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I think a lot of us have planned to get into better shape this year. Before you fall into the quagmire of generalizations, you should definitely assess what fitness level you are currently at (psst: I have a helpful printout right here that you can use all year long). Once you've determined that, one easy way to start increasing your calorie burn is by walking more!
I have never considered myself a math or science person, but I am a "let's break this big goal into easy pieces" person! And let me tell you: the number of steps you have to take is totally an easy math problem if you just look at how many hours you're awake and available through the day! If you know you will be awake 16 hours and you want to take 10,000 steps, then all you have to do is take 625 steps every hour. That sounds very doable, doesn't it?
I also set mini benchmarks for myself throughout the day. When I first wake up, I make sure I march in place for 300 steps before I even get my morning coffee. This also makes it easier for me to start the day with 8-16 ozs. of water. I then like to ensure that I have taken 1000 steps total before I leave for work. Hey, I've only been awake for a short time and I already have 9000 or less steps to go to meet my goal! Go me!
I'm very fortunate to have a Fitbit and with that comes some perks. For example, you can designate a set of hours where you plan to get 250 steps during each of those hours. That's one handy way for me to ensure I'm not just letting myself sink into the mire of whatever I'm working on. They also have challenges so I will quite often tell myself that I am going for a walk and want to hit whatever the next challenge marker would be. If you don't have a Fitbit, you can still do these things! They will just require you to check your pedometer first so you know when you've achieved your individual hourly goal.
I have one more trick up my sleeve. Every once in a while I just check how many steps I've taken. I then just march in place, counting my steps, until I hit the next 100 mark. So if I'm at 2550, you can bet I'm marching in place for another 50 steps to get to 2600. I'm now adding another 500-2000 steps (give or take) a day (sometimes I check my step count A LOT). I have sailed past my step goal every single day before I even add any extra exercise!
Do you have any tips for how to get more steps in? How about to work in all those other fitness routines? Let's build stronger, healthier versions of ourselves together!
If you are interested in a Fitbit of your own, here is the one I use:
I know it is one of the pricier versions, but I love it because not only does it track steps and flights of stairs and all that fun stuff, it tracks heart rate! Even better, when I'm working out it tells me if I am in the fat burn zone, the cardio zone, or the peak zone. When I work out, I generally have the workout screen on the watch set to show my heart rate and what zone I'm in. I kid you not when I say that I've seen my heart rate toward the top of the cardio zone and pushed myself harder so I can get into the peak zone. Likewise, when I've glanced down and noted that I'm in "peak", I keep pushing so I can stay there. It has definitely made concentrated workouts much more effective for me. Another nice perk: it will show me who is calling or texting me so any point of the day I can glance down at my watch instead of being rude and pulling out my cell phone.
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