In the summer I was outside all the time. Now, I am outside when I get in and out of my car or when I walk Cooper. THAT IS PRETTY MUCH IT!!

That means some of us are moving less during the day or choosing to be inside more.

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Have you ever used a pedometer before?

If you are looking to buy one, this SM-2000 Step Pedometer is only $6.50 and if you have amazon prime it ships within 2 days!

If you have an IPHONE there are tons of APPS you can download; to monitor how many steps you take in one day.

I have the Runtastic APP

It is easy to download and it is FREE. It tracks your steps, miles, speed, etc!

The other day I challenged myself not to sit for most of the day. I sat when I ate my meals and drove my car but that was it. I had to think about not sitting a few times, for instance when I wrote my blog, I put my laptop on our high top table and stood, I stood while folding laundry, made several trips up and down the stairs on purpose while putting things away, I stood while I read Ava her night time story, you get the point.

Just by not sitting I forced myself to move more and that alone helped to burn extra calories

I wish I had thought earlier that day to put my pedometer on and see how many steps I actually took, but once I put my pedometer on I was able to track 5,000 steps within a 2-½ hour time frame!

 10,000 steps is approximately 5 miles.

SOOO with all this talk about moving more, I challenge you to buy a PEDOMETER or download an app. They are super cheap and it is a fun way to challenge you to move more! They even make a great stocking stuffer! 

Here are some Tips to Sneak in extra steps to reach that 10,000 step goal:

• Take the stairs whenever you can.
• Park your car at the end of the parking lot
• Instead of emailing or calling a co-worker get up and walk to their office/cubicle
• Take your dog on a 5 minute longer walk
• Walk around the entire grocery store while shopping
• Chase around your baby! This one clearly helps me to move more

 This girl never stops!

How do you stay active? 

Do you sit a lot during the day?

We walked for about 45 minutes with a pit stop at my mom’s office to say hi.

My heart rate monitor showed that I burned 282 calories! My heart rate got up fairly high and I was walking at a very fast pace. Obviously if I walked slower I would now have burned as many calories.

I know I have posted about walking before, but I have grown to love walking as cardiovascular exercise. After 4 days straight of intense exercise and being on my feet at work it is nice change of pace. It helps to loosen up my muscles and because it is low impact I know I am not stressing my joints!

Ava loved it.. can’t you tell?? Just kidding she was ready for a nap when we got back!

I hope you all have a happy weekend

I woke up a little later then usual and Marc went to Dunkin Donuts and got us each a pumpkin spice coffee! (we do 1 pump of the pumpkin flavor which is plenty sweetness for me!)

We ran some errands, ate some lunch and quickly put together the baby swing we got from Marc’s sister.

Cooper seemed very entertained by the swinging motion and the music

Our afternoon consisted of a trip to Bruce Park. We went for a long walk (our exercise for the day) and as you can see we got to see lots of beautiful trees that have changed colors.

After our walk we let Cooper chase a soccer ball around the field. Here is a video link of Cooper running with the soccer ball!  IMG_1588  It was so entertaining to watch and who would’ve known that he loved soccer!

Now it’s time to shower and get ready for dinner!

One of the perks to running is the calorie burn.  For example: at my current weight if I ran 1 mile in 10 minutes I burn about 110 calories. If I walked 1 mile and it took me 15 minutes (4mph pace) I would burn about 82 calories.

Based on my weight:

30 minutes of running= 330 calories

30 minutes of walking= 246 calories

a difference of  84 calories

You definitely get more calorie bang for your buck with running but if you have the time to take a longer walk you can easily burn some serious calories walking at a brisk pace.

There are great health benefits to walking too. Not only is it better for your joints but you can still burn calories and get your heart rate up. For those of us with knee, hip, or joint issues its safer to say walking is a better option.