Keep on Steppin'

For my birthday this year, my parents bought me a step-counter. It's not an expensive one (can be purchased for under $4 at Wal-Mart) and consequently it's probably not that accurate, but it does give you a general idea of how much activity you get in a day. The goal, according to the step-counter brochure, is to get an average of 10,000 steps a day (for me, I figure this is about the equivalent of an hour of activity).

Since receiving this step-counter, I have become a bit fanatical about getting in my steps (you know you've reached a certain level of obsession when you find yourself pacing around your very small apartment for 15 minutes to "just get in those last 307 steps"!). At work I can get in 4,500 without trying (walking in from the parking lot, back and forth to the printer and bathrooms). It's a good day when I'm leaving the office with over 5,000. I make up the other 5,000 of my recommended daily dose walking to and from the mailbox in my apartment complex, shopping for groceries, or occassionally walking on the tredmill in our health club (the weather has been so nice that I try to avoid walking inside, if possible). I put on my step-counter the minute I hop out of bed in the morning, and I take it off only when I have gotten in bed for the night at the end of the day. Every day I write down how many steps I take and do an average each week, keeping track of my biggest day (24,347) and my smallest day (4,305).

What I have learned is that I'm not naturally a very active person and, if I didn't have my step counter to motivate me, I bet I would spend most of my days nearer to the 5,000 mark than the 10,000 mark. But those digits guilt-trip me into exercising more, and that's a good thing.

You can also rack up those steps by just jumping in place. While not exactly stepping, it is exercise and I don't feel too bad if I get my last 1,000 steps in by doing the pogo.

I don't have any miracle weight loss stories to tell you about my step-counter, but I still feel like it's a good thing and everyone should try it out. Some of you might be surprised at how much walking you actually do each day, while others might be surprised at how little activity you get (like me). I just recently bought Les a replacement step-counter and found out they come in designer colors now (pink, blue, and green), so if you're going to go for it, go for it fashionably!

Let me know how many steps you get in!