Realistic Goals for 2015

[CoffeeAddikshun]

Hi everyone... I have some general questions for anyone who is trying to lose weight this year.  Since I purchased my Fitbit after Christmas, I have been striving to reach the 10,000 steps per day.  I have failed every day except one.  It seems to me that the only way I can achieve this is to walk or jog three times a day.  Is it just me, or does this seem unurealistic?

I am doing the Couch to 5K program 3 days per week in the mornings... I can typically get between 5,000 and 6,000 steps from this alone.  I also walk every day at lunch.  I might get 3,000 steps out of this in the time I have.  Even if I were to do both of these every day, it doesn't seem to add up to 10,000.  Just so you know, I have a desk job... I would have to go for a third walk in the evening or late at night to meet this goal.  Perhaps it's busy lifestyle with two jobs and a family.  Regardless, I'm feeling somewhat discouraged and I'm wondering where the 10,000 numerical value comes from.  How important is it for me to reach this every day?

The other thing to consider is I have started a strength training regimen at the YMCA on my off days from C25K.  I've done some reading about building muscle and its improved effects on burning calories, but it seems counterintuitive when I will obviously be getting heavier before I will lose weight with this method.  Is anyone else including weight-lifting into their weight-loss routine?  If so, has it been working for you?  I'm willing to try anything for a while, but it would help to hear some success stories.

I don't mean to sound negative regarding the 10,000 steps thing, but I'm wondering if all of the other activity I'm doing should make up for what I'm lacking there.  I had never heard of this number being a goal before I got my Fitbit.  Thanks for any info you can provide!

[SunsetRunner]

10k steps can be easily achieved by doing the following. Walk 5 min ever hr your up. Do cardio preferable by walking on a treadmill for 35 min at a min speed of 3.3 mph

I normally do this and can hit 11k

[Caramammal]

I have a desk job too, from home, so i completely get how painful it is to accumulate the 10,000 steps, expecially as the people who think it's easy are already walking around generally as part of their day...so sitting at a desk can make this very difficult.

Last week, the days i managed 10,000 steps i was literally walking to the shop at lunchtime, then walking to the gym, then walking at the gym, and when not raining, walking my dogs too. I'm averaging around 10,000 steps which for me covers about 4.5 miles per day.

You certainly have to make a special effort to get the steps in if you're at a desk, but it is doable. It took me a week to find a rhythmto my day.

Good luck!

[PaleoCrossfit]

Working a desk job myself, I can understand how stressful it can be to get those steps in. What has helped me is getting up and walking for 5 minutes every hour!

[carl669]

here's my breakdown of the 10,000 step number:

average stride = 2.6 ft

2.6 x 10000 = 26000 ft

26000/5280 = 4.9 miles  (let's call it 5 miles)

let's say 12 minutes to casually walk a mile

5x12 = 60 minutes of activity

i think 60 minutes of activity per day is the recommended minimum.  so, 10000 steps should theoretically fulfill that.  i wouldn't worry about only getting 6000 steps when you're also doing other activity like weight lifting.  

[Spilogale]

I also work a desk job.  I find that during low periods through out the day I get up and just walk around the office.  I make it look like I am walking with a purpose as to not be the creepy guy.  Walk to the water cooler, walk to the bathroom, walk to the window.  Just getting up and out of the chair can add steps, all though it is just a few it all adds up.

[CoffeeAddikshun]

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone.  I'm not sure there will be any way around doing 3 walks per day, but I know it's do-able.  I don't necessarily have the ability to get up and walk every 5 minutes, but I can do it on my 10-minute breaks and my lunch to see how that goes.  You guys are rock stars!

[josephz2va]

Elliptical Machine - HR Interval at your age if machine has one. Polar HR Monitor if not.

2 minutes low, 2 minutes high, 2 minutes low repeat high and low

130 - 148 at age 35 for 60 minutes got me 10,000 steps and 400 calories.

[Steph_In_MN]

I also have a desk job. What has worked for me is that once in the morning and afternoon I will leave take a walk around the building.  I found a route I can take that will get me about 1,200 steps in.  I also always take the stairs at work.   Most days but the time I leave work I get 5K steps in.  Once the weather warms up I go for a walk on my lunch break which will normally get me to about 7-8K steps by the time I leave work.  Mon-Friday I go to the gym after work which will normally get me around 11-12K steps.  I try to get as many extra steps in during the week that I can as the weekends for me are normally very low.

[lonerchick]

I don't get the whole walk 5 min every hour. I have a desk job where I have to achieve actual work, where do I find time for this. Where do other people with jobs that require results get time? Not trying to be snarky but I feel like I don't see real advice from people who have desk jobs.

[CoffeeAddikshun]

I met my goal today, but only because I ran in the morning (did Couch to 5K Week 2 Day 1), then walked on my lunch break.  On days I lift weights instead of run, it seems nearly impossible to reach the 10,000 mark.  Just seeing some of the feedback on the forums here, I think I'm going to set my own goals... I can do 10,000 on days I run, but not days I lift weights in the morning.  A more realistic goal for those days and the time alotted would be 6,000 steps.

I counted my steps today on my lunch walk... it's a 1.23 mile loop at my work with tons of hills.  It takes me about 25 minutes to walk, and it yielded about 1,900 steps.  Considering the hills, I'm starting to lean toward placing less emphasis on the number of steps I do per day, and more emphasis on how long my heart-rate is elevated for.  There are even larger hills in every direction by my house, so hills are simply unavoidable unless I drive somewhere flat to walk... I'd rather spend the drive-time walking more.

On the treadmill with zero incline, I can walk the same distance in about 19 minutes... not sure if the number of steps would change, but I'm guessing it wouldn't be significantly different.  I decided to time these today after reading carl669's calculations for his pace.  I would need to nearly double the amount of time it takes him to finish... just starting out running and being overweight, a 12-minute mile is about what I do when I'm jogging.  That's a quick walk, sir!  It would take me about 2 hours and 45 minutes of walking every day at the pace I can manage, but like I said, I'm more focused on heart rate and time at this point.  I can see the number of steps being a fun goal after I finish the C25K program and try to prolong the total time I can run.

[PaleoCrossfit]

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@lonerchick wrote:
I don't get the whole walk 5 min every hour. I have a desk job where I have to achieve actual work, where do I find time for this. Where do other people with jobs that require results get time? Not trying to be snarky but I feel like I don't see real advice from people who have desk jobs.

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It's fairly simple, in my opinion. I may not be able to get up literally every hour, but fairly close to it. Even if it's just walking to the restroom and back to your desk, that's something. I try to get 500 steps every hour, which is very doable for me.

You could also just stand up and walk in place for a couple of minutes, which wouldn't require you actually "going" anywhere, but still allowing you to get your steps in.

[josephz2va]

or if your strength is built up enough and you have a mutli-story office, use the bathroom then climb the flights. Since one of the goals is to build up stair flights and it helps build up your knees, ankles, quads, and hamstrings. For me, I have 18 flights. Ground and 1-8, 2 separate flights each floor.

That's a good deal of 5-10 minutes depending on your strength.

[PaleoCrossfit]

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@josephz2va wrote:

or if your strength is built up enough and you have a mutli-story office, use the bathroom then climb the flights. Since one of the goals is to build up stair flights and it helps build up your knees, ankles, quads, and hamstrings. For me, I have 18 flights. Ground and 1-8, 2 separate flights each floor.

That's a good deal of 5-10 minutes depending on your strength.

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Absolutely!