For awhile now, I have been on a discipline quest. Discipline in my daily life that keeps me focused and on track. I want discipline in many areas of my life, but the one I want to talk about today is the non-existent exercise part of my life. In this area, I had no discipline.
A couple of things happened.... I met someone recently whom I consider a very fit woman that is around the same age as myself. During a conversation about nothing pertaining to exercise, she states "I used to walk 10 miles a day..." Huh?
Say that again?
"I used to walk 10 miles a day..." How in the HECK does anyone have the time to walk 10 MILES A DAY??? Seriously?
So, me being me, I asked her that exact question. She answered, "I used to put on a movie, get on my treadmill and just walk."
Let me give you some history here.... I had a treadmill. For about 12 years. I just, this year, gave it to Goodwill. I think I used it 12 times. Once per year... When I thought I was going to change my habits... It didn't work... Or maybe I should say, "I didn't change my habits..."
You see, I hate the treadmill. I would rather walk to a destination, like Waffle House, and then walk back to get my exercise. Kill two birds with one stone, win/win.... No, seriously, I did not like the treadmill. I would prefer to walk outside. And my treadmill was great for collecting dust, but I was on a "discipline" mission to get rid of dust too ( that's another whole post) so I had to get rid of the treadmill...
But why couldn't I start walking 10 miles a day? Or two?
The second thing that happened that made me think about kicking my exercise "routine" up a notch was I saw a quote that stated something to the effect "Today is going to disappear forever and did you make it the best it could be?..." (I wish I could find the graphic!) These words (or something very similar) really spoke to me and I thought, each day, I'm just going to walk some. I'm going to change my habits.
As you read in my previous post HERE, I've been using my iPhone and some different apps to help me in the journey. MyFitnessPal is still a great tool, but I wanted something that would also track my steps. Apps that have a GPS can be sketchy for me because I walk the parking deck at work. Because of the concrete and the fact that some of the deck is buried underneath the ground, the GPS could be sketchy and give me skewed results.
Then, I was introduced to my Fitbit device....
I love this little blue/black device.
This is the Fitbit Ultra. I believe it is the older device and the new Fitbit is called the Fitbit One. I'm perfectly content with my Ultra. Let me tell you about it...
(I am not affiliated with Fitbit in any way. These are my personal thoughts regarding my device.)
The device is about 2 inches in length and about 1/2 inch wide. It slides easily over a waistband, wrist band or in my case, my bra. I wear my Fitbit 24/7. It has a charger, so occasionally, I will place it on the adapter. Other than that, I wear it 24/7. So now you are thinking..." Not 24/7... You have to sleep..." Yes, I even wear my Fitbit when I sleep. It measures my daily steps, my stair climbing (small little altimeter in there), my calories burned, the miles I've walked and my sleep patterns of the current day. It knows how quickly I feel asleep and it knows how many times I wake up in the middle of the night. It wirelessly updates with my Fitbit app on my phone and praises me when I meet my goals. I even get "badges" for meeting certain criteria!
The website is interactive... I can enter my food for the day and how much water I took in.
At the end of the week, I get an email giving me a snapshot of my week and how I progressed with my physical activity. This little device has made me more conscious about my daily activity and intake than any other device I've used. I feel proud of myself when I meet my goals and I even challenge myself to go further. So far, the most steps I've accompolished in one day? 18, 500+. I tried to make it to 20,000 but my feet just wouldn't keep walking!!!
I will state this for the record. I'm in my late 40s. I have restless leg syndrome (RLS) and I've always had knee cramps since I was a young girl. Since I began my walking last August and kept it up daily, my RLS is much improved. I'm sleeping better. My knees don't hurt as much. I have lost 25 pounds and counting! All-in-all, I just feel better. I wish when I was younger I would have listened to those crazy exercise people that said "You feel better if you exercise." They were right. You can do it! Just take a few extra steps today. And tomorrow, kick it up a notch.
So what about you? Do you have a Fitbit device? If you do, let's be friends and encourage each other on this adventure.
Be creative!
