A week of step counting
Status: Completed
What: Using a step counter to track the amount of steps walked every day. The "sweet spot" in terms of health effects seems to be 7500 steps, although less steps per day also confer benefits.
Log:
- Day 1: I actually installed and tested the step counter the evening before, but it makes sense to start logging from the first actually full day I use it. I walked a lot because I was fired up about counting the steps, and I ended up doing almost 10 000.
- Day 2: I was feeling tired, which in turn caused some of my enthusiasm to fade. I consulted google which seemed to suggest that 7500 steps is a good number for reaping health benefits, as the effect of additional steps appear to become increasingly marginal. I took to pacing in front of a video to gain my last steps in the evening. I may have underestimated the amount of time it takes to get steps in.
- Day 3: Went on a lovely walk that made up most of my steps, so this day felt very easy.
- Day 4: This day was the true test, being my most sedentary day of the week. Did some tidying and organizing through the house. I wasn't sure if I would make it, but pacing in front of some videos put me over 7500. I'm starting to quite enjoy pacing, it's a nice break from sitting.
- Day 5: My legs ached a bit when I was getting close to 7500 steps, so I took a few breaks. Walking more feels pretty good in general.
- Day 6: It's brutally hot out today! I made it to about 3k, but then I couldn't tolerate any more of existing outside. I did enjoy walking though. I got the rest of my steps by pacing to podcasts/videos.
- Day 7: Went on a trip today, so I walked a whole lot. Way more than my goal! It was a lot of fun, and I'm not sure if I'd have enjoyed it as much if I hadn't done all that walking the days beforehand.
Result:
- Benefits: I enjoyed walking more than I thought, and I felt better and more energized, I think.
- Reflections: Steps feel easier to get in early in the day, but pacing in front of a video can add a significant amount.
- My main takeaways: There are a lot of ways to get some extra walking in, even pacing around the living room can be pleasant. I want to keep this up, and maybe throw in some jogging eventually to get those steps in a bit quicker.
2 week update: I struggled to sustain the 7500 goal, so I've lowered it to 6000 for the time being. It'll still get me to take extra steps, and I discovered that it can be quite nice. Perhaps I can work my way up to jogging/running in the future and raise my step goal accordingly.
A week of progressive muscle relaxation
Status: Completed
What: Progressive muscle relaxation is a technique where one tenses muscle groups one by one and then relaxes them. It's said to also have a good effect on sleep. For this week I'm trying a slow-paced, meditative
style of the exercise.
Log:
- Day 1: There are lots of videos to guide people through the exercise. Some quick, some lengthy. Tensing target muscle groups only is hard.
- Day 2: Not tensing the abdominal muscles while tensing other muscle groups is really hard. Perhaps a lesson to be learned here?
- Day 3: Nearly forgot! Did an abridged version by memory in the evening.
- Day 4: I feel like I'm getting somewhat better at relaxing separate muscle groups. It's still hard not to tense up the abdominal muscles while tensing other muscle groups.
- Day 5: Throughout the day I'd occasonally notice my muscles being tense and try to relax them. While the exercise still doesn't go perfectly I feel like I got some moments of nice relaxation going.
- Day 6: Nearly forgot again! I'll do it by memory before sleep...
- Day 7: Throughout parts of the exercise I started to feel the same happy sensation I get when I manage to meditate deeply. My tensing and relaxing still isn't perfect, but I feel like I have more control than when I started.
Result:
- Benefits: improved awareness of different muscle groups, improved ability to notice muscle tension, slightly improved ability to relax tense muscle groups throughout the day
- Reflections: I gravitated toward a slow version of the exercise that took roughly 20 minutes to do. It could be annoying to set aside the time, but I think it was a good way to feel the different muscles and
get more familiar with them at a comfortable pace. I'd like to try a faster-paced version of the exercise next to see how it affects me.
- My main takeaways: relaxation exercises are hard and require patience to learn, but the benefits seem well worth the effort so I want to keep practicing
