I love to walk. I will walk stores in inclement weather, but I love to walk through the local battlefields and parks. In the past I’ve tried various pedometers and different walking plans and programs.

My fave? Walking a few times  a week with a neighbour in my last house. Super fun! I miss her since she moved away. (So you know, position open if someone wants a walking buddy!)

Sometimes I walk for exercise. Sometimes I walk to spend time with my kids. Sometimes I walk for stress relief.

I’m a homeschooler. I’m a mom. I’m a volunteer. I’ve had a kid with cancer. I was a wife to a US Marine.

I know stress.

Walking allows me some vital ME time. I get fresh air. It gets me moving and out of my head. Sometimes getting out of a situation helps you get out of your head.

The last year? I’ve been more stressed than ever.

Some on Facebook probably wondered why I was posting that I was walking. Why I would choose to walk to the grocery store (besides to save money in gas).

I decided I wanted to walk more. To track my movement. I wanted to see if I could make some extra endorphins.

In the words of Elle in Legally Blonde, one of my all time favourite movies:

“Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands. They just don’t!” —Elle Woods

Not that I was ready to shoot someone or anything, but you get the idea.

So meet my summer Project Me Plan: Striiv.

I don’t have a walking buddy live and in person, but I can friend people. I can see what they do. I can walk with them virtually. That’s pretty motivating!

What did I do? I made my kids sign up. You betcha. Fox with those 18,495 steps? That’s his working at BSA camp. I always wondered how far he walked when working at Goshen. (The standard rule of thumb is that 10,000 steps is roughly 5 miles for the average walker. So he’s closing in on ten miles.

So what is Striiv? Well, it’s several things. They do have two different pedometers. Boy, I’d love one of them, but I have neither. If you are looking for a review on those, look elsewhere. But yeah, I’d love to add stairs into my count since I live in a split foyer home!

I use the Striiv app, free in the App store. I dig free, I’m on a budget. If free = fun and free also = fitness, how do you say no?

Joram and I went to Kings Dominion one day. Ever go to an amusement park and feel like you walked a million miles?

Looks like I walked a few miles! Joram beat me because my leg hurt and so I sat down while he rode a few rides I couldn’t enjoy due to my bum knees. Interesting to know!

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