by Tracy Blankenship

Created on: September 25, 2009

According to 10000 steps.org.au, any incremental increase in activity is beneficial. But how, you may say, does one introduce this incremental activity? Take a walk. Adding walking to your day does take conscious effort, but it doesn't need to be herculean effort.

Think about the activities that you already do. Do you take out the garbage? After dropping the bag in the dumpster, walk to the end of the block and back. Be safe, of course, you don't want to do this in the dead of night, but you are already outside so why not? Same goes for checking the mailbox. Sort your mail while walking to the end of the block and back and you can leave the junk mail outside in the dumpster (feel like taking another lap yet?).

Do a quick lap around the block before you get in the car to drive to work. Depending on the size of your block, this is only ten to twenty minutes. Takes planning and effort, but just think, most coffee makers take about ten minutes to brew, so there's your reward for a morning lap.

Put your walking shoes in the car with you. Next time you go to pick up little Susie at band practice and it's running late, don your shoes and do a lap around the parking lot. Just one. Doesn't have to be fast and you don't need to look chic, and it will still be effective. Maybe Susie will walk with you and you can give her undivided attention that might be otherwise difficult to give amid the hustle and bustle of home.

Lunchtime at work can be a challenge for some just to get thirty minutes uninterrupted. Physically leaving your desk or work area by tying on the walking shoes and heading out the door can be a great respite from the workaday frenzy, or just a nice break to enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Work in an industrial, not-nice area? Stop at the park on the way home and take your walk there. That fifteen minutes of me-time might be just the thing at the end of the workday.

If you need to stop at the store for milk and bread, try parking at the other end of the row away from the door. Besides being almost guaranteed an empty spot, it's forced extra steps, but they're not impossible extra steps.

There's an old Chinese proverb "a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step". A single step might be the only thing it takes to make a difference in your life.

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