July 2024 31-Day Walking Challenge : Countdowns, Buddies & Challenges Forum : Active Low-Carber Forums

#76 ^

Sun, Jul-14-24, 06:11

ScotiaGirl ScotiaGirl is offline

Senior Member

Posts: 14,686

Plan: Under 50 grams
Stats: 190.2/174.2/154 Female 5'4.5"

BF:
Progress: 44%

Location: N.S.

Goal 186,000 Steps
⛵️☀️🌻🌬🌻☀️⛵️

DAY 1…………6,370……….6,370 ✅
Day 2…………6,110……..12,480 ✅
Day 3….…….6,010………18,490 ✅
Day 4………..5,140………23,630 ✅
Day 5…………3,110……..26,740 ✅
Day 6…………5,010………31,750 ✅
Day 7…………4,220………35,970 ✅
Day 8…………3,430………39,400 ✅
Day 9…………6,280….….45,680 ✅
Day 10……….5,380……..51,060 ✅
Day 11……….1,830……..52,890 ✅
Day 12……….5,990……..58,880 ✅
Day 13……….6,180………65,060 ✅ Total

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#77 ^

Sun, Jul-14-24, 07:33

nihold

Senior Member

Posts: 3,513

Plan: atkins
Stats: 204.6/188/140 Female 5ft 5 inches

BF:
Progress: 26%

Location: Allyn, WA

July Goal - 200,000

01...7,888.........192,112
02...5,046.........187,066
03...4,301.........182,765
04...5,419.........177,346
05...3,510.........173,836
06...3,463..........170,373
07...3,979..........166,394
08..2,362...........164,032
09...12,913.........151,119
10...6,636...........144,483
11....6,108...........138,375
12....6,621...........131,754
13.....4,211..........127,543

#78 ^

Sun, Jul-14-24, 07:45

doreen T doreen T is offline

Forum Founder

Posts: 37,413

Plan: LC, GF
Stats: 241/190/140 Female 165 cm

BF:
Progress: 50%

Location: Eastern ON, Canada

July Target: 170,500 steps
average: 5,500/day .... (rounded up/down to nearest 50)

01 .... 4,650 .... 165,850
02 .... 5,100 .... 160,750
03 .... 6,800 .... 153,950
04 .... 3,950 .... 150,000
05 .... 5,200 .... 147,800
06 .... 7,150 .... 140,650
07 .... 6,800 .... 133,850
08 .... 4,000 .... 129,850
09 .... 7,250 .... 122,600
10 .... 3,100 .... 119,500
11 .... 4,400 .... 115,100
12 .... 6,550 .... 108,550
13 .... 3,250 .... 105,300 to go

#79 ^

Sun, Jul-14-24, 07:58

Demi

Choose Your Hard!

Posts: 27,295

Plan: Muscle Centric
Stats: 238/152/160 Female 5'10"

BF:
Progress: 110%

Location: UK

The title made me laugh, so I had to share it here!

Quote:

Why hot lady walks are the best way to keep fit

Gen Z have coined a phrase for what us midlifers do naturally

It was my Gen Z daughter who alerted me to one of the big TikTok health trends. As I set off to meet a couple of friends for a mud-splattered trudge through the woods she called out (with some irony) “Are you going on one of your ‘hot girl walks’ then?”

Apparently, her social media feed is full of slender young influencers extolling the virtues of walking and the importance of wearing just the right ‘lycra set’, having your hair tied in a ‘neat pony’, your brows combed and clutching a high-fashion water bottle.

The idea started during lockdown as a way of making walking seem aspirational and since then, the #hotgirlwalks hashtag has garnered more than 600 million likes with hot girl walkers urging others to power up their pavement pounding by practising gratitude and self-love.

It looks to me as if the youngsters have coined a phrase for what many of us midlifers do naturally.

We may not be grabbing selfies or ostentatiously applying gloss to our plumped lips, but are we really so different? Most days will see me pacing across the fields near my home in the Cotswolds, deep in conversation with a woman of a similar age, setting the world to rights as we go.

Sometimes a blast of sunshine, a nippy pace, or an erratic cocktail of hormones can even conspire to make our walks seem – dare I say it – pretty hot. There’s a lot of love, mutual respect, camaraderie and gratitude going on too. Maybe we’re not just walking but hot lady walking after all.

Numerous studies have shown walking to be great for heart, lungs and general wellbeing, reducing our risk of Type 2 diabetes, helping to lower blood pressure and improve levels of fat in the blood.

‘Walking therapy’ has been shown to ease symptoms of menopause and brand-new research from Australia now puts it at the top of the list for effective treatment of low back pain.

The benefits extend to brain health too, with research showing a regular walk can help improve memory, boost mood and even cut your chances of depression.

But to gain maximum impact, you shouldn’t amble – a properly healthy hot lady walk should be brisk. If you’re listening to music, that’s 100-120 beats per minute. Think Dancing Queen by Abba or Hips Don’t Lie by Shakira.

My poster girl is fitness trainer, Sarah Lindsay, 44, who represented the UK at speed skating in three Olympics and went on to co-found the celebrity-studded Roar Fitness network of gyms. She is a fierce advocate for the benefits of strength training for women but her preferred form of fitness is a daily 8km walk. She’s based in Dubai so her walk at this time of year is positively boiling.

“Walking is the perfect form of exercise, whatever your age,” she enthuses. “It is low intensity and easy on your joints but it has all the cardiovascular benefits of a more frantic form of exercise, with a fat-burning bonus – it gets the blood pumping around your body which helps your muscles repair and recover.

“Another big plus is the way walking forces us to get outside, and it’s free, no equipment required, and everyone knows how to do it – you just can’t get it wrong!” Sarah usually walks alone: “I find that time away from work emails or social media helps to settle my thoughts and get me into a really good headspace for the day,’ she says, ‘but I do cross paths with people having walking meetings or taking work calls and that does strike me as a clever bit of multi-tasking.”

She’s got a point. If my walking friends aren’t available or I just want to nip out on my own, I might schedule a catch-up phone call, or tune in to a podcast or audiobook to ensure my hot lady walks works a bit harder for brain as well as body.

“Don’t be afraid to sometimes walk in silence,” registered therapist and counsellor Sally Brown advises me. “Without distractions you are more likely to walk mindfully and to fully appreciate being in tune with the environment.”

Sally is a big advocate for hot lady walks and alerts me to a review of studies published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine last year which found exercise – and specifically walking – could be 1.5 times more effective than counselling or medication in beating depression.

And I’ll bet that benefit is intensified when you’re on a hot lady walk with friends.

“There’s no doubt that the social interaction you get from walking with other people is just as important as the physiological benefits you get from the exercise,” says Sally Brown. She cites a 2020 study from Ireland which reported that walking as part of a group was one of the best ways to manage anxiety.

“It is often easier to talk properly when you are walking side-by-side with someone, rather than facing them,” she says. “It can take the pressure off feeling as if you’re in the spotlight, which can make it easier to open up.”

Sally tells me my hot lady walks are providing what she calls a ‘pro-social benefit’ because I get to enjoy the structure of a regular get-together without the stress and formality of having to arrange an event (which might necessitate showering, mascara and ironing).

She also points out that a regular walking partnership fosters a strong relationship: ‘meeting the same people on a regular basis means you get to know the minutiae of each other’s lives, and you’ll adopt a kind of social shorthand which allows you to be extra supportive of each other,’ she says.

“Walking with good friends can act as a useful pressure valve too,” she adds. “A good walking/talking relationship can really deepen and consolidate friendships at what may be a complex and sometimes difficult life stage.

“Being able to offload about partners, children or parents in a safe environment where you know you’re not being judged, can provide a feeling of release, which can take some of the sting out of your shared frustrations,” she says.

She’s not wrong. My cardiovascular catch-ups have helped keep me fit and sane through the tumultuous years of midlife as we thrash out our various issues with errant hormones, ageing parents, ageing husbands, the emotional perils of an empty/full/empty/full nest, politics, good books, box sets…

There’s certainly something very special about this ring-fenced chatting time, the bonding and the camaraderie, that elevates hot lady walking way higher in the health and vitality stakes than any ordinary stroll.

Seven ways to max your hot lady walk health benefits

Fitness trainer Sarah Lindsay outlines her top tips:

Plan your route by time rather than distance or number of steps so you know you have time to squeeze a walk into your schedule – set a destination 20, 30 or 60 minutes away, walk there and come back.
Walk the greenest route you can find (parkland, woods, fields) to maximise the health benefits of being in contact with nature.
Settle into a comfortable pace that raises your heart rate without precluding the ability to chat.
Wear leggings rather than jeans or skirts to avoid thigh chafe.
Wear comfortable shoes (robust trainers or hiking boots) one size bigger than normal to allow toe room. Wellies don’t provide enough support so avoid unless your walk is very wet and muddy.
Always take a phone so you can record your steps, call for help if necessary, and be found in an emergency.
Line up a motivational podcast, an audio book, a canine companion or a good friend to accompany you.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health-...ay-to-keep-fit/

#80 ^

Sun, Jul-14-24, 09:37

cotonpal

Senior Member

Posts: 5,493

Plan: very low carb real food
Stats: 245/125/135 Female 62

BF:
Progress: 109%

Location: Vermont

I am definitely a “hot lady walker” but not because of lycra, selfies or perfect makeup. It’s because it is terribly hot and humid outside, something we Vermonters are not yet used to. I am old (75) and getting wrinkly; my clothes are far from stylish. I concentrate on comfortable and the word aspirational doesn’t seem to fit why I walk. I walk to stay as healthy as possible. I guess that’s an aspiration but I tend to think of it as common sense.

#81 ^

Sun, Jul-14-24, 23:58

Demi

Choose Your Hard!

Posts: 27,295

Plan: Muscle Centric
Stats: 238/152/160 Female 5'10"

BF:
Progress: 110%

Location: UK

Step goal for July: 450,000

01 - 16,337 steps - 433,663
02 - 15,760 steps - 417,903
03 - 15,508 steps - 402,395
04 - 14,358 steps - 388,037
05 - 16,454 steps - 371,583
06 - 16,135 steps - 355,448
07 - 25,111 steps - 330,337
08 - 20,455 steps - 309,882
09 - 14,191 steps - 295,691
10 - 15,854 steps - 279,837
11 - 15,556 steps - 264,281
12 - 11,483 steps - 252,798
13 - 19,084 steps - 233,714
14 - 26,779 steps - 206,935 to go

#82 ^

Mon, Jul-15-24, 02:26

Kristine Kristine is offline

Forum Moderator

Posts: 26,173

Plan: Primal/P:E
Stats: 171/145/145 Female 5'7"

BF:
Progress: 100%

Location: Southern Ontario, Canada

July Goal: 175,000

Date * Steps * Remaining for goal
- 01 --- 4054 ----- 170,946
- 02 --- 8355 ----- 162,591
- 03 --- 9068 ----- 153,523
- 04 --- 5892 ----- 147,631
- 05 - 12,275 ----- 135,356
- 06 --- 6724 ----- 128,632
- 07 --- 4086 ----- 124,546
- 08 --- 7026 ----- 117,520
- 09 --- 5447 ----- 112,073
- 10 --- 2816 ----- 109,257
- 11 --- 4476 ----- 104,781
- 12 --- 6961 ------ 97,820
- 13 --- 4995 ------ 92,825
- 14 --- 5303 ------ 87,522

Demi, thanks for the fun read. We're in another heat wave here in Ontario. It feels like 28°C/82°F right now at 4:30 am. It'll feel like 39°C/102°F by this afternoon. That's my hot girl walk.

ETA - I used to often leave my phone at home, but not anymore, for the reasons stated in the article. One time I regretted it, we had a coyote wander into the area around my convenience store at the end of our townhouse complex. There's a swampy wooded area behind, and it's the top of a nature trail that used to be a railway line. I wanted to snap a shot of the coyote.

Another good idea is to have a prepaid debit card on your phone, if you want to go somewhere without your purse or a big wallet.

#83 ^

Mon, Jul-15-24, 05:28

cotonpal

Senior Member

Posts: 5,493

Plan: very low carb real food
Stats: 245/125/135 Female 62

BF:
Progress: 109%

Location: Vermont

July Step Goal - 300,000
10,000 steps per day

01 - 10,382 - 289,618
02 - 11,545 - 278,073
03 - 08,435 - 269,638
04 - 10,132 - 259,506
05 - 10,573 - 248,933
06 - 04,664 - 244,269
07 - 06,843 - 237,426
08 - 10,688 - 226,738
09 - 10,733 - 216,005
10 - 04,612 - 211,393
11 - 10,591 - 200,802
12 - 01,575 - 199,227
13 - 06,768 - 192,459
14 - 09,271 - 183,188

#84 ^

Mon, Jul-15-24, 06:03

ScotiaGirl ScotiaGirl is offline

Senior Member

Posts: 14,686

Plan: Under 50 grams
Stats: 190.2/174.2/154 Female 5'4.5"

BF:
Progress: 44%

Location: N.S.

#85 ^

Mon, Jul-15-24, 07:51

doreen T doreen T is offline

Forum Founder

Posts: 37,413

Plan: LC, GF
Stats: 241/190/140 Female 165 cm

BF:
Progress: 50%

Location: Eastern ON, Canada

#86 ^

Mon, Jul-15-24, 23:16

Demi

Choose Your Hard!

Posts: 27,295

Plan: Muscle Centric
Stats: 238/152/160 Female 5'10"

BF:
Progress: 110%

Location: UK

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kristine

Demi, thanks for the fun read. We're in another heat wave here in Ontario. It feels like 28°C/82°F right now at 4:30 am. It'll feel like 39°C/102°F by this afternoon. That's my hot girl walk.

I often used to leave my phone at home too, so it was just pure luck that I had it with me the morning I was running in the woods and broke my ankle. Was I ever glad I had it with me on that day! Now I never go out without it.