I'm participating in a pedometer challenge at work. Everyone who's taking part in the challenge has to wear a pedometer for 16 hours a day for a whole month and record the number of steps they take each day. I'm not sure if there's a prize, but I know a number of people are in competition with each other to see who has the highest number at the end of the month.
To be honest, I didn't really want to win anything. I was just really curious as to how many steps I walk in a given day. My job involves a lot of sitting in front of the computer, and more often than not I end up crashing on my couch each night. After two weeks, it's pretty clear that I lead a sedentary lifestyle, according to the numbers.
This exercise has finally prompted me to go down and explore the park next to my building. There's a path that leads down into the woods from the street, and I had been fascinated by it for months and months, but I never felt compelled enough to get off my butt to check it out. During a few days of decent weather, I took the path. It transported me partially out of my suburban neighbourhood (I could still hear the traffic) and into a peaceful forest that held some interesting surprises. A wooded area had been transformed (presumably by local kids) into a series of ramps and jumps for bicycles. A secluded bench area looked out over a waterfall in the creek that had a series of rocks you could walk across to the other bank. One day, a pair of ducks were taking advantage of the deep pool at the base of the waterfall and were taking a leisurely swim. I wished I had brought my stale bread, as they seemed really interested in the pebble I tossed into the water and rushed over to see if it was edible. Each time I went down to the park, I tried to walk a little further than I had the previous day. It's like a mini adventure each time.
My point: take the road less travelled, especially by you.
"Every move you make"
