10,000 steps a day…is that really possible???

By Annie Conner


Recently, various employees at Conner Insurance volunteered to wear pedometers in an effort to increase our daily exercise. For someone who is fairly active, I thought it would be a piece of cake (no pun intended) to reach the daily recommended 10,000 steps. I even set a small goal for myself to reach 15,000 steps (can you tell that I’m just a tad competitive?).
Well, once we put those pedometers on the games began!! Throughout the day, we’d all be asking eachother how many steps the other person had just to make sure that we were “winning”.

The first week of wearing the pedometer though, I noticed that I’d get home from work and only have about 2,000 – 2,500 steps logged. WOW! I had a lot of walking to do. It made me realize just how much sitting I did throughout the day and how inactive I really was aside from my regular workout routine. Let me tell you, that first week was tough. I think the maximum amount of steps I reached during that first week was 8,000 steps. I kept thinking to myself, “Who on earth actually walks that much during the day?” or “Who even has the time to do this?” I found myself looking for ways to walk places where I wouldn’t normally…for instance, walking to someone’s office rather than calling/emailing them, using the restroom downstairs, walking to the printer multiple times a day rather than once every couple hours, etc. Despite all my efforts, I still couldn’t reach the 10,000 daily steps.

Then came my family vacation to Disney World. I have to be honest; I planned on EATING during this vacation with no rules or guilt attached. I expected to return home with a few extra pounds to carry around and not be ashamed. Currently, Florida has a shortage of Alaskan King Crab legs because of me. What I wasn’t expecting was the amount of walking that we did throughout the entire vacation. Each day I logged at least 10,000 steps and most of the time I logged around 15,000. The last day of our trip we went to Epcot and I actually walked 18,000 steps. Wow! Surprisingly, some of us actually lost weight due to the amount of exercise we did during that week. But most importantly, I realized that reaching 10,000 steps is do-able and isn’t as unrealistic as I originally thought. You just have to be creative, committed and motivated.
Once I returned home from vacation I really put forth the effort to MAKE SURE I reached 10,000 steps each day. One day that meant a 3-mile walk with my dog. Another day, I did extra cleaning around the house to get me to 10,000. Now, I’m hooked. Walking doesn’t always give you that “I just had a tough workout” feeling, but it does have many more benefits. It’s such an enjoyable exercise that you can do anywhere, doesn’t cost anything except walking shoes and can be done while completing other activities as well. There’s not as much risk to walking as there is in other physical activities and the whole family can be included. Now once I get home from work, I grab my dog, Zeke, my iPod and I get moving. The weather has been amazing lately and it is so nice to be outside breathing in the fresh air. My energy has increased and I sleep better at night as well.

You are what you EAT!

By Annie Conner

I’m proud to say that our agency is in the midst of a "wellness" makeover. Fortunately, we don’t plan on it being a one-time endeavor but more of a way of life.

Our first step to altering our “business lifestyle” was to change the goodies that are brought in to the office. Many times throughout the week our kitchen table is FULL of desserts, candy and chips (my weakness!). These items are brought in with the best of intentions, usually as a way to get rid of weekend leftovers or as a gift from a vendor or customer. But as we all know, even the best intentions can have negative results.

Take me for example, when my mind needs a break from updating a seminar or reviewing regulations (studying FMLA regs can certainly work up your appetite!) I’d find myself wandering in to the kitchen just to “grab a snack.” By the end of the day, I would realize that I eaten approximately 5 snacks. Oops! I’d justify my lack of willpower by saying that I’m not eating them all at once but throughout the entire day which is better for my metabolism (isn’t that what most health articles tell you to do?). My office snacking habits were as absurd as my rationalizations behind them.

With the amount of yummy snacks brought in on such a regular basis, we decided that a change was necessary. As difficult as it was, we had to ban all unhealthy goodies from the premises. Yes, there was a small outcry but once waist lines started dropping and energy started increasing everyone jumped on board. The goodies were replaced by a fruit bowl which can appease a sweet tooth just as well as an Entenmanns Chocolate Éclairs can and doesn’t cause the headache that comes with a 3 p.m. sugar crash. Healthy snacks were welcomed and encouraged to share with everyone and we are even considering a “healthy food bakeoff” in the future.

Just one small step created a BIG culture change here at Conner. What has your organization done in order to incorporate health and wellness into its culture? I love hearing ideas and as I explained above, even the simplest ideas can have a positive impact. Stay tuned for more Lifestyle Steps here at Conner….