Club 10,000
 

I have been carrying around a pedometer pretty regularly for the past few weeks. I even got a new one when Tink told me she wanted hers back. I programmed it for my stride length and weight, and now it can calculate how far I've walked, how many calories it thinks it takes to carry myself that far, and how much time I've spent in motion.

I plan to join the 10,000 step club. But I'm not there yet. I keep thinking "I'll make a thread, that will keep me from backsliding" but I have been successful (until now) in avoiding closing that avenue of escape. No more. I'll report my step count (and if I'm really bold, my weight, distance, time, and calories) each day (jaysus, did I say that out loud? *every day*? you idiot, now you're screwed). My progress, or lack thereof, will be just as public as it is now, only to more decimal places of precision. And I won't be able to hide it with baggy clothes.

I've found that when I put the pedometer on first thing in the morning, if I look at the readout just before I reset it, I think that will be the high water mark of my mileage for the previous day. None of them have been over 10,000 steps so far. Dammit. Ok, let's get started.

Yesterday's total steps: 8883. See you all tomorrow.

bah. I just dance in the moonlight!

(j/k--I'm off right now to go walking.)

Jog in place and work up a sweat. Always take the stairs, up and down.

when wanking, move the whole body to step forward and backward while the hand stays in place, rather than the more traditional action.

get a part time job as a waiter.

A lot of people waste their money on gyms, working out on the stair-steppers. I just go up the down escalator at the mall.

One story climbed, 1000 steps taken.

Oh sure, 50 people pissed off, but hey, no pain, no gain.

wear boxing gloves and get an upper body workout too

it seems to me that that might be the last thing you'd ever do.

I don't give a damn about your poll or your hunch... this needs to be on Youtube.

Good morning all. Yesterday's (pathetic) total:

5026 steps.

This thread belongs in the humor thread. Monster, UT, you kill me.

Admit it BigV. "Club 10000" - you're just trying to taunt lumberjim.

I was talking to the manager at a grocery store and he told me he walks about nine miles a day, according to his pedometer. Great exercise.

No, not "just trying to taunt". Everything I posted here is the truth. The taunt is pure bonus. :lol:

And I have found that it's about 2000 to 3000 steps to the grocery store, round trip, depending on how directly I travel. It's a nice walk, and there's almost always something to get from the store before coming home. I used to drive to the store, then go home. I'm trying to establish the habit of coming home first, then walking to the store for the goodies. Keeps the shopping in check too since I have to carry it all back. Yesterday I did cave and drive to the store since I knew I wanted a 10 lb bag of potatoes.

The library is about the same distance in the opposite direction and I love that walk too.

Just checked---2587 steps right now, midday at my desk... I better find a reason to travel.

Laterz!

V - what is your conversion between steps and distance traveled (your average stride length)?

Stride length 60 inches, 5 feet (that's a pace--two steps).

Of course it varies according to terrain, pace, load, etc. which works out to about 1000 paces per mile. The pedometer counts steps and not paces, which makes the grocery store a half a mile away.

I haven't bothered to measure my pace with any greater precision than this. I find this number very easy to use for distance math when I'm traveling outside, especially hiking. I have to make allowances when the steps/pace changes dramatically, like climbing or descending rough trails, or walking on the beach.

Do any of you try to measure your progress in the woods this way?

I have a gps, but I don't use it hiking. I might be inclined to use a newer one that has all the bells and whistles (and maps). But mine is too old to have those features, and isn't any better than a map and a compass and some sense of direction.

BigV, I have hiked with a GPS with all the bells and whistles, but the noise was just too much. Ding, ding, toot, toot... but it did keep the bears away.


I've found, as you did, that terrain significantly alters stride length and forward progress. When hiking, I sometimes try to track my position on the map by counting alternate steps, and also by the shape and direction of the trail, and the slope of the land, but this only works if the trail as shown on the map is correct.

I sometimes put the GPS in my pack and go off trail, then try to find my way back to the trail or to a road using only a map and compass. I still have a lot to learn about navigating, but find this to be a useful exercise.

i thought there was something vaguely familiar about this thread.....

Regarding adjusting your calculations for rough terrain: I say, don't.
I presume that you're not really concerned with the distance you move your body. Your real concern is getting exercise, aerobic stimulation, cardio-vascular workout, burning calories.
A three foot forward / one foot upwards pace on a hillside trail most likely delivers more of all of these things than a five foot pace on a flat footpath. More so if you are carrying a load.
By and large, the things that cause you to shorten your stride also improve the exercise value of each stride, so I suggest, just count all strides as being unladen 5 foot strides.
I guess an exception would be if you are walking gingerly on an icy footpath or something.

the stairmaster seems to treat distance differently than the eliptical at our gym...i assume it counts upward progress into the tally of distance covered.....

Sh*t.

Pedometer died, not from overwork either. The last reading I remember yesterday was in the neighborhood of 5000 steps. I'll check the battery today, and hope I can get back on the meter. Don't worry, I'm still in motion. Hyperkinetic today.

I seem to get more steps in on the eliptical than straight treadmill. The treadmill I use tracks vertical climb and miles but not steps taken.

2.28 volts out of the 3 volt CR2025 cell. Looks like I need a new battery.

I met two of your people today, a psychologist and a gym teacher. The psych was ahead.

No, no, no, what he said was, "I'm a head doctor".

:)

New CR2025 ($2.17 at Bartell's Drugs). Still didn't work. Grrr. So, I fixed it. Well, I fixed it after I broke it. I ... ahem... dropped it. Actually, it sprung off my belt as I was pulling up my pants. They're fragile. The weighted pendulum had jammed and wasn't freeswinging, not counting "steps" anymore. STAB. PRY. Click. Ahh... all better.

1296 steps as of the end of lunch. Very idle day. I'll have to make it up later with a couple laps around the block.

5371 yesterday, incl walk to the store.

may i suggest investing $14.99 and one hour per day taking sonofV to the park with a nifty new soccer ball. play one on one. you will see the numbers scroll through the pedometer AND spend awesome quality time.

You're wise, lookout.

You're right too.

I'll withhold further comment, though I stand firmly by these two statements.

my friend, if you insist upon standing by those statements people will know you're full of poo. be careful.;)

How unoriginal. Lookout, you have a firm grasp of the obvious and a flair for understatement. Either that or you've hung out with me for more than five minutes or you've been talking to my kids...

Regardless. The suggestion to play is a welcome one, but [whine] it's dark when I get home, and usually raining. The nearest grass "playfield" larger than the parking strip (see Shade Tree Mechanics) is about a mile away. Which is a nice walk/jog/warmup, I agree. But but but but... whatever. [/whine]

Sorry. I'm ok now.

//They have Glow-in-the-dark soccer balls//

Drive? We do. That way if the field we want is full, move on to the next with no excuses about walking. You can talk on the way. ++

Wet? That's the best. We play in well watered fields because the sprinklers always seem to magically run right before we get there. You as the adult get to grumble while secretly enjoying getting dirty like you were a kid again. Your son will openly and joyously have a blast slipping and sliding while chasing the ball. Added benefit? The ball responds best on wet turf. ++

Dark? That puts a time limit to the play that cannot be argued. When it is too dark to see the ball, it's time to go home. No arguments, no time for anyone in the family to become bored and disgruntled. Just a short runout between father and son. ++

simple game can be done in any size grass (even the postage stamp grass areas in phoenix.) what you'll need? 4 cones and 1 appropriately sized ball. can be purchased at Target for under $20. Make 2 goals with the cones in a relatively small space. play one on one. Ball has to stay on the ground, if it goes airborne player loses possession. No out of bounds. No hands. First one to five wins. Best 2 of 3, 3 of 5, etc.

I see lots of pluses, but no minuses. Sounds to me like a perfect opportunity for bonding, healthy exercise, and beefing up your step count. If you don't want me to poke holes in your excuse you'll have to try harder. ;)

Yesterday's total: 2470.

good. you're thinking ahead to the huge numbers you're going to put up for the weekend.

V, why are you doing this? You've set yourself a seemingly unattainable target with limitless excuse possibilities. Do you want to get fitter, thinner, lighter or are you raising money for charity? If any of the first three, stop. set something more realistic. Say 4000 steps per day. Then when you've acheived that for 7 days running, move the goalposts -got for 5000 ...etc.. Aiming for 10 a day when you seem hard pushed to make 3 is just bollocks. You're excusing yourself before you start by setting something unattainable as the goal.

Would you vote for a kid in middle school who says she wants to be president? or would you wait until she's shown her mettle a little? Would you advise that kid to go for presidential nomination immediately, or start by running for student council?

8041 yesterday.

Despite the gap in posts, I have been walking.

That's good. I was actually going to call you because I was afraid you had just laid down on the sidewalk and refused to walk.

I eventually got up.

glad to hear it. laying on that cold concrete could give you the 'roids, man.

For a second I thought you were talking about your post count.

Heh.

Check with me tomorrow!

btw, the happy today thread has a post with considerable impact on this thread. Monday I'll be hiking! Hey! I got yer step count *right here*.