If you’ve been following my blog for long, you may remember that several times in the past few years I’ve challenged myself to walk or hike a specific distance over the summer months. The first time, back in 2020, I walked as part of a fundraiser for NET cancer research, but after that I recalled how good all that walking felt and how much having a specific goal kept me motivated. Last year, I challenged myself to walk 350 km between May 1 and October 31 and actually exceeded that by approximately 60 km.

Today, recognizing that I’ve been unusually lazy over the past winter and realizing how badly I need to get out and walk again, I decided that I would attempt to walk 300 km between now and my 72nd birthday on October 5, which happens to be exactly 150 days from now. (For my American friends, 300 km is equal to 186.4 miles.) Not only does having a goal motivate me, especially on those days when I’m feeling sluggish or just plain lazy, but being accountable to someone else is another driving force. That’s where you come in and the reason why I’m writing this post! 

So why walk?

Walking has many benefits including:

• It’s accessible, easy, safe, and free.
• It reduces stress and decreases symptoms of depression and anxiety.
• It improves heart health and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease.
• It increases blood flow and therefore improves energy levels.
• It improves blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
• It reduces the risk of some cancers.
• It boosts the immune system.
• It helps prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes (which I already have).
• It burns calories.
• It promotes more restful sleep.
• It improves flexibility and helps ease chronic pain and stiffness.
• It improves brain function.
• It’s a weight bearing exercise that reduces the risk of osteoporosis.
• It has even been linked to longer life expectancy!

If you’d like to partner with me, I’d love to share this walking challenge with you. Just choose a distance that you think is reasonable for you and share it in the comment section below.

There are several ways to measure the distance that you walk. In and around town, I use MapMyWalk which allows you to create and save routes that you use regularly. All Trails gives information and distances for trails around the world and I use a handheld Garmin GPS to measure unmarked hiking trails.