Just a suggestion but could be a nice motivator for some walkers/joggers...if you do track cumulative distance..then see about figuratively walking the length of your state or part of your nation.

One of my employers for an employee fitness program had a great program for tracking employee's cumulative jogging distance...by tracking mileage across our own province, ie. who travelled in total halfway across the province. That is thousands of kms.

I'm not a walker in the same sense as Dotsie, I just walk because I have to, because I don't have a car. I'm a cyclist.

In some years, I did cycle the total annual distance equal to distance of the length of Canada...that is over 5,000 kms. Other years were under or I exceeded.

Just think each group of steps each day, add up to something quite big.

orchid, what a neat idea. I would love to keep track of how many miles I walk in a year. My problem is that I've never found a good pedometer.

Anyone know of a good one that works?

orchid, is cycling a big spot in Canada?

This sounds interesting. I, too have had trouble with pedometers. I guess I could count minutes and translate that into miles.

Orchid, do you have a travel plan in mind? Like miles from Maine to LA? Or just across our own states/countries?

I don't cycle with that type of figurative goal in mind.
I used to put on my bike odometer during lst 5 years of cycling and tracked every day my mileage, meaning wrote in journal and any random thoughts while cycling/sights seen.

But since then haven't used odometer. I just try to cycle 5-6 times weekly during cycling season.

I'm just suggesting to other folks here ,something more creative to motivate you.

Anno, I'll let you know if I find a good one. Although, I don't know if I wnat to be that organized and thoughtful about walking. It may make it more of a chore if I pay that close attention to precisely how much I am walking. I need to think about this one.

I have found that the pedometers may work for a day or so, but they usually crap out. I've never been able to find a good one. The company I use to work for got in a "health" mode once and gave everyone pedometers to track their daily walks. They had to keep replacing them because of malfunctions and finally abandoned the program. Maybe you could just chart the miles in you car FIRST, then walk it???

People should do what motivates them the best. If you try this method of just mechanically jotting down each day what you did and add up over 3 months...you might be pleasantly surprised.

I can calculate approx. how much I cycle annually, based on real measured distance. After all, my partner tracks his cycling mileage everdyay..so I know certain routes and their distances.

Note: I cycle 1/2 of the time solo.

because I have a convoluted daily work commuting route that combines commuter train, bike, bus and walking...all one-way(!), I can say at least for the walking part, I walk 1 way a total of 1/2 hr. ...to and from bus stop...every work day. If I don't bike that day, then it's 1 hr. in total walking during the round-trip commute, plus time on train, then bus. Yes, this is taking time...but at least I don't need to pay additional money to join a fitness club.

Being a slave to knowing every km., mile every day isn't useful for everyone, but it is useful just to even have a dimly vague idea of what you accomplish in 1/2 year.

well i bought my bike....and i have used it lol. I a, also looking for oppertunities to use it more ie going to school on it then me and child walk home....

i am having fun, bit achie soar butt but kinda fun at same time....

its the car milage jj that gives me idea of how far i have cycled....if i know exactlie i would get competitive with myself and try everie week to out do myself...

i still riding bike like a car driver so i think itys about practices...

Some people put raw steaks in their pants to cushion the saddle. ... I wonder if they barbeque afterwards? Yuck.

Happy biking Celtic!

That's what I did Celtic. I drove the distance and wrote down the miles. Then I walked it twice every day. If I used a different area of town, I'd just do the same thing with the car first, then walk it accordingly.

Celtic, congrats. for getting a bike. I don't know how you are fitted on the bike. But check the following:

* your handlebars are shoulder-width.
*your toes can touch ground, your knee must have a natural slight bend when that leg has foot on a pedal
*For front of your bike saddle /seat, you might want to consider pointing the nose a tiny bit downward, so that your crotch is relieved. I hope you can move your bike seat up and down to adjust height for your liking.
*don't cycle in jeans or cords. Those seams really dig in. Smooth spandex/lyra pants or shorts are best.
*Of course there are padded shorts/tights for cycling. Many men and women wear them.
*Cycle at least in running shoes. Not in flips flops...painful on your feet when you stand up on pedals or try going up hills.

How many speeds is your bike? 18, 21?
*

thanks for the raw stak idea hl...by time i finished it be well tenderised and cooked the friction equale cooking temp....so five miles is equalle to one well done stake lol...
now if i could just boil potatoes at same time lol...

hay orchid wow the biking world seemed complicated and expensive....their are bikes that are up to 1,500 and even 2,500 pounds heer...don't know the translation but thats about an avrtaige mounths salarie heer...

i cheated i went to the specilist shop and spent a wee time talking to assistant (they sell top of range everiething) and got some idea of what i was needing ...felt a bit guiltie but bought a bell for luciens bike !!!! yea theirs no comparison but hay i made some purchise...

the other 2 main bulk retailers assistants know nuthing....and wern't able to give much advice..

i got a mountain bike style of bike ...the verie next day i went and bought an upgraded saddle...gell filled lol its made a diffrences becouse that presure is painfill....

i doubt verie much the world is readie for me in lykra anything lol but i got some running bottoms and theirs lots of give in them and not as restrictive as jeans and quite comportable...

i experimented with sadle to handle bar hight..and rembered somewear from my younger years about tip toes and slight bend in knews so the hip and knew joints arnt too closed and under presure...my handle bars are a tinie bit wide but i set them as higher than most people seem to have them saving my back a little...my first ride was onlie a few miles their (had a cofe with frend) and back....and when i got home my leg from waist down was numb..(i have nerve damage) so thats when i went into seriouslie experimenting lol the naibours had to watch me cycle up and down street i don't know how manie times..

its aluminiam so verie light..the final choice has full suspension so it makes a diffrences even on just road cycling (roads aint that smouth as one would think) and twist gears (all new too me) theirs 18 of them and i think thats enough..probilie wont us them all for a while...

now you know i have a child who is 3 the trailers are too expensive so been investigating child seats but i am waiting for my strenth to incress before i can take him behing me...(hes seems all the more heavier when thinking of having to carrie his weight too lol)he's not fast enough on his own bike to keep up and he or we be frustrtated in parks and i wouldn't let him cycle even in countrie road yet..

one can onlie fit those seats to ridgid back or no suspension bikes...after some agonising i or we decided to get another bike got it picked out aluminium with front suspension 18 ggears and the seat can go on it...

i didn't take full suspension one back imidiatlie and kept it instead becouse my partner said they would use it, they love it (it fitted their price range) it allowing me to get the other bike when i saved and gotten stronger ...so the two of us gonna go cycling togetheir lol they been protestting for years that they toooooo dangerise and i not to get one and certinlie not to take child on one lol now they changed their tune so i am reallie pleased (think they r rember their youth and had a little fun on it)

i didn't manipulate it, its just the way it turned out and i am delighted that their taking an intrest too so soon the 3 of us can go cycling days out..presentlie we just sharring the one bike for a few weeks

i used to cars and motorbykes so i have to make some adjust ments to my cycling style
AHHH I will get their

ORCHID THANKS FOR ADVICE
and for your chatt and enthousiasum about bikes it rubbed off and helped me make a desision to get one...now my partner too ...its not just a teenage thing i am glade to say as i onces thought
i been paying more attension on the roads and see more woman my age on bikes

Mitzkity, I signed up for the AARP walk. It looks like fun. A good way to track progress.

Where are you?

Hi Orchid....I bit the bullet..boy, I seem to be doing alot of that these days!!
I took Celtics bike out yesterday and cycled from one side of Belfast to the other...in a flash, came home buzzed and feeling soooo liberated..it was class ! I was out and down through the centre of town and back today and I love it(it makes it even better because the weather is beautiful here)

Lucien is mad about bikes and is so excited about his Mommies cycling. I think I will be keeping celts bike and she will get one which is more suited to her.

It was only last year when I swore that cycling in Belfasts' roads was mad and that I would never do it ...or permit Celt either... but....I love it....and feel so invigorated as a result of a few miles...no stopping this wee family now .
Thanks for the encouragement around this Orchid...we are all having a ball.(Even with one bike between us just now)

Popea

Okay, some of will walk, some of us will bike and some of us will just wiggle our toes over a pool. I, personally, like all three.

Mitzkity, I am just 6 miles from Joliet. Did you find a good diner there. I am starved!

I am heading into Normal. The town was named Normal, not after a person, but because of the normal school there.

"In 1865, the Town was founded under the name of Normal. Two years later in 1867, the Town of Normal was officially incorporated by state charter. Under the formal State of Illinois charter, a town government of five trustees was elected, sidewalks were constructed and the sale of "intoxicating drinks" was prohibited. This prohibition remained until the early 1970’s."

How many other towns in the US continued prohibition after the Federal laws were changed.

Anyone else want to join MitzKity and me on this trip along route 66? It is fun to log in your minutes and spend a few minutes learning about our country, too.