This week's post is a little late. I wanted to wait for the end of the Billion Steps Challenge and National Public Health Week so I could see how we ended up with the challenge. If you have been following along with the walking goals from Week 1, you will know that we started off with 1,000 steps a day for five days a week. Each week, we incrementally increased those goals by 1,000 steps. Finally, this past week, we reached 14,000 steps. I must admit, however, that I did hit 15,000 steps this week, simply because of the path I take while walking. As a result, the HHWWalkers, ended up number 56 out of 350 teams. That means we performed in the top 16% of walking teams, just by incrementally increasing our steps every week by 1,000 steps.
Now that the Billion Steps Challenge is over, the real challenge begins. That challenge is to keep on walking. Over the past several months, we have walked in the cold, in the rain, in the sunshine, in the wind. We have walked in living rooms, basements, gyms, on sidewalks, trails, and maybe some treadmills. I don't know about anyone else, but I wore out at least one pair of shoes over the past 14 weeks.
For some sports and activities, once the season is over, the participants take a breather and wait until next season starts. They take a break. That's the amazing thing about walking. We don't have to take a break. We can keep going right from where we are today. I know that I am planning on going for a walk this afternoon. It should be about a 6 miles walk, and I set a goal to walk 7 miles a day five days a week by the end of this month.
Of course, walking, like any kind of exercise takes time and commitment. I know that is the case since it takes me over 2 hours to get my 6 miles a day in right now (I'm not quite up to pace, yet). There are days, too, that when I finish my walk, I don't have much energy left for anything else. As a result, I plan accordingly. I know that I can walk in the afternoons, come home, eat dinner, take a hot bath, read a book, do some light work, watch TV, or whatever helps me relax. By making walking and the activities associated with it enjoyable, it motivates me to want to get up and do the whole thing all over again the next day.
I do have to admit, though, that I have another motivator to keep me walking. I have wanted to participate in a 5K or 10K race for a few years now. I know I already walk the distance of a 5K every day, and I am almost there with the 10K. However, I haven't done the official race, yet. I will have to get signed up and see how that goes.
Now that the Billion Steps Challenge is over, the real challenge begins. That challenge is to keep on walking. Over the past several months, we have walked in the cold, in the rain, in the sunshine, in the wind. We have walked in living rooms, basements, gyms, on sidewalks, trails, and maybe some treadmills. I don't know about anyone else, but I wore out at least one pair of shoes over the past 14 weeks.
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| Photo by Jeanette R. Harrison |
For some sports and activities, once the season is over, the participants take a breather and wait until next season starts. They take a break. That's the amazing thing about walking. We don't have to take a break. We can keep going right from where we are today. I know that I am planning on going for a walk this afternoon. It should be about a 6 miles walk, and I set a goal to walk 7 miles a day five days a week by the end of this month.
Of course, walking, like any kind of exercise takes time and commitment. I know that is the case since it takes me over 2 hours to get my 6 miles a day in right now (I'm not quite up to pace, yet). There are days, too, that when I finish my walk, I don't have much energy left for anything else. As a result, I plan accordingly. I know that I can walk in the afternoons, come home, eat dinner, take a hot bath, read a book, do some light work, watch TV, or whatever helps me relax. By making walking and the activities associated with it enjoyable, it motivates me to want to get up and do the whole thing all over again the next day.
I do have to admit, though, that I have another motivator to keep me walking. I have wanted to participate in a 5K or 10K race for a few years now. I know I already walk the distance of a 5K every day, and I am almost there with the 10K. However, I haven't done the official race, yet. I will have to get signed up and see how that goes.
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