‘I’ll keep walking until we have a cure’

She started a slow-and-steady three miles a day. Closely following a 24-weeklong training schedule, she worked her way up to 20-mile-long treks around Stone Mountain Park.

In October 2008, she walked the Atlanta 3-Day — 60 miles in three days. She also reached another milestone — meeting her goal of losing 60 pounds.

“When I started, I wanted my exercise to have meaning and it did, and it still does,” said Buice, who is 37 and lives in Marietta.

Now a training walk leader who offers participants words of encouragement and advice, she tackles her fourth consecutive 3-Day walk later this month.

Thousands of Atlantans run, walk, cycle and swim to raise money for all sorts of causes — from cancer and Lou Gehrig’s (ALS) disease to autism and literacy. Last year alone, 2,400 walkers participated in the Atlanta 3-Day and raised $6.1 million. And with cooler temperatures returning to Atlanta, October and November are big months for these annual fundraising events.

Long before they begin, however, participants spend countless hours preparing their bodies. They rise at 5:30 a.m. for group walks. They swim in chilly waters. They cycle hundreds of miles at a time.

Some are driven by deeply personal connections. They walk in memory of a loved one. They work up a sweat with heavy hearts, tears often flowing along the routes.

Ultimately, these exercise-for-charity events are aimed at changing and saving lives. Along the way, some participants find they are changing — and perhaps even saving — their own.

‘It’s personal for us’

Both in their 70s, Dennis and Judy Klein have friends suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia.

“It’s personal for us,” said Judy Klein, 70. “My husband and I are of the age when you worry about it.”

Klein and Dennis, 75, recently started preparing for the upcoming 5K Walk to End Alzheimer’s at Atlantic Station by walking one mile. Within a few days, they boosted their distance to one-and-a-half miles; now they are up to two.

They’ve liked how preparing for the walk has helped them set goals. They also know walking does the body good, too.

Married 51 years, the Roswell couple make their training regimen an enjoyable routine.

“After our walk, we have a glass of wine, sit in the back yard and hold hands,” said Dennis Klein.

‘Changed my life’

Jodie Guest of Atlanta did the occasional Pilates class but that was the extent of her exercising before she signed up for her first Atlanta 3-Day event in 2005.

Her aunt, Jill Vanuch, had just been diagnosed with the disease in her 40s.

“I heard an ad about the walk on the radio and thought, ‘Sixty miles, I can do that,’” said Guest.

She started with three miles — so strenuous she remembers collapsing on the couch afterwards.

But little by little, strictly adhering to the 3-Day’s recommended training schedule, she increased her distance. By week 12, she was up to four miles on Tuesday, five miles on Thursday, 12 miles on Saturday and seven miles on Sunday. By the time the 3-Day rolled around, she was ready. And she’s ready to do it again.

“The training is incredibly great for your body, but it also bonds you,” said Guest, an Emory University epidemiologist. “We go to lunch after our 15-mile-long walks and we talk about who we are doing this for. . .My aunt is the single happiest, most positive person I have ever known.”

Every year after the walk, Guest takes about a week off from walking. But then, she’s back to training and getting ready for the next year.

“The first time I did it, I thought I would do it once, but it is the most empowering event and once I did it once, I couldn’t walk away from it,” she said. “You could say this has changed my life.”

Know your limits

Beyond the psychological commitment, experts say the most difficult decision is knowing your body’s limits.

Dr. Sheri Phillips, a physician, and national spokesperson for the 3-Day for the Cure, said it’s important for walkers to realize their bodies may not be up for walking long distances.

Phillips, a breast cancer survivor, had to sit out the walk in 2009 after she underwent chemotherapy and several rounds of radiation.

“My doctors thought it was just too close” to the treatment, said Phillips who lives in Chicago and completed the 3-Day in Chicago in 2010.

Phillips said while training tools have always been made available, new technology makes it easier for walkers to connect with other walkers online and in person. A new feature called “virtual trainers,” sends walkers customized training reminders.

Phillips recommends walkers begin training at least 16 weeks before the event to build up stamina and prevent aches and pains and injuries such as blisters and shin splints.

‘A big inspiration’

Chris McLeod’s 9-year-old daughter Zoe inspired him to take on a mind-blowing physical challenge — cycling counterclockwise around the perimeter of his native Australia.

Zoe was born with a rare chromosomal disorder.

“I have watched Zoe progress slowly but surely,” he said. “We have a plan involving physical therapy and speech therapy and I have seen the power of early intervention. We have seen what she can do and it is very satisfying,” he said.

His daughter recently started attending the small Orion School in Atlanta, which specializes is education for children with ADHD and other special needs. McLeod wanted to raise awareness and raise money to support families with children with rare diseases.

But no amount of training could fully prepare McLeod for the ultra long-distance, punishing cycling event.

Originally from Sydney, McLeod took a leave of absence from his job in finance. He covered 9,800 miles in 80 days.

Before the cycling, he biked between 300 and 500 miles a week and did a lot of yoga.

In Australia, the 38-year-old cycled through huge swaths of desert. Sometimes, he and his teammates slept on the side of the road.

“It was a game of self-preservation,” said McLeod, who recently moved to Atlanta with his wife and two children. “Eight hours exposed to the elements, saddle sores, sunburn, it’s a mental challenge as much as anything else.”

The payoff was worth it. McLeod helped raise $1.1 million for Australia-based SMILE [Support Medical Innovation for Life Enhancement] Foundation, which provides support for families with children with rare diseases.

Upon his return last month, he was moving gingerly, but was all smiles. He had just dropped off Zoe at school.

In Australia, “sometimes we would be in the freezing cold and we would think we were up against insurmountable hurdles and we thought about what these kids deal with, just to live, that constant battle for life and enrichment,” said McLeod. “That was a big inspiration for us.”

‘Gives us a boost’

Not every year has been smooth sailing to the finish line for Buice. In 2009, she slacked off a little on training, and by the end of the event, had six blisters on each foot.

“Each year has a new meaning for me,” said Buice. “Every year you meet new people effected by breast cancer. You hear stories of loss, and you hear some stories of victory. I’ll keep walking until we have a cure.”

She’s decided to give her team this year a little training in sleeping outside. With the event only a few weeks away, she planned an overnight camping trip at Stone Mountain. The walkers walk 20 miles on Saturday and sleep under the stars and then wake up on Sunday and walk 15 miles.

“That helps to see if we are truly ready,” Buice said with a smile.

“When we walk, we lose track of time, said Buice. “Every time, we hear a car honk, that gives us a boost.”