Fitbit Pick Up Stix

I have been considering joining a gym.  When I think about hiking the Grand Canyon - going down, down down one day and up,up up the next day, I feel nervous for my knees.  I remember a physical therapist telling me once that if people would keep their quads strong, there would be less knee injuries.  A gym would have plenty of machines for strengthening quads.  In other words, I have a fairly specific reason for considering a gym this year.

I've explained my thoughts to my dad.  His comeback to that has been to suggest that picking up sticks is good exercise.  I suspect he thinks my walking for hours is somewhat a waste of time, too.  He's far more practical than his eldest daughter.

Today, I decided to give Dad's advice a whirl.  Instead of my normal afternoon walk, I picked up sticks. I purposely made it rather inconvenient. The emphasis was on exercise, not efficiency.  I picked up a few sticks at a time, only carrying them in my non-Fitbit hand. My Fitbit arm swung free because, of course, I wanted every step to be counted in order to make my daily goal.  I hauled sticks to the truck (which wasn't close) a few at a time.  I walked back and forth, back and forth, over and over and over.

I have enough sticks and branches around the property to fill this truck at least 50 times.
#MyToDoListIsDrivingMeInsane

I monitored my steps just for fun.  I averaged 893 steps every 10 minutes.  There were times when I stopped to break branches into smaller pieces.  There were times when I stopped to cut low hanging branches.  Had I only been retrieving, my step count average might have been higher.

I used to love this game!
My new Pick Up Stix game is very different.

The "Pick Up Stix" step count is not as high as straight walking, but I have to admit, I really like that I accomplished something while earning my steps.  Dad, this is not the answer to strengthening my quads for my Canyon hike, but I will definitely try to accomplish something a little more often while I earn my Fitbit steps.

I need to point out, too, that had I not had the Fitbit, I would not have picked up so many sticks in one go.  The Fitbit definitely motivated me to keep going.  I'm a big fan of this little gadget!

Those steps really add up!

Side Note (but probably only interesting to those who are Fitbit obsessed) - When I came in, I decided to experiment with vacuuming.  My Fitbit vacuuming counts were annoying.  After ten minutes of vacuuming, I earned only 70 steps.  I took more steps than that!  I thought maybe I'd made a mistake.  I vacuumed a room and rechecked.  Ten steps.  I promise, I did a good job vacuuming and it definitely took more than ten steps.  While vacuuming, my fitbit hand is rather still.  I use it to hold the vacuum cord out of the way.  I switched the Fitbit to my right hand and the numbers were higher.  They may have been a little too high from all the back and forth movement, but I figure the Fitbit owed me!  The next time I vacuum, I'll do some more experimenting.

Great Start to the Year!

I honored my new way of thinking today by putting fun before work.  I had a traditional New Year's meal complete with greens, black-eyed peas and more. That was the most I'd cooked in ages. After lunch, I left dishes piled in the sink and took off for an adventure.  I purposely got lost on the trails just for the fun of finding my way back.  The spots I walked were mostly abandoned today.  I suppose many people were hung over or home watching footballs games, or maybe both.  The trails belonged to me!  It was fairly fabulous.

I logged in 11+ miles today! I only stopped because the sun was going down.  I would have liked to have done more.  This step number is my highest to date and the day isn't over yet.    I'm home now and feel great.  Not even tired.

Looking at my weekly step chart is interesting.  It's funny that on the chart, Saturday's 16,665 looks paltry.  That's really a good number.

The numbers make getting fit fun, but, for me, there's much more to it than numbers.  I highly recommend sports/exercise/fitness to anyone working through grief.  I'm finding it does as much for your mind as your body.

Was I Walking or Swimming?

Rain again.  The ground is saturated. But since I'm clearly obsessed dedicated to to getting fit, I got in my morning walk.  I started out convinced that my outfit would hold up to the drizzle.  A few minutes into the walk, the heavens poured a waterfall on top of my head.  I was COMPLETELY soaked.  I had to go in and change.  I admit, at this point, there was a bit of potty language going on and maybe some mumbling to myself about joining a gym.

The second time out, I carried an umbrella.  It was a hassle to carry, but I quickly got over that.  I found my happy place and the rest of the walk was fun.  I felt the kid in me coming out.  In my younger days, before cute shoes were a concern, I loved stepping in puddles.  Today, I was wearing rainboots, which are surprisingly comfortable, so puddles were no problem.  At first I acted like an adult and dodged them, but soon found myself going right for them and possibly acting a bit silly. Acting silly is so much more fun than being sensible.

Walking was slow.  There were many slick muddy spots, so I had to be extra careful.  This walk was way more strenuous than dry weather workouts.  I'm thinking about complaining to Fitbit.  I think there should be a way to earn bonus step points for hazardous walks.  I didn't get nearly as many steps today as I would have liked, yet the workout was very good!  Surely, my extra efforts were worth a 1000 step bonus, right?

One more funny bit - I was getting close to the end of my walk and it started to thunder.  I will walk through rain or snow, but I have a healthy respect for thunder and lightning.  Naturally I was at the far end of the property and had to make a run for it.

George: Why are we doing this again?

We now, apparently, have a creek on the property.

The pond is overflowing... again.

This spot was a muddy, slippery mess.

The water was rushing through this spot.  I had fun walking right through it.

By the way, I am planning to get a rainy weather walking outfit asap.  It's great to have a good excuse for buying a new outfit!

Fitbit Warning!

There's a dirty little secret about these Fitbits that no one seems to be talking about.  I have found out about it the hard way.  The damned things are addictive.  You heard me right.  ADDICTIVE!

I remember a time (barely a week ago) when I could go out for a normal walk and be satisfied, even if I'd only walked for half an hour.  Not any more.  Now I have a Fitbit and a walk will never again be just a walk.

The first day I wore the Fitbit, I felt I had to meet the 10,000 step goal.  I did.  In fact, I made it to 16,665. I felt so proud.  What a feeling of ecstacy to have done so well!  I should have noticed the 666 is this number. That was a big hint.

The next day, 10,000 wasn't enough. 16,665 wasn't going to be enough either.  I needed to beat the previous day's number.  Once I did, it still wasn't enough. I wondered how I might feel if I could make it to 20,000, so I kept going.  That's the problem with addiction.  You keep needing more and more to get that special feeling.  I knew this was madness, but I couldn't help myself. I made it to 20,199.
You can guess what happened the third day.  20,000 wasn't going to be enough.

At the end of the day, with over 26,000 steps, I was giddy, but also experiencing something a little different.  By the end of the day, instead of experiencing the vim and vigor of an athlete, I felt like a 90 year old woman who had been hit by a mack truck, broken her hip, and then been smacked around by thugs.  Oh, and did I mention I was walking in the pouring rain for a good bit of those steps?

You'd think that would be a supreme lesson and would be enough incentive to get this monkey off my back or at least cut back to something reasonable.  Sadly, no.  I'm telling you, the addictive power of this little gadget is insane.  This morning I woke up feeling fine, but all I wanted was to get outside and get some good step numbers.   I did a morning walk and this evening rushed home for my second walk.  I walked until it was so dark I couldn't see. I didn't want to stop. I'm only at 19,663 steps.   That's a good number, but am I satisfied?  NO!  Now I'm going to have to walk around my house til I have at least 20,000.  And that will still not be enough to achieve my "Fitbit high".

I know I have a problem.  I can't believe it's progressed this quickly.  It's affecting all sorts of areas of my life.  One look at my laundry will give you a clue just how dirty this addiction can be.  I mess up two full exercise outfits a day.  I take two showers a day.  I just don't know where this will end.  

I thought about maybe tossing the fitbit off somewhere (not really, but that sounded good, right?).  I know it would be no use because there are Fitbit dealers at every turn.  I can't believe these are legal!  You can just walk in a store and buy one.  There's not even a waiting period!

My friends might try an intervention, but it wouldn't do any good.  With the shape I'm getting in, they might not be able to catch me.  I'm totally hooked and I don't think there's anything to be done about it.  By the way, my niece, Carly, got me started.  Can you believe it?  Family. Unbelievable. 

You might be thinking about getting a Fitbit (or another similar gadget) yourself.  You might think you are different and could handle it.  Don't say you weren't warned.