Dr Ashley Ng

I’ve previously written about how trying to accomplish all the things we should do to minimise risk of complications from diabetes can end up feeling like a chore (see Ticking Boxes) and even lead to burnout. Try adding in a fitness tracker, where the default goal is usually set to 10,000 steps and a competitive nature…

Over the holiday period, I had gotten into a good and very enjoyable habit of going out for walks. Ten thousand steps became an easy daily target and I enjoyed being out with nature. Fast forward to being back at uni, where I’m at my desk most day. Suddenly 10,000 steps seems unattainable where there aren’t enough hours in the day to go through half of my to-do list. Still, I forced myself to get 10,000 steps a day.

I was so fixed in my mindset of achieving this goal, that it felt like an obsession. Resistant training added on more exercise than I would normally do. All for the sake of 10,000. It was ridiculous. I mean I don’t even know where, how or why 10,000 became THE step goal! I hope there’s decent research behind this…

Why am I obsessed with this, when I’m always banging on the need to be kind to myself? A few reasons…okay, the main reason was my new Samsung Gear S2 aka shiner version of my Fitbit. Seeing my progress on the screen and the patterns for the week became the new driver towards my goal. But I wasn’t actually enjoying the process of getting there.

Now, I’m trying to change my mindset about this 10,000 steps business. I’m taking advantage of summer and walking around my neighbourhood in the evenings. There’s even a nice creek at my uni I could walk around to break my 10,000 steps into smaller bits. It would be nice to walk with someone, but it’s also nice to be with myself and reflect on things.

Let’s hope that this will take my mind off 10,000 and more towards mindfulness and de-stressing.