100 Mile Fitness Challenge Wrap-Up

Well, folks, the three months are up! At the beginning of Trish's 100 Mile Fitness Challenge, I wasn't even sure if I could walk/exercise 100 miles in this time period. When I crunched the numbers, though, I realized it was totally doable. In fact, I set a personal goal of 150 miles, and a stretch goal of 200. How did I fare?

Well, I am happy to report that I accumulated 178 miles through both walking and exercising on my elliptical machine. Until a couple of weeks ago, I was pretty confident I would reach 200 miles, based on the fact that I would be at my parents' house for a week, unencumbered with housely duties. But here is the deal. I haven't actually stepped foot up north in the winter since 1998, so I grievously underestimated the impact of the weather. Sleet, freezing temperatures, wind and snow does not a walking experience make. I tried, I really did, but my plan of covering the last twenty miles did not materialize.

The good news is that Trish has decided to host another 100 Mile Fitness Challenge running January 1st, 2010 through the end of March. Except for a week-long trip to Hawaii in early March (woo hoo!) I should be home and entrenched in my routine, so I should be able to hit the 200 miles this time around. This should be especially helpful during the month of January, when I participate in the Game On Diet!

I have found that the accountability of reporting into Trish weekly, and posting my progress on my blog has been a huge motivation to stay active, even on those days where I would have rather stayed home. I think this is the key for me, and plan on making it part of the routine.

How did you all do? Are you going to sign up for the next challenge?

100 Mile Fitness Challenge Update: November 27 - December 3

Long time, no update, I know!  I skipped my fitness update last week for one reason only...guilt.  Yes, I know, it was Thanksgiving week so I have the built-in excuse.  The kids were home with me, so no long walks...I turned to my elliptical trainer instead and logged in a pathetic 9 miles.

This week, the kids were back to school, so I reclaimed my personal space.  Still, I only accumulated 10 miles, in a week where I needed to walk about 30 to work off all the food consumed on Thanksgiving.  The good news?  I got all my Christmas shopping finished! 

Just to make myself feel better, I will tell you that I do not count all the miles I walked shopping at the mall, and the walking I do when I golf!

So that brings me to a total of 130 miles to date.  I believe I will more than meet my uber-goal of 150 miles, even if I slack off, with almost four weeks left in the challenge.  (The question is...will I make 200?)  I will be traveling to Indiana for the holidays, and that is my favorite place to walk.  My parents' farm is beautiful, and snow or no snow, I will be out in the mornings doing my thing. 

How are things going with you?  Did you kick the Thanksgiving blahs to the curb, or are you struggling like me?  Don't forget to check in with Trish to get credit for all your hard work!

100 Mile Fitness Challenge Update: November 13 - 19

Happy Friday, my friends! It is time for my weekly update on the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge. When we last spoke I was precariously perched four miles short of the 100. With the help of some great weather, and my routine intact, I broke through the tape (the first tape at least). I walked 15 miles, bringing my total to 111.

I intend to continue pursuing the challenge, with the hope of at least hitting 150 miles. I had hoped to even maybe hit 200, but I'm not sure if that is feasible. Here will be my challenges:

Next week, my kids are home, so I won't be able to take off on my five mile walks. I will most likely be relying on my elliptical trainer in the early mornings. After Thanksgiving, I go into high gear with Christmas...shopping, decorating, parties. This will be a diversion that will be hard to avoid. At the very least, I'm thinking that I will wear my pedometer, and do some mall-walking along with my shopping errands.

Make sure you stop by Trish's to give her your update! How are you doing with this challenge? Any tips you'd like to share to get us all through the holidays?

100 Mile Fitness Challenge Update: November 6 - 12

I am so happy to tell you that in all categories, this has been a much better week for me! With the 20 mile goal in sight, I hit the ground running on Sunday, and plugged right on through the week, rain or shine.

We had some residual junk that spun off from Tropical Storm Ida, but was more annoying than prohibitive. In fact, when I took off on my walk Wednesday morning, it was raining just a little. I grabbed my windbreaker, defying the weather Gods to try and stop me. They didn't. Eventually they gave up.

The bottom line is that I did hit my 20 miles, bringing my total miles to 96! Next week should be an equally exceptional week, with a forecast of beautiful weather and few other foreseen obstacles, and sort of the last hoo-rah before the busy holiday season invades!

Make sure you check in with Trish for your updates!

100 Mile Fitness Challenge Update: October 31 - November 6

I started out this week pumped up and motivated to get back on the bandwagon of walking, pledging a goal of 20 miles. I mean, the weather has cooled off, I'm not vacationing (in fact I have a couple of bumps I have to work off from that vacation!)...no excuses.

Well, unfortunately, it didn't quite work out that way. My best friend's aunt left us a few weeks ago after a brave and determined fight against lung cancer, and her memorial service was Tuesday. In addition, my 45 year-old neighbor died suddenly of a heart attack this week, and his funeral is today. I have a hard time rebounding from these events after they are over, so effectively two days of this week were shot for me. There were also some personal and school-related commitments that needed to be kept on the non-funeral days, so my goals fell by the wayside.

Even under the circumstances though, I hit 10 miles, which brings my total miles to 76. If I can hit a goal of 20 next week, it will take me within 4 miles of the 100. Woo hoo! I'm determined to get there!

Don't forget to turn your miles into Trish for this week!

100 Mile Fitness Challenge Update: October 23 - 30

Another week down, but this one was special. As I told you all, I went on a cruise with three of my high school girlfriends, and I was determined to put away a few miles with their help.

We didn't do half bad, considering that we didn't shut up for two minutes, and when we weren't talking, we were drinking libations. We went to the beach for a couple days before the cruise, and on that first morning, we went on a 7 mile beach walk. Those last few yards were practically crossed on hands and knees, but we made it. The picture below was taken at the halfway point. (Kim and Julie, in the front, are also on the list for the challenge!)





















We also walked on the ship's track, and of course we walked all over the Bahamas when we disembarked. In Freeport, I spotted a lighthouse and needed to see it. Look at what we found at the end of our journey:

As you may remember, I set a goal of 20 miles for this week. If I had walked today, I would have hit my goal, but dirty house and dirty laundry beckoned. We did log in 15 miles amidst our frolicking, which brings my total miles to a respectable 66. Barring unseen entanglements, next week I'm aiming for 20 miles again! Time to work off those late-night buffets!

Don't forget to check in with Trish to report your miles!

100 Mile Fitness Challenge Update: October 16 - 22

The flu is gone, the hot weather is gone. Life is good! I had originally set another 20 mile goal for myself this week, but didn't hit it. Life got in my way, and I only hit 14 miles, bringing my total miles to 51. I'm feeling pretty good about that! I'm halfway to 100 and I'm not even out of October!

For the record, I am going to attempt to hit 150 miles by the end of the year. Like I've said before, it isn't going to hurt me!

My big news, which I can't shut up about, is my exciting reunion with three girlfriends from high school. This afternoon, they will fly into Orlando and we will head to the beach for a couple of days. Then we are going on a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas! (Getting ready for this trip is the reason for my not hitting my goal this week!) Mind you, two of the three ladies I've not seen in 25 years, but I'm thinking it won't feel like a day has gone by, thanks to Facebook. Two of the ladies are part of the 100 mile fitness challenge, so dare I set a goal for all of us? I'm going out on a limb and say that despite my anticipation of alot of food and drink, we will hit 20 miles! Want to take bets? How are all of you doing? Don't forget to stop by Trish's place and report your miles for this week!

100 Mile Fitness Challenge Update: October 9 - 15

It is week 2 of the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge, hosted by Trish. How is everyone doing?

Well, last week I complained about walking in the heat. This week I'm going to complain about the heat and having the flu.

However, now that I feel accountable to all of you for hitting my goals, I trudged on. I decided that sweating and moving might actually help me shake off the crud, so I went for it. It didn't hurt, either, that I was listening to "The Angel's Game", the prequel to "Shadow of the Wind", and was totally immersed in this twisted mindf#$! of a story.

Last week I racked up 14 miles, and had set my goal for this week at 20 miles. Heat and illness be damned, because I actually hit 23 miles, bringing my total miles to 37! It can't hurt, because at the end of next week, I am going on a cruise with some good friends from high school, and have to squeeze myself into a proper bathing suit. I'm going to try to hit 20 miles next week as well, even though I know I will be busy getting ready for my trip.

So how did it go for you this week? Did you have any obstacles to overcome? Did you find any secrets to motivating yourself? Did you meet your goals?

Make sure and stop by the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge website to log in your miles. Also, next week at the Challenge website, I will be guest posting on my favorite topic...audio books!

100 Mile Fitness Challenge Update: October 1 - 8

One week down, 12 to go! How did we all do?

I logged in 14 miles this week, which I am happy with, although I personally thought I would hit a higher number.

I had a couple of obstacles to overcome this week. One was the weather. While my friends and family up north were digging out their sweaters and enjoying a fire in the fireplace in the evenings, we've been setting records for heat in Florida. Every day this week has been in the mid-90's, with the heat index in the triple digits. With humidity in the high 90's. After walking five miles on both Monday and Tuesday, I felt I was being crushed into the pavement by the oppressive heat. The clothes had to be left in the garage. Nasty. It is hard to motivate yourself under these conditions.

The other obstacle is just life itself. One of our five kitties got sick on Wednesday morning, and had to scrap my workout plans to take her to the vet. She wasn't eating, and she was hiding in weird places. I've been down this road before, and was prepared for the worst. Luckily, it wasn't the worst (we don't think). Some hydration and antibiotics, and we were on our way. I play golf on Thursdays, which I consider a form of exercise (especially in 95 degree heat) but I did not count it for this challenge.

My primary focus is to keep exercise a priority. Heat, humidity and rain shouldn't slow me down. My goal for next week is 20 miles.

Make sure you leave your updates with Trish at the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge website here. I have been asked to write guest posts for her now and again. Any ideas on what you would like me to babble about?

100 miles to a firmer butt?

You are all used to me caving on nearly every reading challenge that comes my way. Thanks to Beth Fish Reads and her post today, I've been suckered into another challenge...the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge. The official host of the challenge is Trish from Trish's Reading Nook.

You see, while I am a fairly active person, I like food and I like wine. And I do spend a fair amount of time sitting at the computer. Walking is something I do often, always with an audiobook playing on my iPod. But this slightly ups the ante. The challenge? 100 miles between October 1st and December 31st. If you walk or run, it counts mile for mile. If you do other forms of exercise, like an elliptical trainer, 15 minutes equals a mile. Walking around the grocery store, or going to a theme park doesn't count!

Our official host is Trish from Trish's Reading Nook. To register, or to learn more about the rules, see her special 100 Mile Fitness Challenge blog here. (You don't have to have a blog to join...) She won't promise us weight loss or firmer fannies, but I'm thinking it can't hurt people!

I am currently working on a widget to put in my sidebar for my up-to-the-minute updates on my progress. So who wants to join the fun? Come on! Follow me into the abyss!