Hey Shaggheads! Here’s an update or Part 2 of my Million Step Challenge. I didn’t get my million steps in 30 days. But! I did get them all in 29 days! How, why, what, when and where you might be asking. This blog post/podcast episode is a recap of my million step adventure. Read my Part 1 Diary HERE.
I call this an adventure because that’s what I turned it into. It was something I didn’t know if I could do at age 61 and every day I wasn’t sure how I was going to squeeze in all of my steps.
This did turn into a big month long adventure and I think I inspired several people to start walking and others to up their steps to another level.
Why did I walk/run a million steps?
My million step adventure was an unplanned spur of the moment decision that morphed from a simple Walk This May step challenge in May of 2024. I knew about the challenges before but it had never dawned on me to join one. My neighbor posted on Facebook that he was forming a team in case anyone wanted to join him. I jokingly commented, “Hmmm?,” like I might be interested in joining.
He texted me on the last day to sign up to get a t-shirt. That reminded me of the challenge and on a whim I decided to go ahead and sign up.
I started the Walk This May challenge committing to 21,000 steps a day. I was already doing 17,000 steps a day so this wasn’t going to take much more effort. The 21,000 steps a day kept me in the lead during the trial period in April. I assumed this was going to be enough to win since nobody was passing me.
The actual challenge began on May 1 and I hit 21,000 steps pretty quickly. Come to find out nobody was taking the trial period very seriously. I was passed very quickly and had to add more steps on the first day to keep up.
By the end of the day the leader stopped at 34,000 steps and I went over 30,000 to stay close but didn’t want to jump them. On day one I changed my personal challenge from 21,000 steps a day to 30,000 steps a day for the entire month.
On day two I decided to get over 30,000 steps and not look at the app so I wouldn’t feel the need to add more to pass someone. At the end of the day when I did look I found out that I was the only one who had done 30,000 two days in a row and I was already safely in the lead.
Since I had committed to 30,000 steps a day I decided to make that my personal challenge. I also wanted to do at least one day over 40,000 steps just to say I did.
All of these planned steps and extra steps started to add up by the middle part of the challenge. I was pretty far in the lead and one morning on the trail I was asked if I was going to get a million steps. I had actually looked into it but at the time I did the addition I was going to end up with just over 900,000 steps for the entire month of May.
On the actual midway point of the month I hit 500,000 steps in the morning. I sat down and did the math and found out I would only need 32,360 steps a day for the rest of the month to reach one million steps.
By this time in the challenge I wanted to really see if I could push my limit so that’s why I opted to go for one million steps in one month. One thing lead to another and I was able to cut my timeline down from 31 days to 30 days.
And then on Day 29 I decided to really push myself and got in 46,000 steps hitting one million steps two days early.
How did I get one million steps and how much time did it take?
I devoted about 3.5 hours a day on average to hit my goal. I walked/jogged on our local trail every morning from 6am to 8am. This two hour trek averaged about 19,000 steps a day. If I fast walked more I’d get 18,000 and if I quick jogged I’d get 20,000 steps. I was never able to get more than 10,000 steps in an hour.
At some point in the afternoon or evening I had to get another hour of walking to add 7,000 to 8,000 more steps. In the first half of the month I’d walk a track around the inside of my house and in the second half I’d hit the trail for the afternoon steps.
Throughout the day I’d get an additional 3,000 to 4,0000 steps from just normal moving around. By the end of the day I’d have my 30,000 steps. If I was short I’d pace back and forth in my studio until I reached my daily goal.
What tips do I have on getting in lots of steps?
If you’re going to go for a large number of steps you’ll need to do at least one big block at some point during the day. For me, mornings were the best for this. I never used a treadmill for this challenge.
To reach a million steps you’ll need to do a smaller block at another point in the day. If you don’t want to be walking all day long you’ll need to do some speed walking.
I was able to get 4,000 steps in 30 minutes walking fast. To get even more steps in less time you’ll need to jog. I jogged with short fast steps trying to add as many as I could in a limited amount of time.
There are also dozens of other time you can add lots of steps. One of the best times to get extra steps is to walk around while you’re on the phone. Another great time is when you’re snacking on something you can carry around.
I even added lots of steps walking while I brushed my teeth and watched some TV shows. Always park far away if you go to a store or restaurant. Avoid sitting for long periods of time. Get up for even ten minutes to stretch your legs.
Wear an Apple Watch of Fit Bit that will send your step count to your phone. That way if you’re being active but not carrying your phone you’ll get credit for the steps.
Also wear very comfortable shoes that fit well and make sure your socks are made for heavy activity.
What were the downsides to doing a million steps?
The only major downside that I can think of from getting a million steps in 29 days is that it required lots of my extra time. I was unable to get all of my steps in one block so I had to spend time throughout the day stopping my projects or work to get more steps in.
Another downside I can think of is that a challenge with an app can suck you into checking it all day long and if you see that you’re getting passed you are tempted to start adding more steps. I was fortunate in the fact that I had no plan and blasted out so quickly that I gained a lead that no one was able to keep up with.
I did not encounter these other downsides but beware that you could get blisters if you don’t have the right shoes and socks. You can also get achy knees, legs and feet if you’re not in good shape.
1o things I learned or gained from my million step adventure:
1. At the age of 61 I was able to do something that very few people will ever do.
2. I set goals and conquered them giving me a continued sense of accomplishment.
3. I lost three stubborn pounds that I had been trying to lose.
4. My legs are more tone and I’m in better shape than when I started.
5. I was able to get a great tan from walking outdoors for about three hours a day.
6. I tested my endurance and stamina in preparation for my first half marathon adventure.
7. I won the Walk This May challenge and got a free pair of shoes!
8. I had something to look forward to every day of the challenge giving me motivation to do more steps.
9. The adventure gave me something new to blog and podcast about.
10. I also learned that we can all do way more then we think we can if we just put our mind to it.
That’s my million step adventure and as much as I enjoyed it and feel like I could easily do it again I feel like I’m one and done. I encourage everyone to get more steps in on a daily basis.
Walking a few extra steps here and there is not going to allow you lose weight quickly or prepare you for a marathon but it will keep you moving. Movement is key these days since we all spend so much time sitting. Keep on moving!
Also keep looking for adventures everywhere you can. Document what you are doing and start a blog, podcast or video channel. And always have fun!
See yaaaa!
P.S. I tried to stop the step count on my Pacer app at exactly 1,000,000 but due to the delay in the step count going from the devices to the app I missed it. If you know me at all is is strangely ironic that it did stop on 1,000,022. The number 22 is my favorite two digit number and 2 is my lucky number so two 2s is double lucky!
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2 COMMENTS
Chuck Feldman
4 months agoThank you for this! I’m a “numbers” crazy and when I got my Fitbit and my IPhone about 10 years ago I noticed that they were recording my step count. I always enjoyed walking although until the last few years it was never on a treadmill. I had read that the number of recommended steps was 10,000. I was easily doing that each day walking outside and in my small retail store when I was on the phone. Noticed a few years back that I had a streak of a few months where I was doing 20,000 plus every day. I kept the streak (my family and friends would correctly call it an obsession) going for 27 months. It was only interrupted by a short stay in the hospital—I am currently 71 years old. But a million steps? For years I have observed that when people want to exaggerate how many events, people, products they encountered they use the term a million. “ There were a million people at the concert I attended!” “That store had a million cans of soup!” Etc. Etc.
Well to make a long story short—too late—I noticed that in late November of 2022 I was closing in on a million steps. To my family’s regret, I made sure that I surpassed the magic number. And I did by a little over 1,000 steps. I have not gotten close until this month. Having surpassed a million on August 30th I will hit 1,030,000 plus today.
Your observations are spot on and I have told friends who want to do more steps that they should walk while on the phone if possible and when they are watching TV. And when outside pay attention to bumps on the sidewalk! I do most of my walking inside and am on the treadmill for about an hour every day. Best wishes and again, thanks for your thoughts.
One last observation about numbers. While growing up I watched a TV show called “The Millionaire” where a philanthropist would anonymously give a million dollars to someone he did not know but needed /deserved the gift.
Sixty years later Millionaires are all over the place. We talk about “Billionaires” as being somewhat special. Trillionaires? We have begun to talk about it. May you and the rest of us live long enough that Quadrillionaires becomes part of our conversation!
Shaggs
3 months ago AUTHORHey Chuck! That’s awesome! Thanks for sharing!