2014 is One-Third Over! How Can That Be?

To make 3,000,000 steps I have to reach at least 250,000 steps each month. Ruh-Roh!

Ok, April is over so it is time, once again, to update you on my 3,000,000 step challenge progress.  If you have been following along, I have struggled with my step goals for a myriad of reasons that include weather, illness, work, and ennui. However, I’m proud to say that April was my month to get my act together. For once, I was able to meet and even exceed my monthly goal of 250,000 steps.

This is the first month that I met my goal, so I’m pretty excited. I know that I’ve got my work cut out for me, because I haven’t made my goal yet, so technically I’m behind. On the other hand, I’m improving so much that I can’t help be excited.

I walked 261,000 steps this month. That is more than 121 miles. Of those, I ran a whopping 35 miles. Here’s what makes that number amazing. My work was just as sedentary as last month, so most of my steps were exercise related. Sure there was some parking on the far side of the parking lot, but most of it involved me consciously deciding to be active when I didn’t have to be.

261,000 steps or 121 miles

April 29 was my best day, with 12,721 steps.  I met my 8,000 step goal 23 days (and came really really close 1 day) and 12 days I had over 10,000 steps. Here is my month-by-month chart:

Month	Goal	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr
Steps:	250,000	234,863	192,816	142,777	261,004
Miles:	115	107	87	64	121

I went over my goal by 11,000 steps in April, but that doesn’t quite make up for the three months I fell short. Following my 250,000/month step goal, I should have gone a total of 1,000,000 steps by now, which means  I’m about 170,000 steps behind. What I really should do is raise my goal to 9,000 steps a day. At 9,000 steps, I can make up the missing steps by the end of the year.

But here’s the thing: I don’t think that is my best plan. I know that when my daily goal is too high, it is harder for me to motivate myself. The goal has to be achievable, for me not to give up. Let’s say it is 6:00 pm. I finished work and am too tired to work out. I look at my fitbit and see I’ve only done about 1,950 steps so far. It is much easier to convince myself to go exercise if I tell myself I only have to 3 miles. It sounds weird, but when I had a goal of 10,000 steps per day, it was much harder for me.

So I’m going to keep my 8,000 step goal, and see how that works.

And if it was easy, it wouldn’t be called a challenge, right?!

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