And I Would Walk 500 More?

Walking 1,000 miles this year was not in my plans. In my New Year’s Eve statistical review of 2024, I wrote that I would shoot for 500. And we should remember two things. First, I was still recovering from surgery when I set that goal. I could not be certain how my body would respond. Second, I had set a personal record of 554 miles in 2024 and didn’t want the pressure of extending my record every year just to feel accomplished.

I surpassed 1,000 miles today. With 42 days remaining in 2025, I might get another 100-150 miles. I expect to keep going at approximately the same pace, and that means walking every day. The streak is still alive: I have walked at least 1 mile expressly for fitness every day since last December 13. Achieving that consistency might be a more worthwhile accomplishment than the big mileage total.

I still won’t want the pressure of chasing a new PR for walking in 2026, so I probably will set no mileage goals outside of Garmin Connect. Garmin’s “Walk Streak” challenge requires a single, 1-mile walk every day for 30 consecutive days. Garmin also has quarterly walking challenges that reward the 1-mile-per-day minimum, so those are automatic for anyone who keeps the “Walk Streak” challenge going. And then there’s the annual “Ultimate Walking Badge,” a reward for completing all four quarterly challenges. Again, simply meeting the “Walk Streak” minimum will yield the “Ultimate Walking Badge.”

Walking 1 mile every day has some general health benefits, but it isn’t enough by itself to build real fitness. Hitting my minimum standard of 10,000 steps per day goes further. On recent 1-mile walks, I have averaged about 2,000 steps. I have to walk the equivalent of about 5 miles per day to hit 10,000 steps. So, is 5 miles per day my real standard? I didn’t become a 10,000 steps-a-day guy until this year was well advanced. Am I going to surpass 1,825 miles in 2026, 5 miles per day for 365 days? That doesn’t seem likely. I’m getting some of those 10,000 steps from ordinary daily activities and not from measured walks. But I sure didn’t expect to double my PR this year, which I am on pace to do. So, never say never.