My blue-eyed cowboy and I walked two hundred miles in 32 days.
We were in London, we didn’t hike or go for intentional forced marches (as my son calls them) the mileage accumulated as we went about our daily lives.
Living in London for us is a very healthy occupation.
Whenever we return to the city we lose weight. One time we both lost 10lbs in 6 weeks by just walking around, shopping, eating, drinking beer in pubs…living the capital life.
Having a car ruins all that.
But we never have a car in London, that’s what public transport and shank’s pony is for, and we’ve never had Apple watches attached to our wrists to count every step, even a skip to the loo..
There was one flaw in the digital calculations though.
My blue-eyed cowboy managed to take a good 10-15% more steps than I did which translated into more miles for him which evened him out with me!
I have no idea how because I was always with him whenever we went out;
By his side, doggedly striding in unison.
He never came on my morning 4 mile forced marches through Beckenham Place Park where I clocked my first 4 miles before we even had breakfast.
I was already ahead by the time we were walking out the door to catch the train at Beckenham Junction.
We never figured that one out.
Something to do with step size and weight I think…
I’ve done the math, 200 miles in 32 days averages out to 6.25 miles a day.
There were probably 3 days when we were less active but I’d still say a good weekly average would be 43.75 miles regardless of whether we went out or stayed in bed…we did the mileage…our Apple Watches told us so.
Our every step was tracked, not just the morning walks and long hauls down the high street to the train station but also
the dash through Victoria to the underground,
the up and down escalators,
the wandering around museums,
the sitting in restaurants,
the boarding of buses and ferries,
the standing, hanging on for dear life, in the tube,
the strolls along beaches,
the waiting at bus stops,
the evening shop around Waitrose,
the winding theatre staircases,
the sightseeing in Westminster between the Abbey and Cathedral,
the finding of a pub after being wowed at Kew Gardens,
and the constant trailing up and down carpeted stairs in a two storied air bnb house where nothing is ever on the same level you’re on when you want it!
Those good old trusty Apple watches didn’t let us get away with a step. We compared notes at the end of the day and by the time we returned stateside, stronger and leaner, we realised they had become an obsession.
Within a fortnight we’d decided to ditch them…too much screen time available on our wrists.
We know how many steps we need to take to remain active and healthy. We have scales to tell us the number of calories we’re burning.
Don’t let a gadget rule your life.
Enjoy life and take time to smell those begonias!
Well hello there! My name is Vivienne McNeny.
I am an empty nester exploring life as a Boomer…you could say I'm happily Boomering along!
As a homeschooling Mum I have finally quit the job of role model and mentor to my four children. I do what I want to do, eat when I feel like it, enjoy life with my blue eyed cowboy and clean my house once a month or so whether it needs it or not!
In true English form I write about the emergence of my true identity now that I can no longer hide behind my children as their Mum.
