Feeling pretty pleased!

I have to say, I was not sure how the whole walking in place thing would compare to the long walks I was doing when the weather was nicer. I really love those walks. There's so much to look at and think about and listen to. I don't get bored on them. I really expected walking in place to be something akin to torture.

I actually had a lot of fun today! Our house desperately needed a good cleaning and there were three loads of laundry to do and Christmas presents to wrap and my brother's birthday to celebrate, so getting a three hour walk in was just not going to happen. I decided to set a step goal for 20,000 though. That would still require a time commitment, just not a three hour one.

Just running errands and cleaning house today earned me 5000, then I had some time while a cake was baking, so my husband and I turned on one of our favorite games, Madame Fate. This game is so much fun! You find hidden objects, you solve word puzzles, and then there are more complex puzzles to solve. It's great. Plus, time just flies by with it. You start playing and looking for objects and before you know it, two hours has passed. My husband controlled the mouse and I helped look and solve puzzles and started stepping... An hour and a half later, I had done 10,000 steps while playing video games! I could feel that I had done something too. I was starting to ache gently in all the places that I feel it in on my long walks.

I was pretty elated! I'm skeptical. I thought there was no way an indoor walk could compare with an outdoor one. I went to my brother's party feeling really good with only 5000 to go. We enjoyed the party and I was just thinking about how I could come home afterwards and finish my steps when my sister-in-law asked if we wanted to stay and play a board game, Arkham Horror. I'm a fan of Lovecraft. I couldn't say no. It's amazing how many steps you can get in when you are waiting for your turn though. I hit 20,000 before we left their house.

So, goal completed! I definitely think that walking in place is as effective as taking walks outside. I still prefer the outside walks, but I am thrilled I have an option that will keep me in walking shape while outside walks are off the table. Downside is that I can only do it around people that won't get antsy from the constant movement. Huge shout-out to my brother who tolerated all the steps during the game and my sister-in-law who even did some steps with me!

I did not make it to the top of my Fitbit leader board, but I'm OK with that. Some of my friends are getting 100,000 steps for the week. Apparently, I need to step up. :) Walking in place is a viable option though! Watch out, ladies. I now have goals and a plan!

Today's Motivation:

It's taken a while to solve my winter walking problem. Today, I am grateful I didn't quit because I have found an option that excites me. I wonder if I may be able to break the 35,000 steps in a day mark this winter. Hmmmm. Anybody got some movie recommendations?