Health Impact of Camino walk...

[falconbrother]

I've been home from the Frances for just over a week. I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. He asked me about the Camino and checked my vitals. I'm 60. He said: "Your vitals are incredible". I've bounced off the edge of high blood pressure for years. My post Camino PB is 102/62. Pretty amazing.

I will add that I made zero effort to eat healthy during my walk. We did buy bananas, apples and dried fruits and nuts for snacks. But, at meal times it was on like donkey kong.

 

[mspath]

Check out this earlier thread for other posts re weight loss or not while walking a camino.

In 2004 at 65 when I first began walking my height was 172 cm and weight 65 kilos. By the end of that camino and ever since my weight remains less than 55 kilos. Each time entering Santiago I physically felt remade; my bones might have been the same but they seemed re configured.

More important than any physical slimming down and tightening up was the psychological change. I have learned my limits as well as the importance of personal tenacity and endurance. Compared with ten climbs up O Cebreiro daily trivialities in life now at 85 have less importance; what matters most is to keep on keeping on!

 

[falconbrother]

Check out this earlier thread for other posts re weight loss or not while walking a camino.

In 2004 at 65 when I first began walking my height was 172 cm and weight 65 kilos. By the end of that camino and ever since my weight remains less than 55 kilos. Each time entering Santiago I physically felt remade; my bones might have been the same but they seemed re configured.

More important than any physical slimming down and tightening up was the psychological change. I have learned my limits as well as the importance of personal tenacity and endurance. Compared with ten climbs up O Cebreiro daily trivialities in life now at 85 have less importance; what matters most is to keep on keeping on!

One memory from the Camino is the few times when I had been walking for hours and still had a long hill to climb. I'd look up that hill and think, "I can't make this right now." Then I'd just keep walking and not looking up the hill and soon I'd walk over the top. Lessons for life. Just take one step at a time.

 

[henrythedog]

102/62 is extraordinary. I’ve always thought I had the BP of a sloth at 113/70, and I’m five years younger than you. My doctor says my blood has to cover such a distance to get round me that it has to take it slow or it wouldn’t make it.

 

[Jarrad]

Physical health: While I have added a neuroma in my foot and had a touch of tendonitis, I lost over 15 pounds without trying. In fact, while on the Camino I added second breakfast to my diet (although I do not recommend adding an icy cold Coke and a chocolate croissant to your diet if looking to shed some excess weight). Nonetheless, on my next Camino I plan to reduce my intake of chorizo. Probably.

Mental health: Resting pulse rate upon return was ~50 bpm and my doctor took me off of BP medication. Anxiety issues definitely were reduced and tools were added to the coping toolbox. I could go on.

Spiritual health: That's some deep stuff I don't like to share, but I'll say that I see shadows of the divine every single day on the Camino. And the spiritual/emotional lift from communion with other pilgrims? For me, it's immeasurable. Obviously YMMV.

 

[Juspassinthru]

One memory from the Camino is the few times when I had been walking for hours and still had a long hill to climb. I'd look up that hill and think, "I can't make this right now." Then I'd just keep walking and not looking up the hill and soon I'd walk over the top. Lessons for life. Just take one step at a time.

On my recently completed Camino, I tried and incorporated walking meditation into my hill climbing. If the scenery was nice I’d focus on something visual, if it was just a climb, I’d focus on the path down the tip of my nose. My mantra was one, two with the rhythm of my poles/step. I never, almost never, looked to the top of the hill. I had very good control of my breath and my heart rate was steady. It’s something I do everyday now.

 

[trecile]

I’d focus on the path down the tip of my nose. My mantra was one, two with the rhythm of my poles/step. I never, almost never, looked to the top of the hill.

I met a guy this year that told me his strategy for steep hills was to count each step with his right foot up to 25 before looking up to see how far he'd gotten. I tried it, and the focus on counting steps helped on steep hills.

Most of my life I've had pretty low blood pressure, but in the last few years, it has spiked up on occasion. I got home from the Camino a couple of weeks ago, and had a doctor's appointment last week. It was 90/60. Another benefit from the walking habit that I've developed since my first Camino in 2016 was that my bone density actually improved, which my doctor said was rare at my age.

 

[J Willhaus]

I pick a spot and say to myself "when I get there I will rest a little" then pick another spot and do the same all the way to the top. I've had younger pilgrims stop and ask me if I am OK. Phil says he gets the same question. You'll get there. It just takes some of us longer...

For some who injure themselves the health benefits are not so remarkable. I had a friend who came home with a stress fracture in the foot determined to get to Santiago and then couldn't walk right for 3 years. Listen to your body and treat it kindly...

 

[John Sikora]

Yep, over the course of a few Caminos, I've dropped 40 pounds. Looking forward to another 5 or so in a few weeks.

 

[Nanners]

I dropped a few pounds, too, but at the tail end of my Camino, I started having knee pain which continued to get worse after I returned home. It's mostly sorted now, following arthroscopic surgery in December. I'm still walking several miles a day and I'm careful to elevate and ice my knee when needed because I want to do more Caminos!

 

[OTH86]

@falconbrother and those of you who have experienced lower bp - wondering if your blood pressure has stayed at the lower level after several weeks or months following your return home?

 

[vwzoo]

I've been home from the Frances for just over a week. I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. He asked me about the Camino and checked my vitals. I'm 60. He said: "Your vitals are incredible". I've bounced off the edge of high blood pressure for years. My post Camino PB is 102/62. Pretty amazing.

I will add that I made zero effort to eat healthy during my walk. We did buy bananas, apples and dried fruits and nuts for snacks. But, at meal times it was on like donkey kong.

I walked Camino Frances in Sept 2018. I had lost over 100 lbs over several years and had progressively trained to get ready for about 2 yrs leading up to going on the Camino. To lose the weight I ate about 1300 cals a day and increased walking leading up to waking the camino 15 miles straight no breaks with my backpack with 20 Lbs in it. I really wanted to be ready. It meant so much to me to complete it. On the Camino I ate 3 meals daily, an ice cream treat and a cervaza at the end of the day. I felt great averaged 19 miles a day, no rest days continuing on to Murcia and the Finnisterra.
I got home and was shocked I had gained 9 lbs. Once you lose a lot of weight your metabolism just drops off I guess.
I still walk about 7 miles daily and hope to walk the Camino Frances again within the next year for my retirement gift to myself. This time with 2 new hips, to go with the two knees I had replaced in 2011. I have always had low blood pressure and pulse and now have to take a med to increase my BP. It was a great experience and will use some of the hill step techniques.

 

[WalkingInGers]

I developed Diabetes Type 2 three years ago. I started walking from Toulouse to Pamplona and recently from Pamplona to Santiago. I no longer have sugar problems and am off meds and having to test each day. I lost 12 kgs or 26 lbs. Unfortunately, having caught a similar type Covid virus, made me stay indoors for five weeks (after returning home), and gained again. So I am walking again…

 

[AR1965]

I've been home from the Frances for just over a week. I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. He asked me about the Camino and checked my vitals. I'm 60. He said: "Your vitals are incredible". I've bounced off the edge of high blood pressure for years. My post Camino PB is 102/62. Pretty amazing.

I will add that I made zero effort to eat healthy during my walk. We did buy bananas, apples and dried fruits and nuts for snacks. But, at meal times it was on like donkey kong.

I’m currently about 2/3 done (just past Astorga). I’m sure I’ve lost weight. Probably 15 pounds by how I feel and how my clothes fit. My Apple Watch is measuring my resting heart rate in the low 50s. And, my legs are looking very toned. But….my feet are calloused, my skin is dry and flaky from four weeks of constant sun exposure, and I’m battling tendinitis in my left leg (just coming off of a week of no walking per doctor’s orders). I was sidelined in León for a week….not a terrible place to be stuck.

 

[mattythedog]

I've been home from the Frances for just over a week. I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. He asked me about the Camino and checked my vitals. I'm 60. He said: "Your vitals are incredible". I've bounced off the edge of high blood pressure for years. My post Camino PB is 102/62. Pretty amazing.

I will add that I made zero effort to eat healthy during my walk. We did buy bananas, apples and dried fruits and nuts for snacks. But, at meal times it was on like donkey kong.

Yes, the Camino does wonderful things. At my annual physical in February I weighed about 175 lbs with BP 120/80. The day after I returned from CF, I went to my clinic for treatment for an infected finger. Look what the Camino did for me:

Vitals:
	05/23/2024 0959
BP:	99/57
Pulse:	65
Temp:	36.3 °C (97.3 °F)
TempSrc:	Temporal
SpO2:	98%
Weight:	174 lb 3.2 oz (79 kg)
Height:	5' 7" (1.702 m)

 

[Bumpa]

I came home from a camino down x number of pounds. When I mentioned what I had lost, my son said: "don't worry dad you find the pounds, They are in a pub somewhere"

 

[Cowboy99]

I've been home from the Frances for just over a week. I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. He asked me about the Camino and checked my vitals. I'm 60. He said: "Your vitals are incredible". I've bounced off the edge of high blood pressure for years. My post Camino PB is 102/62. Pretty amazing.

I will add that I made zero effort to eat healthy during my walk. We did buy bananas, apples and dried fruits and nuts for snacks. But, at meal times it was on like donkey kong.

We have been home a month after 2 months doing the CF. We feel physically and emotionally recharged. I have a total weight loss over 25 lbs.
Yes all is not perfect. GI bugs caught us both which set us back a week.
Then almost heading home, we rode the bus and ended up with a nasty virus. Wear a mask.
After a month home we finally have most of our energy.

 

[trecile]

Many of us have positive health effects after the Camino - weight loss, lowered blood pressure, etc., but they are not permanent! You have to institute the good behaviors that you practiced on the Camino to reap long term benefits.

 

[kaesler]

I started my Camino Frances in 2022 with painful osteoarthritis in one knee. Since finishing that walk, with the help of a knee brace, my knee has been pain free and I haven't really used the brace since.

Zuburi hurt a lot though...

 

[dreaming]

I caught a cold last October on CF. I still managed to walk with just one 5 km day but did feel miserable followed by a violent gastro event just before going on the plane back home. Despite this my cholesterol bloods etc on returning home were the best they had been in years. I said I would have to go on another camino before my next bloods.

 

[Janade]

I only lost a pound or two on my Camino, but my body totally changed. By the middle if the walk I had to start pinning the waistband of my pants so they didn’t fall down.

 

[jpwu]

102/62 is extraordinary. I’ve always thought I had the BP of a sloth at 113/70, and I’m five years younger than you. My doctor says my blood has to cover such a distance to get round me that it has to take it slow or it wouldn’t make it.

Don’t forget the lower you go the more death you are.

 

[LTfit]

As I've said in the past, the benefits really depend on your normal daily activity level, overall health and weight prior to the Camino.

Give or take about 2-3 kilos my weight is pretty stable and considered healthy. I walk year round 13-15 km per day with my dog and practice a very active type of yoga as well as teach classes. After completing 500-700 km (usually ever summer, averaging 33 km per day) I only loose a couple of kilos so I'm fascinated by stories of people losing so much weight in spite of eating whatever they want. I actually eat less while walking than at home although I do allow myself chocolate and the occasional potato chips (crisps) which I rarely eat at home. And I don't even eat three meals a day. The heat combined with the exertion diminish my appetite and still I only loose a max of 2-3 kilos.

So, I guess my conclusion is, health and weight benefits depend on:

1) your activity level prior to the Camino - the more active you are may have impact on the overall benefit of walking a Camino? I.e. more active = less benefits?

2) your weight (and of course metabolism) prior to the Camino - if you are already at a healthy weight maybe the chances of losing weight while walking are less? This may especially be true for those of us who normally watch our food intake in order not to gain weight.

Since we are all so different (body composition, metabolism, etc) these points may hold true for some but not for others. Still, please explain how do some people drop 10+ kilos?!?

 

[MCCanada]

Check out this earlier thread for other posts re weight loss or not while walking a camino.

In 2004 at 65 when I first began walking my height was 172 cm and weight 65 kilos. By the end of that camino and ever since my weight remains less than 55 kilos. Each time entering Santiago I physically felt remade; my bones might have been the same but they seemed re configured.

More important than any physical slimming down and tightening up was the psychological change. I have learned my limits as well as the importance of personal tenacity and endurance. Compared with ten climbs up O Cebreiro daily trivialities in life now at 85 have less importance; what matters most is to keep on keeping on!

I didn't notice much of a weight change the last time I walked the Camino (my weight is average); however, I found it amazing how much stronger a walker I was in the second half than the first. I did have an issue with my heel at one point, but opted to take a day off by taking a train to Burgos- next time I would take a bus, since the bus terminal is in the city centre and the train station is in the 'burbs. However, the Camino provided anyway, and I met a woman I still think of as the "angel of Burgos"- a English language teacher who not only showed me what bus to take to get to the city centre- she paid for it, and accompanied me right to the door of my albergue!! One of several amazing, life-altering experiences during the walk. Looking back, I realized I was never worried, when at home I worry about everything. Anyway, expect to get stronger, and make sure you pay attention to your body. A day off works wonders and can set you back, renewed, on the road again.

 

[digitalgerry]

. My doctor says my blood has to cover such a distance to get round me that it has to take it slow or it wouldn’t make it.

What rubbish

 

[Roma247]

Funny, I clicked on this thread out of curiosity to see if other people had similar health challenges to mine on the Camino. Once my body stopped screaming from the exertion of the first three days, I got the violent tummy bug...coming out both ends. Then once I had fully recovered from that, I got a bad chest cold that never died the whole time...in fact, I finished my Camino two weeks ago and the cough still hasn't died. The daily exertion of walking and never really fully resting just never gave my body the chance to clear this crud, and having missed so much work while I was gone, I haven't been able to rest much now that I'm back home.
So the Camino can definitely have a negative impact on your overall health as well...the albergues are the perfect environment to catch whatever is going around, and if you haven't planned plenty of extra time into your schedule, it's hard to get the rest you need to get better...

 

[C clearly]

health challenges

You make a good point. I find the Camino to be tiring and it takes some time to recover. However, over the years, the daily walking and training have a much greater net positive effect on my body.

 

[David Tallan]

I'm still dealing with the chronic idiopathic urticaria I somehow acquired on my 2016 Camino. But I overall consider the effects to be positive, which is perhaps part of why I keep returning.