Walking Has Brought Me Closer to Good Health and To My Wife

A few weeks ago, I started a 12,000 steps-a-day challenge for a week. I enjoyed it so much that I kept it going, usually well surpassing 12,000 steps.

Since then, I've lost 3.4 pounds, I have more energy overall but most importantly, it has brought me closer to my wife.

I came across some YouTube walking challenges and the benefits of adding walking to their daily routine and decided to give it a shot. Despite losing over 60 pounds, I felt stagnant at the gym and struggled to find the energy to continue resistance training for more than 30 minutes.

For the first week, I found ways to sneak in walks throughout the day and if I didn't go outside, I would generally pace around my house. I started taking my dog on longer walks to get more steps and prioritized steps over lounging around the house.

In the first week, I noticed that my resistance training felt easier, I wasn't exhausted nearly as fast and was able to increase weights in a short time span. After my first week was successfully completed, my wife decided to join me by incorporating walking into her routine.

After walking my dog, my wife and I walk by ourselves for over 2.5 miles together and I didn't realize how beneficial it would be for our physical health but also our relationship.

I love talking to my wife and discussing various topics but usually, the opportunities to speak are mixed in with distractions of devices. Our morning walks involve us not looking at our phones but instead looking at each other as we engage in conversation.

Recently, she's been under a lot of stress from work and walking has been helpful to decompress and discuss how she's feeling so she can find some sort of resolution.

Sometimes we don't say anything and just enjoy the silence of an early morning suburban environment. The change of scenery and disconnecting from technology has allowed me to think clearly about my daily tasks and how I will accomplish them.

I vastly underestimated the impact of something simple like walking and it showed me how immobile I have been now that I work from home most days of the week. It made me realize how much time I waste throughout the day and I've become more efficient with my time.

Prior to walking, I believe we were often too tired or distracted and our deep conversations dwindled but now we have a carved-out time when we can talk to each other uninterrupted.

I spent years doing things by myself and I forget how pleasant it is to have someone not only support you but want to embark on the journey with you, no matter how challenging it might be. We mirror our efforts for self-improvement and we constantly motivate each other.

Because walking is low-impact cardio, we can physically do this every day and it doesn't feel like a dreadful obligation: We both look forward to it. Walking has become the alone time we didn't think we needed but glad we discovered.

So, my suggestion is to get some comfortable walking shoes, get a device to track your steps and prioritize having a couple's walk. Wake up early, put your phone on silent, and take in the scenery with your loved one. You won't regret it.