09’s Walkability Makes It Easy To Meet The Goal
Living in a community like ’09 filled with sidewalks and walking paths makes it easy to get in 10,000 steps a day. Taking walking breaks throughout the day and coupling the walks with small errands makes the day more productive and enjoyable.
Here is what a typical weekday looks like for me when I’m taking a rest day from running:
After I drop my son off at school, I go right to my desk and work. By 10 a.m. I’ve taken only 230 steps, so I’m ready to move and get some fresh air. I need to buy vacuum bags and walk my dog, so we head to Sunset Ridge Hardware to accomplish both tasks. The store is dog-friendly, so I know Lisa, my golden retriever, will enjoy it. I’m now at 3,128 steps. My dog is 10 years old and tires easily, so she’s done for the day.
While Lisa naps, I work for a few more hours, then walk over to Rise Up Acai Café to grab a smoothie bowl. I’m now at 3,920 steps. I feel full and happy after devouring my lavender acai bowl.
From there I head to Bike World to recycle some old tire tubes and CO2 cartridges. It feels good to walk after lunch. By the time I get home, it’s 2 p.m., and I’m at 6,025. I took only an hour break for lunch, which is normal for most people. Instead of eating at a desk and staring at a computer screen, why not eat at a table and then walk?
I work until I have to pick my son up from school. When we get home, we play a few quick games of out before he does his homework. He beats me, as usual, but I squeezed in more steps, so I feel like a winner. This is the point in the day where I assess my steps; if I am low, I take another walk.
To get in extra steps at home I keep my water bottle downstairs. This way I force myself to get up for a few minutes every hour to hydrate. At 6 p.m. I’m at 7,125 steps.
We are ready for dinner, so we walk over to Adelante; the veggie fajitas and borracho bean soup are calling. It’s nice to be able to walk to dinner together; we talk about our day and crush leaves. If we had eaten at home, I would have taken a walk after we ate or chased my dog around the house to get in more steps. After dinner we head home. At 7:37 p.m. I’m at 10,382 steps. Mission accomplished! By the time I go to bed at 10:30 p.m. I have reached 11,114 steps.
When I have days that I’m tired and need to get in more steps, I will walk up and down the stairs in my house or around the backyard. That usually inspires me to walk more. The toughest thing about walking enough is taking those first few steps.
By Neven Jones
