Back in September last year I took on a personal challenge. I decided to walk 300,000 steps in one month to raise money for two charities; Tommys, and the Miscarriage Association.
Why 300k steps, and why just walk it?
September has 30 days (you can start singing the rhyme if you want) so it was equal to walking 10,000 steps a day. I've often tried to do 10k a day and never quite managed it. So doing something that involved hitting that target consistently over a month was definitely something that felt like a challenge but also achievable at the same time.
I hate jogging and running. I'm never very good at it. I get out of breath very quickly (I know this would reduce if I kept at it but it really puts me off) and I hate how hot and sweaty I get. I needed to do something I knew I would at least not get too fed up with too quickly.
Why those charities?
I picked Tommys and the Miscarriage Association because I've had two miscarriages during the pandemic. One late loss in October 2020 and the other in April 2021. Six weeks after my first miscarriage I found myself calling the Miscarriage Association phoneline. A very calm and reassuring woman spoke to me for forty minutes and calmed me down after hours of crying.
I also used the websites for both Tommy's and the Miscarriage Association to get answers after both losses. Tommy's carry out research into miscarriage and baby loss and at one point I took part in an online study they were holding about research outcomes.
I wanted to do something that would repay the Miscarriage Association for the use of their phoneline, and also help fund research to help other people like me in the future. I decided to walk for both these charities and split the money raised between them.
How did I do it?
To start with, let me say that the first week was exhausting! I used to walk to and from work a lot but obviously that was seriously curtailed during the pandemic. So I was a bit out of practice and my muscles were not happy about how much work they were now being forced to do.
But after that first week it got a lot easier, and towards the end I was practically bouncing along the pavement every time I set foot outside the door.
If you're thinking of doing similar challenge then here's a few tips.
Make a bouncy/jaunty/fast playlist
My playlists are mostly Metallica and Rammstein but for this I deliberately made a broader one. Still with good rock songs that I like, I didn't eliminate the Rammstein completely.
But I did make a playlist of songs that had a fast tempo or that were a bit upbeat. It's a lot easier to walk fast if you've got a faster beat in your ears as you end up trying to match it. Even if you can't keep it up for long it does get you moving, and if it's something you like then you'll look forward to loading it up for another listen!
Work out routes that give you a lot of steps
I was tracking my steps through the Health app on my iPhone. After each walk I would check it to see how many steps I had done and then started to work out where to walk to get lots of steps, or how to make the most of fifteen minutes at the end of my lunch break.
For example, I quickly learned that a loop around the estate I live on was good for just over 1000 steps. It's a bit of a boring walk so I couldn't just loop around 10 times but it did mean that I could nip out before eating lunch and get 1000 ticked off.
Likewise I worked out that a much bigger 40 minute loop down to a small supermarket and back again was well over 5000 steps. There were several potential routes as well so I could even get close to 6000 depending on which way I went.
I always get a mental boost from getting halfway through things nice and early. So after a while I set my alarm to get up a bit earlier and do that one long loop first thing before breakfast. I would have a rumbling stomach by the time I got home, but I was over halfway before even starting work! I could then walk around the estate twice at lunchtime, and then I just needed to round it off after work.
Visit new places
Most people don't need an excuse to go somewhere new but me and my husband are massive homebodies and most weekends are spent at home.
We both had a week off work in September so we used it to go and visit some places that we hadn't been to. We moved to this area five years ago but we haven't really explored properly, which seemed like a bit of a waste.
During the week we were off we visited a village and a town near us, and also drove over to my parents (who moved during the pandemic so they're only 20 minutes away now) and went for a walk that my Dad measured at 10,000 steps. We also did a long walk along the river where we live, just to give my normal routes a bit of a break.
I also did one Saturday in London where I did a huge walk from Liverpool Street Station down to Westminster and back again. That was a very long day but I like walking through central London so it never felt difficult. I just had very worn out feet at the end!
Get ahead so you can take a break
After the first week I realised I really could not walk every single day. I needed one day to completely unwind at home.
Luckily walking isn't an exact science so pretty soon I found I was actually doing around 12,000 a day. Building up a buffer during the week meant that at the weekend I could look at my total and have a day or so in hand. I ended up taking Sundays as my off day where I could just lounge around on the sofa and not have my phone glued to me to count every single step around the house.
Did I make it?
Yes I did. Of course I did. I couldn't let myself down when the charities meant that much to me.
In total I walked 312,847 steps in October! I'd like to do it again one day. But not immediately, my feet still hurt.
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