Walking Across Arkansas

Last fall members of our 4-H club decided to participate in Walk Across Arkansas. This is a state wide program sponsored by our local extension office to get people to moving and exercising more. The program runs for eight weeks and all you have to do is wear a pedometer to log your steps, convert them into miles (2000steps=1 mile), log them every day, and report to your team captain once a week. At the end of the fall walk my team consisting of 2 adults and 6 children had walked a combined total of 2500 miles! My children really enjoyed participating in this (especially Nick who continued to log his miles every day even after the program ended) that when the Spring walk began we decided to do it again with new members on our team. So we are in the second week of Walk Across Arkansas.

How many steps do you take in a day? I have found this program very interesting. On a normal day I walk about 2.5 miles just doing housework and taking care of the children. On days I get to go walking at the park or in the yard I usually walk 4.5-5 miles or more if I have to go to Walmart. My children average on a normal day about 6 miles each and usually on week-ends will walk 8-10 miles! This includes running and riding their bicycles. Logging our miles everyday has shown me how active my children are and also which days I need to get myself walking a bit more. It has also taught the children about coverting steps into miles and recording information on a chart. They do get a little competitive at times comparing their steps walked but it really has been a lot of fun.