I'm big on New Year's resolutions but have found that I find the most success when I focus on one specific goal. A longish and vague list about eating better, exercising more, spending more wisely, and getting the house under control usually keeps me right where I was before, only with an extra side of guilt. In 2015, I resolved to stay out of Target for an entire year and ... I did it. It didn't change my life, but it was a feeling of accomplishment. I decided that in 2018, I wanted another specific, measurable goal, but wanted that goal to be about doing something as opposed to not doing something.
I told my family that I was going to hike 200 miles in 2018 and, well, no one was impressed.
I went back to the drawing board and decided to think a little bigger.
500 miles in 2018.
My Guidelines:
- 500 miles of walks that I take on purpose.
- I'm not counting my daily steps as most days I regularly exceed 10,000 steps per day. However, if during the day, I purposely choose to walk somewhere when I'd usually drive, I'll count that mileage.
- I'm checking my mileage on my Fitbit Blaze when I begin and end a walk that I take on purpose.
- The goal is to get outside as much as possible but treadmill walks will also count (winter in Chicago is no joke).
My Hopes:
- I hope this challenge will motivate me to explore my community and region more. I regularly pass forest preserves and parks with walking paths and think, "I should take a walk there sometime." But I never do.
- I hope I can get some friends and family members to join me on some of these walks.
- I hope that the extra miles bring me energy, health, and positivity.
- I hope to lose a bit of weight, but honestly, that's not a priority right now (even though it maybe should be).
My Disclaimer:
I play tennis several times a week so I have a baseline of fitness from that. However, I live in a fitness-focused community where it is easy to feel like a soft, weak "loser" who lacks defined arm muscles and the body to wear leggings without a butt-covering shirt. I know 500 miles of walking would be no big deal to many. But for me? I don't have the confidence for group fitness classes, and I lack the will, desire, healthy knees and pelvic floor for running. So, for me, making the time to walk 500 miles on purpose is significant, and I'm excited to meet this challenge.
I began this challenge in January 2018, but I only just now got around to getting this blog started.
I have been tracking miles and walks on Instagram -- please follow @mileawhile and if you take a walk on purpose or set your own mileage goal, please use #mileawhile and email me if you'd like to be interviewed about walking for this blog: mileawhilemegan@gmail.com.
My Instagram posts are almost daily. I'll be using the blog to share links to interesting pieces about walking and to share longer reflections about what I'm learning, reading, and experiencing as I mileawhile in 2018.
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