The days are getting shorter, and, with the end of Daylight Savings Time here in the US, it’s going to be darker earlier. Add to that the colder weather and you have the perfect recipe for hunkering down and getting cozy.
Which is great — a part of this time of year that I love — I’ll certainly be doing my share of that too. However, I also want to make sure I move every day. I feel better when I do, and not just because I have to keep up with my training. In fact, moving your body every day is number 7 on my list of ten things I want for you. You’ll feel better if you do it too. But you don’t have to do what I do.
Interesting Phenomenon
When I share with people that I’m training for the Boston Marathon, or that I like to climb mountains, or go on long bike rides, they often come back with why they don’t do those things. They sometimes even seem a little defensive, as if they need to explain to me why they aren’t active at the same level I am.
Here’s the thing. I don’t care.
I mean that in the most kind-hearted, loving way possible. It is irrelevant to me whether you love to run marathons, or being active for you is parking an extra row away from the grocery store door. Running marathons is a (doable) challenge for me, I want you to be doing what is a (doable) challenge for you.
To help motivate myself (and you I hope) I’m issuing a challenge. A gentle, full of ease, challenge to be active every day in November.
This challenge is simple to be purposefully active every day for the next 30 days.
The rules for Active Every Day are simple.
1. The activity has to be purposeful, rather than incidental. The normal movement and activity you engage in throughout an average day doesn’t count. Only you can judge this — is choosing to park further away give you more activity than normal? Then it counts. Do you already take the stairs instead of the elevator? Doesn’t count. But add some stretches, or lunges, or take the stairs two-at-a-time, totally counts!
That’s it.
Share Your Activity
I’d love to know how you are being active every day. You can use the hashtag #ActiveEveryDay (or @ me) on Twitter (@shannonmw) or Instagram (@shannonwilkinson). You can share here on this post, or on my weekly Training Logs. You can tag me or Perception Studios on Facebook.
- Share a picture of something you saw while being active or gear you’re using.
- Share what you did, or are planning to do (if you’d like some motivation).
- Share what it’s like when you’re being active, whether it’s hard or easy, feels good or not.
Ahh! This is exactly what I need. But November it’s coming to an end. I don’t say that as an excuse (I guess?).
Maybe I can implement this on December. Thanks for a great idea ;)
You’re welcome Fab! The thing about this, you can do it anytime. It’s fun to do it as a daily challenge for a given month, or any 30-day period. If it’s really new for you, every day for a week would be an interesting experiment. The most important part is to have fun with it!