Wednesday, July 17, 2013

An Unexpected Journey.

So, I have decided to pack my bags and get to walking.... to a tiny town called Troutville, VA. It's population doesn't even break 1000, and I don't think it even has a traffic light! (The last part is unverified lol).

Why on earth would I WALK to Virginia?! Well, it's not a REAL walk, folks. My friend Amy and I needed some motivation. She came up with the idea, and I just helped expand on it and set some guidelines. So, from her tiny town in Ontario, and from my big town in Florida, we've decided to "walk" and "meet" each other halfway between our homes.... which happens to be a tiny town called Troutville, VA.

The purple icon is our halfway point.
We are walking the direct route, the red line.

There are a few guidelines to help us along the way, since this was such a spur of the moment thing.


To meet in the middle by December 31, 2013, we must walk at least  3.5mi/5.6km each day. This might seem outrageous, but we have some exceptions and substitutions to this rule, because after all this is just for fun and really it's to help us incorporate more exercise into our daily lives!

Exceptions and Substitutions:
  • Our daily "normal" (non-exercise) walking can count, but only for UP TO HALF of the daily total
  • Sweat-inducing exercise can be substituted, at 30 minutes for one half of a mile. (30min = 1/2mi), and can only count for UP TO TWO miles.
That really was it. So even on a day where I'm at the gym, I can only really count up to 2 hours of sweat time, which would make up 2 miles. Then, if I did no exercise walking, I can still hit my 3.5 miles for the day. The system is designed so we don't fail. It's not to see who can get there faster, or who does more exercise in the day, it's to help us move MORE and MORE but EVERY DAY!

So, it's Wednesday, only 3 days so far are counted in this challenge... how did I do?

Sunday: 1.43 miles
Monday: 2.17 miles
Tuesday: 3.5 miles

Total: 7.10 miles
Goal: 10.50 miles
Deficit: 3.40 miles

So, I'm already a full day behind. Today I have the day off, so I won't get much done as far as "normal" everyday walking, but I have housework to be done, and nothing makes me sweat more than cleaning and dancing my butt off around the house as I go. Plus, I am making a delicious dinner tonight so I have to stay under in calories today to make up for the not-so-healthy dinner I have planned! (ok, it's kinda nutritious... but there is one part I can't substitute a healthy option for... more on that later!)

As of today, I'm not even out of the city yet. So, daily updates will end up being boring. But, tune in to our Sunday "Roadtrip Review" and see where we've landed! Maybe we'll show up in some crazy places! :-D


By the way, if you haven't yet, go see Amy. She's over at Diary Of A Fat Girl. And also, share with your friends! Help us get some cheering going as we start this long trek!


“There are no safe paths in this part of the world.
Remember you are over the Edge of the Wild now,
and in for all sorts of fun wherever you go.” 
-from The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien

2 comments:

  1. I saw Amy's post about your trip. I am so excited that both of you girls are going on the journey together. Knowing you two, this will be a great motivation to get more active. I will be rooting for you and will meet you two girls in Virginia at the finish line. You girls have got this!! :)

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  2. After having read your post....I feel like mine was written by a two-toed sloth!

    You explained it much better than me and how is it I didn't think of adding a map? Sorry, but I am going to have to steal some of your ideas here for Sunday's "Road Trip Review"

    I tried to catch up a little bit tonight. I'm slow out of the gate, but I won't leave you hanging girl!

    I am so glad that we are doing this trip together and it had me motivated to do 40 minutes on the treadmill, with a calorie burn of 200!

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