Daily walking thread

[Invasionofthegutsnatchers]

I've really noticed through wearing my fitbit that brisk walking is great exercise. It burns nearly as many calories as jogging if you walk fast and on hilly routes. It's free. You don't need to shower afterwards, usually. I'm lucky that I can walk to work and to local shops. It's good for mental wellbeing.

So I'm going to try to walk every day this year. Please join me if you want to log steps,minutes, calories or km/ miles.

This morning I walked for 72 mins and burned 412 cals. 8000 steps. Pretty slow pace.

Thanks, and I'm sorry to hear you're struggling with a blister. Walking is so important to my brain, I hate it when I can't get out for a stomp around the block for any reason!

Those bastard wellies have been binned! Never again.

If you can’t get out for some reason, have a look at YouTube for walk at home with Leslie Sansone. Her walking workouts are fab, I’ve been doing them since March 2021 as I didn’t feel safe in my area and walking is the only exercise I enjoy. The YouTube selection is free and then there’s an app that you can subscribe to if you find it’s your thing.
I’ve hit 10000 steps or more for 294 days in a row now. The difference in my mood has been the biggest thing (still eat too much really). The kids take the piss a bit but I enjoy it!

Hi, I'd like to join you I think.
I've signed up to walk 1000 miles in 2022 with country walking magazine, so that works out at about 2.7 miles a day. I've got quite an active young dog (9 month old lab) so I'll be taking him out a couple of times a day. I'm also a teacher so do a reasonable amount of steps around the classroom during the working day (but then also have long periods of sitting marking, planning, etc).
Today I've walked 3.3 miles with the dog, and he's looking like he'll need another "quick" walk of about half an hour(maybe a mile?) this evening.

I love walking. Thanks for starting the thread and will done for starting the year walking. I'm overweight, unfit and diabetic by the way, so walking is probably the only exercise I can reasonably do for the minute, until I've lost some weight.

I really really didn't want to go out for a walk this evening but I needed an extra 5000 steps so just did it. 15400 steps done. It's definitely good for me so I'm trying to keep it up for January.

Well this is an inspiring place to be.
I'm recovering from having lymphoma/a lot of chemo/a stem cell transplant between Feb-Aug last year which absolutely slammed my fitness - I lost loads of weight, stamina and condition. However, from being almost totally bedbound in August and September (literally having a shower would have me vomiting with the exertion) I'm now up to averaging about 5000 steps a day, mostly pretty brisk walking on hilly terrain. I'm also doing 30 mins of yoga a day.
Have had a couple of very lazy days wiped out after New Year fun, but today managed 8500 steps.
I need to find some new places to walk - my daily dog walk only gets me up to about 3500 and I live in a little village so have to use the car for most errands.

I had a lovely walk up a fell in the lake district today with colleagues after we finished at lunchtime. 4 miles, half of which was on snow, and much steeper than I had expected. Beautiful views and good company. 14,700 steps done today.

Wow @MsAwesomeDragon that view!

@Babamamananarama you've had an incredibly tough time. Well done for taking positive steps for your health.

I would love to join, I have joint issues so high impact sport has had to go. I have three routes from my house. A residential roads one, a huge park and then open fields and a small wood. It’s all a bit weather dependant the fields and woods one is really nice but I got exceptionally muddy on NYE doing that one.

I walked Jan 1 for 2 hours alone, Jan 2 with DH for an hour, Jan 3 45 mins alone, Jan 4 an hour alone and today 1.5 hours with a friend.

Welcome @CharSiu to the thread.

I got up at 5.45am to go to the gym before work today. It was hard to get out of bed but doing a long run/ walk on the treadmill (alternating running and walking) woke me up for the day. By 4pm I'd completed by 15k steps and I've just got home and will be sitting down this evening. So it was worth it.

5 x days of 15k steps a day completed. Hope I can keep it up for all of January.

Invasionofthegutsnatchers 15k a day is great going. I did 8500 yesterday and was totally pooped by 4pm - but then I realised it's only the third time I've got over 8000 since my stem cells, maybe even this year.

I don't have a gym to go to, or even any local roads with pavements and street lights so feel like daylight is quite a limiting factor at the moment!

I spent years doing all manner of dieting and exercising (from spending hours in the kitchen on food prep to unenjoyable running & endless HIITs), but it wasn’t until I started longer distance walking that the weight just dropped off. I absolutely love the mental health benefits too.

Best of luck with your walking, OP.

Thank you @The2Omicronnies it's surprising how you cN build yourself up for a trip to the gym but just walking around your local area for an hour can burn the same number of calories. I did enjoy the gym this morning as it was a change of scene, I had a nice shower afterwards and a protein shake in the cafe. However it was a faff. Generally it's easier to build walking into my daily routine. I just like to mix it up to prevent boredom. Some days I walk in my lunch break, others I walk to work or in the evening. Variety is good.

I walk every morning before work. I usually manage about 1.5-1.75 miles with the dog. It's the same boring routes at the minute though, which is why Tuesday's walk up a fell with colleagues was so lovely. We have a few routes from the door, all with some pavement walking and then back across a park. I can't wait for it to get lighter in the evenings so we can go a bit further afield during the week. I'm really bored of walking round the same park day after day. Weekends are more interesting.

I have tried to vary my walks so it doesn't get boring too. Today I just felt too good to walk outside so I walked fast on the treadmill for an jour at the gym whiost watching shite daytime telly on the screen then did the weekly shop. 15k steps done.

Too cold not too good!

Hello, please can I join? I don't have a fitbit just my phone so I only track my actual walks not around the house (thinking of getting a fitbit though). This week have done between 7000-9000 each day for around an hour's walk. Just did 7897 pounding around my local area

I usually walk for 20-30 minutes just under a mile around the park. Sometimes I do 2 laps or 1.5 laps.

Monday I walked all the way to the nearest big town and back so approx 40km in total with only a brief 20 minute sit down (Apple Genius bar). I had tea and a vegan sausage roll and on the way tiny chocolate (the ones you get in Caffe Nero) for sustenance!

@MumOfJayJoeAndEms

I got a train into London on New Years Day, got off at Covent Garden and literally just walked, taking in all the interesting stuff around me, taking photos, and stopped for a coffee. Great way to see The City and will be making it a regular thing 6.2 miles covered which is twice what I normally do walking my dog every other day

@MumOfJayJoeAndEms - friends of mine do this but with bikes - and also walking. They basically find a new area to sightsee and take lots of photos. You can do as little or as much as you like.

Daily walking tips for a beginner.

I used to do a walk from my house to the nearest next small town, so up into local small town (10 mins), then through a big park and down into the next small town. To get back (which involves a big steep hill) I either got the bus or walked back. Treated myself with tea and sometimes something sweet.

The next time I went further to a slightly larger town, with, if you like it, nicer gift/clothes shops etc for a browse - and the time after that I just aimed for the big town further on. I used to do it if I had something to do, e.g. return something I'd bought instore or to meet a friend. If you build it up and wear comfy shoes/trainers/clothes it soon becomes second nature. Try if you can to vary routes - don't stick to main roads if you can but doesn't matter if you do. Factor in decent amount of time for doing this. The only slightly frustrating thing was if I walked to a big town and then wanted to get back but didn't meet a friend (so had to get bus/train or Uber back) with a car, which meant I missed my car.

What a great idea to go to a new city for walking.

I've been in the gym again this morning as I'm starting a full time job on Monday so won't get so much time to go. However I'll hopefully clock up lots of steps at work and will walk to work and back where possible.

I did a hill walk on the treadmill for 80 mins. 460 calories. That's 10,000 steps of my 15,000 done already today. I had a headache when I started and now it's gone!

In the last 7 days I have walked 73km! Feeling good!

I've walked 34 miles in the past 7 days. That's not bad considering I've been at work Tuesday-Friday. I'm trying to decide where to go for a walk tomorrow. It'll have to be relatively close to home as I have work to do, and need to do the food shopping too.
Today was just a mooch round town (I would have walked into town if it was just me but dd doesn't like walking that far), then a dog walk in the local woods. 4.5 miles in total today as actual out and about walking.

Going to try joining in with some walking. Just missing the hilly school walk as DCs in the high school now. Think it did me good.

I have had my usual walk every day for an hour. DH came with me yesterday and I realised how much more slowly I was walking as talking and he is just not a fast walker. I have never listed to music so think I may try that on my next walk later though it is horribly misty out and I am not keen on walking in the mist.

@The2Omicronnies

I spent years doing all manner of dieting and exercising (from spending hours in the kitchen on food prep to unenjoyable running & endless HIITs), but it wasn’t until I started longer distance walking that the weight just dropped off. I absolutely love the mental health benefits too.

Best of luck with your walking, OP.

@The20micronnies - interesting re the longer distance walking!

It was a lot for me but when I walked approx 40km in one day I could really feel that burn around various areas and knew if I kept it up I'd start to see the weight come off! So you've given me an incentive here!