Over the winter break, I purposefully walked 210 kilometres.
On the last day of school in December, after much thought and debate, I initiated a daily 10 km challenge for myself, allowing one day off per week as a “rest day”. Why did I embark on this challenge? There were several reasons. I recognized that our family’s usual winter break filled with travel was going to look very different and some structure might be helpful. I also realized that given the volumes of treats present in the house during the holiday season, a little extra movement would be a healthy addition to my days! With the New Year approaching, I also wanted to challenge myself to do something I’ve never done and test my physical limits.
What did I learn? It did not take long before I realized meeting my goal of walking 10 kilometres a day was going to be more of a challenge than I had anticipated. Obstacles such as wet weather, sore shins, and wavering motivation certainly tried to get in the way of achieving my goal. Success came with family members reminding me of my commitment, using an app to track my steps and kilometres, and noticing positive changes in my sleep patterns and overall feelings of well-being.
Setting goals helps us by providing focus and measuring progress, enhancing motivation, and encouraging us to achieve more. Challenging ourselves with “doable uncertainty” serves to increase our confidence and our growth in the belief that we can accomplish what we set out to do.
As 2021 begins, I challenge you to challenge yourself with a goal that provides a little bit of safe uncertainty; start small and relish the rewards of goal attainment.
Contributed by Wendy Turriff, Junior School Counsellor