January-March 2025 Step Challenge and Scavenger Hunt

[Baltoscott]

Happy 2025!!

We are continuing to combine monthly challenges into a single three-month thread. It’s a new year and time to reaffirm your good fitness habits and maybe to add a few. While the start of the thread is January 1, please jump in at any time.

General instructions are below, including the monthly picture scavenger hunt.                                                       

How It Works

The primary purpose of these challenges is to keep track of your daily step goals and commit for a period of time; though many of us track other things as well, like body weight exercises, sleep, trips to the gym, logging food, etc. Try to reevaluate and update your goals/commitment each month. This is not a competition to see who can do the most of whatever, instead it is a challenge to measure your consistency. So whether you do 1k, 5k, 10k or even 40k steps a day, this is measuring how many days out of the monthly total you can hit your goal.

Some might have a constant goal of 10k steps every single day and others might have a variable goal throughout the week, (and some might even plan days off!) for example.
Monday -> Friday = 10k steps a day
Sat & Sun = “6k steps a day,” or “not tracking”

Regardless of how you structure your daily goals, the only thing that matters for the monthly challenge is whether or not you reach what you set out to do.

Suggested Posting Format    
1) Post either your constant or variable step goal.
2) Keep track of the # of daily goals achieved out of the monthly minimum and or monthly total

Picture Scavenger Hunt

The idea is to find at least three pictures while you out and about based on a monthly theme. For January, street art or hidden pictures. Street art is any graffiti you come across and any art built into architecture.  Hidden pictures are designs in nature that might be there on purpose (someone carved something into or hung something on a tree) or might be something you see in a natural formation (a shoulder or face in a mountain or a cloud). For February, find the ‘odd duck;’ something out of place; someone oddly dressed; something a little ridiculous. Of course, an actual duck or a rubber duck is fair game too.  For March, look for shamrocks (Saint Patrick’s Day), or something that conveys marching (marching band, boots), or the month of March (migrating animals, spring or fall (depends on where you live) foliage change  . (If you have other ideas over the coming months, post to the thread and I can update).

Life Underground. 2001 work of public art by Tom Otterness located in 14 St (A/C/E/L) station (New York City Transit)

Posting

Although you certainly don’t have to post daily, you’ll likely stay closer to what you set out to do by updating the thread several times/week.

Injury Notice
If you injure yourself during the month and need to scale back due to the injury, then all you have to do is adjust your goal for that period. If you normally do 10k steps a day but pull a hamstring and decide to do minimal walking (2k steps a day), then all you have to do is change your goal.

[FelixO]

Great initiative and I'm in as I am getting back into my fitness journey 

[Baltoscott]

That's great @FelixO. Welcome!

[Baltoscott]

Day 29

12K steps/day for 22 days		27/22
15 floors/day for 20 days		25/20
1 pushups for 25 days		29/25
12 weight-lifting days		5/12
post 3 scavenger pics		3/3
Sleep 6:00 hours + 15 days or more during the month		17/15
1 pull-ups for 25 days		29/25
Unicycle: 15 mins/day for 20 days		8/20
25 dry days		24/25
Beat January 2024 bike mileage (209 miles)		135/209
120 active minutes 20 days.		16/20
Log Food - 25 days.		29/25

I see the bones of bigfoot in this stream. I've circled it's head (at the top) and feet. I think the bones between the circles are what is left of the torso, and I see a raised arm to the left of the head and a sort of curled up raised arm to the left of the head. 

Petrified Bones in Stream

[NellyG]

I am off the Perth tomorrow and into hospital and op on Saturday. I will be in a couple of weeks so I won't be around for a bit and not sure how I will go with goals in February. The last couple of weeks will depend how I feel.

[Baltoscott]

Hope it goes well @NellyG 

[SunsetRunner]

January  25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30

6,000 Steps - 10/10 days

8,000 Steps - 9/8 days

10,000 Steps - 8/8 days

Home Fitness - 8/12 days

Fitness Center - 8/8 days 

Lose weight (starting 62.4)  -.7

Visit Castle/ Museum/ Gallery - 2/4 days

Photo challenge - 1/3 pics

[Vidd]

JanuaDry goals:  end of month update

JanuaDry update - Day 18

Goal days revised due my trip down to London to the NHNN.

In bed by 11 every day	31/31
5 flights of stairs each day	25/26
1000 steps per day	27/27
5000 revs on the exercise pedaller daily	27/27
3 Scavenger Hunt pictures	1/3

@NellyG fingers crossed and prayers for you in hospital.

Things are looking up!  I heard form the NHNN yesterday that they had brought my case (probably among others) to a multi-disciplinary meeting - just the sort of thing I really had been hoping they would hold - and decided to offer me a nerve root steroid injection.  They now think my condition is most probably foraminal stenosis (it's easier to invite you to Google that than to explain it) based around C7, one of the lower neck bones in the spine.  The injection should take away the pain, and the effects should last for a couple of months.  If it works then they know they've found the right nerve and then they can decide on the best treatment.  that would give them a decent length window in which to get me booked in.

I'd been given to understand that the appointment for this might be for about a fortnight's time, so I was a bit disappointed first thing this morning to see that the date for it was March 6th.  That gap was about the same as the ones between my last three visits down to London, so I guess I knew I could get through that time, but it would continue to be tough.  Shortly afterwards, I got a phone call.  The NhNN wanted to discuss making an appointment for my injection.  I said that I had one on March 6th - they said that they couldn't see that on the system, but how about February 5th?

Wow, I said, yes please!  I then got on to Hospital Transport, which I had used last time for the last three or four miles, and they will take me to London all the way from here in Shropshire.  They do long distance transport, for those whose condition allows them to qualify, across the whole country.

Mrs Vidd has now been back for a fortnight with her new knee.  There's still pain, but she is making great progress.  We're working out how we can manage things between us, and so far it's working very well.  We have a few close friends who pop in from time to time, some with a dog, and tonight we had an unexpected call from our previous parish priest, who retired and moved away about seven years ago.  It was a delight to talk to him.

[Baltoscott]

Dryish January wrap up

12K steps/day for 22 days		27/22
15 floors/day for 20 days		27/20
1 pushups for 25 days		31/25
12 weight-lifting days		9/12
post 3 scavenger pics		3/3
Sleep 6:00 hours + 15 days or more during the month		17/15
1 pull-ups for 25 days		29/25
Unicycle: 15 mins/day for 20 days		12/20
25 dry days		26/25
Beat January 2024 bike mileage (209 miles)		136/209
120 active minutes 20 days.		16/20
Log Food - 25 days.		30/25

Cold weather and ice interfered with my bike miles and outdoor activities.  I did, however, get the floor goal and the dryish goal, and I lost a couple of pounds so I'm pretty happy with that. On to Odd Duck February.

[Baltoscott]

@Vidd - I'm excited about your upcoming treatment in a few days. And what a relief it must be that you'll get Hospital Transport the whole way to London. Sending positive thoughts to you and Mrs. Vidd on the upcoming therapy and recovery.

[Baltoscott]

Odd Duck February goals and Day 2

15K steps/day for 25 days		27/25
15 floors/day for 25 days		2/20
10 pushups for 25 days		2/25
12 weight-lifting days		/12
post 3 scavenger pics		1/3
Sleep 6:00 hours + 15 days or more during the month		1/15
5 pull-ups for 25 days		2/25
Unicycle: 15 mins/day for 20 days		12/20
15 dry days		/15
Beat February 2024 bike mileage (244 miles)		136/244
120 active minutes 20 days.		1/20
Log Food - 25 days.		/25

This odd duck is a female Greater Scaup (at least according to the majority of my fellow birders on facebook). Other than the size difference, which isn't all that much 'greater,' the greater can be distinguished from the lesser by it's head shape; the greater has a head that is rounder and higher toward the front, as compared to it's lesser cousin, which has a taller head with the crest toward the back. Whether greater or lesser, she is a 'lifer' for me (the first time I've seen one), and she seems pretty happy chomping away on a small fish.

Greater Scaup

[jantonini]

My January fell a bit short, probably the least amount of steps in over a year, but I will be kicking it up a notch for February!

@NellyG Sending positive light your way.  @Vidd Happy to hear that you may finally be getting closer to understanding your issues, and I hope Mrs. Vidd continues to mend well.  @Baltoscott thank you for always taking the lead and guiding us through another month. And @FelixO Welcome.

Odd Duck February Goals & Day 2

10k steps per day - 1/4 days

Over 13k steps per day -  1/16 days

Over 16k steps per day -  /7 days

Over 20k steps per day - /3 days

Weights - 1/13 days

Yoga/pilates/stretch - 1/16 days

90 oz Water every day - 2/28 days

Sleep goal 6.5 hours -  1/15 nights

pics -  /3 

[Baltoscott]

Odd Duck February Day 4

14K steps/day for 25 days		4/25
15 floors/day for 25 days		4/20
10 pushups for 25 days		4/25
12 weight-lifting days		/12
post 3 scavenger pics		1/3
Sleep 6:00 hours + 15 days or more during the month		2/15
5 pull-ups for 25 days		4/25
Unicycle: 15 mins/day for 20 days		12/20
15 dry days		2/15
Beat February 2024 bike mileage (244 miles)		29/244
120 active minutes 20 days.		3/20
Log Food - 25 days.		3/25

[Vidd]

OddDuck February goals and progress - Day 13

Goals live on days when I'm at home.

In bed by 11 every day	13/28
5 flights of stairs each day	13/28
1000 steps per day	12/27
5000 revs on the exercise pedaller daily	12/27
3 Scavenger Hunt pictures	0/3

The hospital trip to London went well - hospital transport had come up from Kent to pick me up - they'd left at 1.00 a.m., and we were away by 05:30.  Made it in time, despite the awful London traffic, and I was relieved that my request for somewhere to be able to Iie down while awaiting the injection, and then afterwards for monitoring and then awaiting the return journey transport, had been met.

The young doctor who performed the injection told me all about the (rather scary) risks, explaining that I needed to be able to keep very still to help his aim.  You bet!  I didn't twitch a muscle as I went in and out of the CT scanner - he was using that to check his injection aim - and he said that he was in exactly the right place.

It was them a matter of waiting.  They'd said 72 hours, so I did.  There was no change.  I looked at a few websites, and some suggested that it could take a week, but that's gone past now, and there's still no change.  

I heard from my consultant that he is still pretty sure that it's foramina stenosis, and so he's referred me for neurosurgery.  I rang the hospital to check on the classification of the referral, and found out it was only at 'routine'.  So I've written back to the consultant asking for him to reconsider and class it as urgent.

I'll let you all know how that turns out.

[SunsetRunner]

Odd Duck February Goals and Days February 1-19

6,000 Steps - 5/10 days

8,000 Steps - 6/8 days

10,000 Steps - 4/5

Visit Castle/ Museum/ Gallery - 2/2 days

Photo challenge - 0/3 pic

Apologies for my long absence. I was hyper busy getting ready for my very first art exhibition (and it was solo, too, so all walls had to be filled with my art) at the Ronald McDonald House Bern. You never know how much work is really required until you've done it. (It was what we lightly refer to in Texas-speak as a baptism by fire.) However, it was an amazingly successful event, with twice as many of our friends and family from near and far at the opening last Sunday afternoon. 
Now that I am slowly catching my breath and my feet don't hurt quite as much, I plan to read back through everyone's posts to catch up. I hope everyone is well and/or on the mend. ❤️‍🩹 

[SunsetRunner]

@Vidd  -- Sorry to read that so far that after the rather complicated trip there and back, and tedious injection, you haven't had pain relief. Best wishes and prayers for an upgrade in your status so that you can get going on the next step and hopefully the "silver bullet" treatment. 🙏

[Vidd]

OddDuck February goals and progress - Day 22

Goals live on days when I'm at home.

In bed by 11 every day	22/28
5 flights of stairs each day	22/28
1000 steps per day	21/27
5000 revs on the exercise pedaller daily	22/27
3 Scavenger Hunt pictures	0/3

@SunsetRunner Thank you for your kind sympathy.  Congratulations on your first art exhibition, and how wonderful that it went so well!  

I've realised that the NHS in the UK has this rather daft system where patients are not supposed to be in direct contact with consultants, except if a face-to-face appointment takes place.  All I can say is that nobody told me that!  I'd sent letters by email quite a few times to my consultant in London, to which he'd never replied, although it was reassuring that when I was visited in my hospital stay in January by members of his team when they said they had read my letters.  As the condition of the patient in this case can only be described by the patient,  it means that everything would get to the consultant second-hand.

It all is to be done through my local doctor, so I've managed to persuade her to speak up on any behalf to the consultant - which she does by letter.  She will have acted very quickly, so I hope that a reply might be there when she is next in the surgery on Monday.

[jantonini]

Odd Duck February Day 23 --Sorry about your long and arduous health journey @Vidd, I sure hope your next news is the best news.  

The picture below, taken with my friend's incredible camera in a peculiar, odd spot caught our eye the other day on our way to class.

10k steps per day - 4/4 days

Over 13k steps per day -  15/16 days

Over 16k steps per day -  3/7 days

Over 20k steps per day - 1/3 days

Weights - 11/13 days

Yoga/pilates/stretch - 12/16 days

90 oz Water every day - 22/28 days

Sleep goal 6.5 hours -  5/15 nights

pics -  1/3 

[SunsetRunner]

Odd Duck February Goals and Days February 20 - 23

6,000 Steps - 7/10 days

8,000 Steps - 7/8 days

10,000 Steps - 4/5

Visit Castle/ Museum/ Gallery - 2/2 days

Photo challenge - 0/3 pic

[SunsetRunner]

Odd Duck February Goals and Days February 24

6,000 Steps - 7/10 days

8,000 Steps - 7/8 days

10,000 Steps - 4/5

Visit Castle/ Museum/ Gallery - 2/2 days

Photo challenge - 0/3 pic

I have noticed lately that the step count on my Fitbit Sense and App have jumped back (more than once a day) between 200 - 300 steps. Has anyone else experienced this? It’s weird and annoying when you are trying to reach a daily goal and at the end of the day it shows far fewer than you know you had. 😠 

[SunsetRunner]