I Started Walking 10k Steps a Day, Here’s What Happened
I don’t look this fashionable doing it, but you get the point.
I have always considered myself a pretty active person. Since I graduated college it’s extremely rare for me not to have at least 3 days of intentional exercise a week, with most weeks closer to the 5-6 day range. I’ve done figure competitions, run 2 half marathons, taken and taught Pure Barre, and I’ve even gone the BeachBody route, but I have never focused on a step goal.
A couple of weeks ago I was at a birthday dinner for a friend, and I was able to finally meet one of our friends’ fiancés. With all of the moving and the pandemic my fiancé and I had never met her, so I was really excited to finally talk to someone I only knew from social media.
She ended up being one of the absolute sweetest people I’ve ever met, and she also happens to be in the fitness industry. She’s spent years in this world, and she definitely has a body to show for it. We talked back and forth about some things, and then she literally looks us in the eye and says, “Ok, you won’t believe me, but I lost 15lbs walking.”
Wait, what? Walking? Like the thing old people do?
Yep. Walking.
She goes on to mention how getting in 10k steps a day is a little over 3 miles, so your body is getting all of this extra movement and calorie burn without a crazy intense workout. Meaning, that you can keep a low-calorie intake while simultaneously increasing movement and calorie burn.
Honestly, this blew my mind.
Here’s the thing, I may have been lifting weights and doing cardio 5 days a week, but I was only taking around 2k steps a day. I work from home, so it’s literally 2 steps to the bathroom, and about a dozen to my “office”. I’ve actually been pretty embarrassed how little I walk in a day.
So, I left dinner with a goal of 10k steps a day. Period.
I’m a little over 2 weeks in and I’m super proud of myself for hitting my goal every single day. I take Pay on a walk before I sign in for work, then take a loop around the neighborhood at least 2 more times throughout the day. I bring a book with me, and it’s actually quite nice. I don’t feel pressure to hit a certain pace or time goal, and in fact, I don’t even tell my Apple Watch I’m going for a walk. I just walk.
I’m literally burning between 800-900 active calories a day now, when before I was closer to the 550-650 range! That’s a crazy jump for not adding actual exercise. I’ve kept my calorie intake to around 1300 calories/day and I’m feeling better. I can’t say I’ve lost 20lbs or anything, but I have no doubt that this is a long term goal that will definitely have its own rewards. I have lost around 10lbs in the past two weeks, and I believe it’s a combination of my updated workout routine, calorie tracking, and the added steps.
Losing weight is my priority right now. I’m less than 5ft tall, and making sure I’m at a healthy weight while I’m younger is vital to ensuring I can maintain that over the next part of my life.
Technically, I’m concerned about body composition, meaning if I convert this fat into muscle and lost inches not weight I’m fine with that too, but the point is to slim down.
I know that eventually there will be a day when I do not hit my step goal. Some days are going to be really busy, or I’ll just need a break physically, and it just won’t be possible, but if I make this part of my lifestyle I know it will begin to be more natural, and hopefully it leads to some long-term change.
If you’re struggling with your exercise routine, I want to challenge you to also try to increase your step count. Maybe 10k is way too high for you, but start somewhere! Try and add 2,000 steps a day to whatever your average is right now.
I bet it will be easier than you think!
Love,
Lilly
