Is it normal to be so tired from walking?

You describe some effects that are characteristic of depression. Consider talking to your doctor and starting on a mild antidepressant.

They are easily available in the US -- I just got one. Internationally may vary, of course.

I used to do the exact same routine as you for 3 years ago for a couple of years. I used to walk 1+ hour to work and then back home, then do strength training. I was averaging 20K a day and I have a desk job where I really didn't move at all once I got to work until it was time to come home. I can say it was much easier in the winter time vs summer when it was super hot and humid. I was covering my self head to toe to protect myself from UV light in the summer, which was much more of a hassle then wearing a jacket.

I also found the the right shoe made all the difference in the world. I started with work shoes which were definitely not made for walking for 1+ hour at a time. Then when I switch to hiking shoes since it rains a lot, it was significantly better. But when I made the switch to actual walking shoes, it was again a night and day difference.

When I first started doing it, and starting to diet, I did intuitive eating and not really calorie counting. I did lose weight and didn't feel tired. I felt like I could just walk forever and not feel anything after sitting down for 10 minutes.
However, I eventually stopped walking to work because I started to feel pain in my knees. Not sure if it was just from overuse or getting old or combination of both. I also started counting calories and at some point I started to feel much more fatigued when I was trying to be in a deficit. I was also going to sleep at 9:00 pm and on a Friday, i would often goto sleep at 8:30.

Unlike your situation, when covid hit, we had to start working from home, so to replace the walking to and from work, I walked on a treadmill, which I think may be a little more difficult since there are no breaks at stop lights. I initially decided to get all my exercise in at one time. So i was doing strength training then 2 hours on the treadmill instead of having it broken up as before. This meant I had to get up earlier to do this. I did this for 5 month and found my self much more exhausted even the amount of exercise was the same as before, just in different times of the day. I recently went back to splitting up the work out so I could sleep in a little more and feel significantly less fatigued.

So my experience is (TLDR)
The right shoes definitely helps walking long distance.
Eating the right amount of calories also helps.
Not forcing your self to wake up earlier than what your body wants helps.
Getting some rest before you go from 1 workout to the next helps.

If you're deficient in vitamin D then it might be worth consulting a calculator. There you type in your current level and the level you aim at. The calculator then tells you how much Vitamin D you need to take to raise your level to that number in for example 3 months. It usually takes quite a lot of vitamin D to raise levels substantially.

Other than that: agree to all that other people have said here.

netitheyeti wrote: »

charmmeth wrote: »

netitheyeti wrote: »

I seriously think it's partially my shoes but I still have no way to buy new (water/snowproof) ones, all shoe shops have been closed since october

Could you buy shoes online? I realise it's a risk, but you could choose somewhere that lets you send them back if they don't fit.

netitheyeti wrote: »

I feel like maybe some of this is mental... I've been thinking today and 2 things stand out to me:
1) I haven't seen sunlight in over a month, I go to work and come home in darkness, I work in a basement with no windows
2) I am stuck in a town with 0 friends and no way to get to my family (haven't seen anyone outside work, where I'm one of the "new"-ish people, in over a month)

That sounds debilitating. I really sympathise: I was in lockdown on my own for three months (but in the spring, so in the light) and saw very few people. i found it exhausting and depressing. Can you use zoom to talk to your family and friends at least?

my family don't know how to use tech/webcams so we stick to phonecalls, no cams (this is people in their 60s to late 80s)

my normal places to buy shoes from don't do online, and I have very unusual feet so it's a challenge even when shopping in person I tend to be JUST able to fit into the smallest adult womens size, but then there's my high arches, wide feet and super long toes

Will Zappos ship to you? They are great with returns for me in the US anyway. I normally buy 3-4 different shoes and only keep one pair.

Amazon bought Zappos so I check both places now. I do research on Zappos and then see if Amazon has the better price.

kshama2001 wrote: »

netitheyeti wrote: »

Redordeadhead wrote: »

netitheyeti wrote: »

just to clarify - yes, I am eating enough so I'm not losing more weight - if I was massively undereating I'd notice that after a few weeks.. now some days I eat more and some days I eat less (depends on how hungry) but looking at the past week for example I'm averaging about 2000-2100kcal, my sedentary maintenance would be just around 1500

When I walk I carry a light backpack with my wallet, disinfectant, some tissues, my phone charger and some spare masks (obligatory to wear one at all times, even on the streets, so I go through a few single use ones per day).. I'll sometimes grab groceries on the way back, but I'm only carrying those for the last 1/3 of the walk

I tend to do either gentler stuff (stretching) or workouts with weights in the evenings because I don't want to lose the strength I've been working for months to get also, walking doesn't quite feel as satisfying sometimes?

I seriously think it's partially my shoes but I still have no way to buy new (water/snowproof) ones, all shoe shops have been closed since october

Could you order some shoes online, if you think that's part of the problem? Lots of places allow free returns, so you could try them on and everything before committing.

I can also highly recommend reusable, washable cloth masks: less waste for the environment but also, you don't need to carry so many. I bought a pack of 5 in Amazon, usually have 2 with me at all times and just wash them in rotation.

I think you're right about the mental part too though. It can be hard in winter when it's dark all the time, even worse during this period of social isolation. If your mood is a bit low that may well be making you feel more tired.

I bought washable ones! After 30ish min of walking in high humidity I feel like I'm getting suffocated by wet cloth getting sucked into my mouth/nose

I had a short walk in very cold last night and started to experience the wet mask and thought of you.

Oh yeah, wet mask is a new sensation. I did like wearing it as a lightweight cover for my mouth though. Scarfs and ski masks were just too heavy and sweaty when I'm out exercising. I need something to cover my face because I get a lil asthmatic when I suck in too much cold air from breathing hard.

netitheyeti wrote: »

charmmeth wrote: »

netitheyeti wrote: »

I seriously think it's partially my shoes but I still have no way to buy new (water/snowproof) ones, all shoe shops have been closed since october

Could you buy shoes online? I realise it's a risk, but you could choose somewhere that lets you send them back if they don't fit.

netitheyeti wrote: »

I feel like maybe some of this is mental... I've been thinking today and 2 things stand out to me:
1) I haven't seen sunlight in over a month, I go to work and come home in darkness, I work in a basement with no windows
2) I am stuck in a town with 0 friends and no way to get to my family (haven't seen anyone outside work, where I'm one of the "new"-ish people, in over a month)

That sounds debilitating. I really sympathise: I was in lockdown on my own for three months (but in the spring, so in the light) and saw very few people. i found it exhausting and depressing. Can you use zoom to talk to your family and friends at least?

my family don't know how to use tech/webcams so we stick to phonecalls, no cams (this is people in their 60s to late 80s)

my normal places to buy shoes from don't do online, and I have very unusual feet so it's a challenge even when shopping in person I tend to be JUST able to fit into the smallest adult womens size, but then there's my high arches, wide feet and super long toes

I have wide feet and high arches and walk a lot at work I found NBT sports rally helpful however Im hot sure you would want to walk in snow with them. they defiantly decrease heal strike though.

You mentioned lack of sunshine and being mildly depressed perhaps you are low in vitamin D
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/vitamin-d-deficiency-symptoms#TOC_TITLE_HDR_3

I'm not saying that this jumps the shark but there's also the option of having several masks on your person if you're, for some reason, going to be out among the Great Unwashed for a large portion of the day.

Personally, I would be concerned about pressure marks this would leave on my face... especially with make-up 🤷🏿‍♀️

But whomever invented this? Chef's kiss 👌🏿 That's easy money.