Dateline 1-13-2017

A couple days ago I received a Fitbit as a late Christmas gift after my oldest sister informed my mom how great the thing is at keeping her active. Since I've been working on my weight since the start of the year, she figured it might help me stick to my goal. Up until this point, I've been aware of the technology but the actual device was out of my price range so I didn't give it much thought other than something I might look into when I land a full-time job.

I've been wearing this thing for a little over two days now and I'm already very optimistic that this thing will keep me moving throughout the day.  I have the thing set to remind me to walk at least 250 steps an hour between the hours that would be considered my work hours if only I got paid. I used to have an app that would alert me to do this but it was too easy to ignore being that it was pretty much just a timer that goes off every hour without tracking whether or not I play along.

Now I have this dashboard staring at me filled with tasks that I must complete before I call it a day. I don't know about you, but I'm one of these people who has to unlock every achievement whenever I play a game. The gamification of life does give me goals that I'm excited to achieve.

I've pointed out in past posts, that I've never been able to just take a walk without having a specific goal. I'll walk to the store eight times a day if there was something I needed but I've never been able to get anything out of taking a stroll just to see whatever I see. Having a set amount of steps to accomplish gives me an end point and purpose to get out and about.

Last night I ended the day by taking my dog out for a walk to finish the step count required to complete my day. This works far better for me as I would find myself getting bored almost instantly when my only motivation would be to walk for a certain amount of time.

Now I walk with purpose, taking mental notes of how many steps it takes to get through various areas of my neighborhood. This way I can plan an end of the day walk to help me stick to my plan, which will not only benefit my life but will also get my dog healthier and happier as well.

Sure it's only two days in and my enthusiasm may be a bit exaggerated during this newlywed phase but I can see myself sticking to it even after the novelty wears out and I go back to seeing fitness as a chore. This is one time where I feel that my obsessive mind will work for good and not evil and I can't wait to see the results.

Now it's time to get up to fit in my 250 steps for the hour.

Talk to you tomorrow,

The Wicker Breaker