for the first time ever, feeling a little blue now and then and not doing other things I used to enjoy (very mild though, my wife has major depression and mine is a blip comparatively.) I guess I'm a living testament to how important walking is.
I like the timing of this article for myself. On the bright side, I'm getting one of my knees replaced next week, and the other hopefully in 6 months if recovery goes well. I am really looking forward to daily walks again and getting back to that healthy place I was in for so long!
12 miles is totally doable, but start with less because you'll injure yourself if you don't walk at all now. Even just 15 minutes of walking is great.
I am more of a bicyclist and luckily there are many trails around me. (I don't like riding on the streets) On a nice summer day I can easily spend 3 hours riding. If you work a full time 9-5, there is still plenty of time in the morning or evening to get a few hours of exercise in . (I should take my own advice here!)
I would kindly urge you to consider this and give walking a fair try. It made a lot of positive change in my life. Best wishes.
The fraction of the population that can sustain a 4 mph pace comfortably for three hours is probably small. That's a pretty good clip. 2.5 to 3 mph is much more realistic.
I've been following Tom Turich on Facebook for years now. He's just about to finish up his 7 year walk around the world with his dog Savannah. I think he was walking around 15-20 miles (24-32 km) a day, somedays upwards of 30 miles (48 km).
Most updates are on FB, not his web site:
https://www.facebook.com/TheWorldWalk/
Some AMAs he's done over the years:
https://old.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/3m7erz/i_am_tom_turci...
https://old.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/4sheeq/i_am_tom_turci...
https://old.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/al1elx/i_am_tom_turci...
https://old.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/szksev/i_will_soon_be...
The most miles I've done (walking and running) in a day is 105 (169 km). It was a lot. The world record is 192.252 miles (309.4 km). Okay, that involved some running.
I walk every day, preferably with my wife.
It works for me because I'm not a sit-down-and-chat kind of person. I can't sit still - I'm _always_ doing something. I just get ants in my pants and have to get up.
A good hour-long walk is fantastic because it provides a long stretch of uninterrupted time where we can talk about, well, anything! Free from any distractions or time pressure. And strangely, I feel way more open to talking when I'm physically moving.
When walking alone I usually put a podcast on, but most of the time I zone out and end up thinking. It's great because you can carry a long chain of thought and see where it takes you! And the minute I sit down - poof! - it's all gone.
Nietzsche said "all truly great thoughts are conceived while walking".
I wish I could say I had such lofty thoughts are the great philosophers. Usually I'm daydreaming about something useless. But it's nice to think I at least share something in common with them!
Those were the good days.
For one, creative inspiration often comes to me while walking. Second, it beats sitting on a couch. If you need added stimulation, go with a walking partner or listen to a podcast. Plus health benefits (not going to say it's an amazing workout depending on intensity but it's better than being sedentary) and it's fun.
Yes, it takes time. Sometimes you don't have time. That's ok. It doesn't have to be every day. But it's something you can do with kids, parents, colleagues, by yourself, etc...
https://www.lifespanfitness.com/products/tr1200-dt3-under-de...
What's best is if you can take a full hour-long or more walk, and let your mind wander for the majority of it. You don't need to be actively thinking the whole time, that can actually defeat the purpose of it.
But don't let the great be the enemy of the good, if all you can take is 15 minutes, and you need to be thinking the whole time, do that instead.
I stepped up to a line manager role (to cover someone for maternity leave) so that I was suddenly line-managing my peers. We had always gone for walks at lunchtime and we very quickly evolved the convention that conservations during the walk were with 'old me' vs those in the office that were with 'manager-me'. This allowed me to vent as well, given that we all a fairly cynical non-corporate bunch.
For a sedentary/desk job, I suspect that maintaining this quantity of walking daily would be feasible, and beneficial, long term.
Unlike the author, I do wear a backpack. I really like having all the stuff I might want with me, from snacks to Gatorade to jackets, etc.
It can be very meditative as well. If you walk quietly for several hours, just focusing on breathing and walking, you can be in (almost) another state of consciousness by the time you get back.
This is mine https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V7F8QYK It's larger. No real complaints other than you can only tip it up against the wall on the heavier end, which makes it top heavy.
This is hers https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0895DRWVY It's a little smaller, but works fine. It's easier to maneuver when tipped up thanks to some omnidirectional bearings built into the edge.
In general, any kind of exercise or mindless activity (cooking, doing stuff with your hands, etc.) is great for resetting your brain. Also if you stop looking at cleaning as chore and start seeing it as an indoor fitness activity, you can basically multi task a bit: reset brain, listen to podcast, get some exercise and my place ends up getting some attention.
Here's a useful tool, for planning routes. A friend wrote it: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/easyroute/id605127860
Nessim Nicholas Taleb describes himself as one.
I tend to walk 5-10mies a day, usually as part of my commute within San Francisco. One of the reasons I love this city so much is the walkability. I'm a fan of the backpack for a book, an extra layer, and in case I buy something on the walk, or in case I find an interesting read in one of those neighborhood share libraries.
My wife will be visiting relatives out of the country for the entire month of July, so I'm planning on a solo trip to some town or city in the United States. Any suggestions on nice, walkable cities? I also like to visit bars and try and see live music.
This can't be stressed enough.
With phones and the Internet today, most of us consume way more information than we have time to really process, organize, and reflect on. It's like we do a shopping spree every single day and never spend any time in our house unpacking any of the grocery bags. Our minds are a chaotic mess of piled up worries, news, unmade decisions, etc.
Walking (without audiobooks or other media) is the single best solution I've found to give my brain the idle time it needs to run a defrag and work through that backlog.
Also if walking alone, people should try calling friends and family. It's a great way to reconnect and stay connected with friends. Handsfree, heads up, it's good fun. I also feel much more chatty when on a walk.
Anyway, walking commutes are the best.
The content must flow.
I used to listen to music and stuff a lot while walking or even commuting but a few years ago I decided to give up on most idle listening, preferring to listen to music or podcasts with intent now: eg to enjoy some music, not just passively.
I used to walk a lot (I still walk a good bit but because I work from home I don’t walk to work each day anymore) and I found the quiet time to be the best time to come up with solutions to problems, to reflect on my life or day, to just wind down and switch off, to enjoy nature (when I walk to walk, as opposed to walking to reaching a destination, I typically walk along a river near my home). I think we are overstimulated far far too much and some quiet time and boredom is good for the brain and certainly it’s good for creativity.
> I agree completely.
> preferring to listen to music or podcasts with intent now: eg to enjoy some music, not just passively.
That's the opposite of what parent suggested.
I'm more a mind wanderer, though for a season I tried to mentally prepare myself for the transition from being at a controlled work environment to walking into a house with two young kids at the end of the day.
I find this kinda pointless for myself. Most of the time I just revisit the same subjects over and over and come to the same conclusions no matter how I try to solve it. Once I’m done with the menial tasks - the “deeper” topics just make me upset to think about because they make me realize how hopelessly fucked I am. I’d rather not focus on that and instead do a bit of hedonism while I can.
When things are going well, I don't get frustrated by free form thinking.
I try to double fork my commute, either explore some new path or do some groceries so the 45minutes are not just walk/train.
Right now I do bike - train - bike (but, surprisingly, trains are unreliable this month .. they're the one making me late :)
Just wanted to say thanks, ill seriously give this a try.
I enjoy listening to the animals / birds / insects, and tossing friendly hellos to the people walking by. (Actually, maybe that's why -- at the park where I walk, headphones would feel slightly antisocial)
However I did have a great time learning Chinese and Japanese via audio courses while taking long walks - without that time it's hard for me now to find the time to do the same.
Don't go to stupid places filled with stupid people doing stupid things and you'll likely be okay — and this includes bars after midnight just about anywhere. Nothing good happens after midnight, but I digress.
I agree with you that it was a good thing you were on a bike and I'm glad you're here to post about it!
I’m not a particularly imposing person but I grew up in a big city so I know how to navigate one. Less savvy people might have lower thresholds for safety.
But I have one injunction: I don't want to hear about stupid people being stupid. There is just an astounding amount of that, always has been, and everybody seems to want everybody else to know all about it, in detail.
I see we both watch the same YouTube channel!
He is likely avoiding high-crime neighborhoods. There is a big gap between 'exceptionally safe' and 'high-crime' neighborhoods. Your average and even below average neighborhoods are likely safe for most walkers.
Any way, I agree, its best to always be alert and aware no matter where you are and be smart about where you walk, no matter what your gender presentation is. There are some crazy people in this world.
Bars have aggressive drunks.
Never have I felt as unsafe and unsure as in the US.
I live in Chicago. I live in a…oh…let’s say a gentrifying area of Chicago.
I can imagine it would be intimidating to walk around some of the areas near me if I was a woman, or presenting as female/non-binary, or even a smaller man. (The non-binary bit is not some empty bit of woke, it is also a very LGBT-heavy area of town.) It’s easy to advocate walking, and perhaps easy to shrug off alarmism about crime, when you’re not likely to be the target of harassment or criminality.
Fortunately for me, I am easily the most terrifying creature on the street at 4am, and can blithely walk 2 miles to get home when Uber prices spike to $40. https://imgur.com/a/QoTzQr6
Stray dogs aren't hostile. Dogs defending their owner's territory are hostile.
* or right and left, if you're in the UK
200mi in a day, wow, but what's the record for walking, yours has to be close?
I've also completed 12 hour races (I get to around 62 miles/100 km), and I've done distance races of 50 miles and 100 miles. My best time for 100 miles is 23 hours, but folks complete this distance much faster, say 14:23:13:
http://umstead100.org/index.html
http://www.devonyanko.com/news/2022/4/8/umstead-100-race-rep...
I don't know if there are 24-hour racewalking competitions, but 100 mile racewalks are a thing:
Instead, when I listen to music, it’s usually by sitting down deliberately to exclusively listen to music. The music isn’t idle background noise but rather the point of that activity. I enjoy music a lot more now, I find.
In general I try to have silence where in the past I would have had audio playing in the background. So definitely while walking but also while working (since I’m working from home and don’t need to drown out office noises).
It's a sort of personal retrospective slash backlog grooming session.
We need that idle time. When I go on long motorcycle trips, I return with a clear head and a much better idea of what I want to do next.
I’m genuinely asking, because I couldn’t tell from the context of your comment.
I figured I'd probably have more free time when he goes to middle school when teenager rebellion kicks in. In about ten years.
So I don't have a standing desk, either. I primarily sit when working at the computer. But every 30-45 minutes I get up and go for a stroll, even if just around the yard.
fwiw my walking desk is set to 2.4mph, which seems to be the sweet spot between my natural walking speed and a pace that I can still comfortably read and type. Pretty much a linear ramp up from 1.0mph to 2.4mph over 1 year period.
You didn't check his profile, then? ;)
He's also been on the Corecursive podcast, about Crafting Interpreters: https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/corecursive-coding-storie... which happened to be one of the most recent things I was listening to while out walking.
The Count of Monte Cristo is my current go to re-read.
that's a neat idea to allow us to be cognizant of life. And to keep other things simple to create mental and physical bandwidth for the main things.
Ah, this is such a good suggestion too! I've been doing that more lately too and it's really valuable.
Hear me out:
Sport coats. (edit: and blazers)
Very light linen ones for hot days, which keep sun off your skin without really making you hotter. Cooler days, break out the wool.
All those extra pockets are wonderful. Grab some thin old mass-market genre paperbacks and discover why they made them that size :-)
They're like purses for men, that you can wear instead of carry, and that make you look better. Similar storage capacity to a fanny pack, I'd say. Maybe a little more.
I wear a short sleeve polyester t-shirt in black. I own a dozen of them, all identical, and wear them most days. My wife hates it.
The black is not good on very hot days. It’s surprising how much difference a light color makes. But, I can’t seem to keep light stuff clean.
I don’t know if I could stand my arms in a sport coat, but I guess it’s no different from a regular jacket in the winter.
Yes, my teenagers were shocked and appalled when they saw it, and made me promise I would only wear it while on the bike.