Tag Archives: steps

5-Year Anniversary Of Busting My Knee & Needing Surgery — THE BEST THING That Happened To Me In 17-Years! You Should Bust Your Knee Too.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on February 28, 2024

Click images to ENLARGE.

5-years ago TODAY. Coming home from ER after over a 6-hour stay.
Click to ENLARGE.

I am so, so, so GLAD that I slipped, shoveling snow, on February 28, 2019 & SNAPPED my Quad-tendon. I did NOT know I had a quad-tendon.

Today the temps were in the 50s Fahrenheit. 5-years ago we had had a MAJOR snow storm. Ditto last year. This weather, CLIMATE CHANGE, is crazy & scary. I know we will get WALLOPED before this winter is over. Of that I have no doubt.

I postponed surgery for a week, because we had a mini-vacation booked in the Cape, & had it done on March 8, 2019.

CHANGED MY LIFE — for the better.

I am so glad I busted my knee. I am a new, better man because of it.
I am 30 pounds lighter than I was 5 years ago!

It was a wake up call. I was, prior to it, exercising daily & watching my diet. But, I had become lazy & complacent.

My pre-surgery blood work said my blood glucose was 102. I started crying. I was so distraught. All the nurses are saying it is FINE. It is FINE. You don’t have to worry till it gets close to 125. Heck with that.

From the very day of the surgery I changed my life.

I went on a much, much, much stricter diet. I lost 20 pounds. I STILL NEED TO LOSE ANOTHER 25. But, losing 20 was a START.

And I started AMBLING, each & every day, even while I was on crutches. They had me on crutches for 6 weeks. The day I was allowed to ditch them I started ambling in anger.

The rest as some of you know is history.

In the 1st year after surgery I walked 2,250 miles.

I now walk at least 3,000 miles a year. SMILE.

I have walked at least 10,000 steps, EACH & EVERY DAY, since April 17, 2020.

That is an unbroken 1,412 day STREAK.
3 years 10 months.

So, each February 28, in particular, I thank my lucky stars that I busted my knee.

The LITTLE THINGS In Life That Make Me Happy & Content — Another Year Of 500,000 Step/Months.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on December 31, 2023

Click to ENLARGE. From my Garmin Connect.
Click to ENLARGE. Posts about MY STEPS on this blog. Check the highlighted dates.

I, contrary to what some believe, lead a very simple & modest life — as behooves my modest circustances.

I don’t have fany bucket lists or strive for posh vacations.

Walking at least 500,000 steps a month makes me HAPPY. Very happy. Content too. It doesn’t, however, seem to do much for my health. But, that is OK. I am happy.

So, this was my THIRD full year of walking 500,000 steps a month. It is also my THIRD full year of walking at least 10,000 steps/day — each & every day, without FAIL. That is a 1,095 day streak. This might be easy for some, but it is quite a challenge for I. But, it makes me happy. And in my life that is all that matters. The little things that make me happy.

I Met The ‘Garmin’ 2023 Walking Challenges For The Year With 72-Days To Spare. It Was Trivial.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on October 20, 2023

Click to ENLARGE.

My recent badges, all in the last month.

In a few months, with luck, I should make it to Garmin LEVEL 6!

Click to ENLARGE.

Last 12 months.

When you walk 240+ miles a month, meeting a 31-mile/month challenge is TRIVIAL. Beyond trivial.

Click to ENLARGE. From Garmin. 2022

Kind of trivial for I.

But, it does amuse me. A challenge is a challenge.

For the longest time, at first, I never bothered about Garmin badges. Didn’t even KNOW who to sign-up for them. Then, I noticed I was getting them — automatically. Got me interested.

Last 2 years or so, I have been making an effort to get badges.

I want to keep on going UP through the the Garmin Levels.

When I started paying interest, I was at Level 4.

In early 2024 I might make it, with luck, to Level 6. I gather that this is rather special. SMILE.

I will let you know. Promise.

I am still MAINTAINING my 10,000(+) steps/day & 500,000 steps/month goals.

I Walked 2,918 Miles In A Year, My 69th Year — Should Have Walked A Hundred More, But I Am Still Chuffed.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on October 1, 2023

Click to ENLARGE. From Garmin. 2022

Getting old.

I used to do more than 3,000 miles in a year. C’est la vie.

I am still MAINTAINING my 10,000(+) steps/day & 500,000 steps/month goals.

I am cool as long as I can meet those.

This ALL started when I busted my knee, slipping & falling while shoveling snow, on Feb. 28, 2019. Had major surgery on knee on March 8, 2019. Off crutches in April, 2019.

I then decided I am going to get as FIT as I can via walking — or ambling.

In 2019 I walked 1,736 miles.

In June 2020 I decided I was going to walk at least 500,000 steps each month.

In 2020 I walked 2,822 miles.

In 2021 I walked 3,214 miles.

I Wish I Didn’t Have The IRON Self-Discipline I Have — Life Would Be So Much Easier — & Drier — For I.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on July 2, 2023

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

Click to ENLARGE.

Stats & GPS track from my ‘Garmin Epix 2’.

I really wish I could be less hard on myself!

I can’t remember HOW I ended up with this unwavering, IRON, self-discipline I have.

I was in the cadets (in the U.K.) BUT never in the armed services. Yes, my adoptive father beat me to a pulp, regularly, when I was young, BUT that, as far as I can remember, was never a big reason for the self-discipline.

I KNOW I HAD IT by the time I was 16.

That is why I never did drugs, never smoked & only started drinking 7-years AFTER I was legally able to.

NOW, I am too SCARED to make any exceptions. I know that if I do it would be DOWNHILL from then.

So, yet again today, as has been too often the case this Summer, I had no choice but to walk my daily, morning 4-miles in the PELTING, SOAKING RAIN.

I wore heavy, solid rain gear. I still got drenched. There was no part of me that was dry.

The DOGS refused to walk.

So I walked on my own, which was good because I can walk faster.

So, this is my life.

I wish I could be a slacker.

In the snow in Demeber.

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

Getting 500,000 Steps In During What Was A Very Rainy June Was A Challenge — But I Scraped Through.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on July 1, 2023

Click to ENLARGE.

We got a lot of rain. Towards the end we had like 9-days of rain on the trot. It was relentless. I much prefer ambling in the snow rather than rain. Rain just gets me down.

Plus, for a rare change I did NOT have any multi-day trips to Maine — just a quick trip to ‘Kittery’, Maine on Father’s Day. So, getting in all the steps to make sure that my now multiyear streak of always exceeding 500,000 steps/month was not broken was a bit hard. But I kept at it. I knew what I had to do each day. SMILE. It is NOT easy being I. Smile.

My ‘Garmin’ ‘Epix Gen 2’ Watch Stopped Counting Steps At 5pm Yesterday — I Am BESIDE MYSELF; Bloody Garmin.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on June 26, 2023

Click to ENLARGE.

To say I am BLOODY annoyed would be the understatement of the year. I am beside myself. I am totally & utterly DISGUSTED with bloody Garmin.

This is a $1,000 watch. I don’t buy cheap watches because I want ‘the best’.

This is the last straw. I have been a good & loyal Garmin customer for 7 years. But, it has always been an uneasy, stressful relationship.

Yes, the Epix 2 is by far, by far, the MOST reliable Garmin I have owned (& I have owned about 12 Garmins). I do LIKE the Epix 2. But, I can’t have it losing steps.

That is really ALL I want it to do … accurately count my steps. IF it won’t do that, I might as well by a CHEAP WATCH. No difference. They will both be bad at counting my steps.

So, that is my dilema. As I write this I am ON (bloody) HOLD with Garmin.

DAMN GARMIN. Bloody Garmin.

Getting Soaked In Today’s Relentless Rain In Order To Get In My Mandatory 10K Steps Morning Walk.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on April 23, 2023

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

Click to ENLARGE.

Waterproof pants are SOAKED.
Stats & GPS track from my ‘Garmin Epix 2’.

I knew it was going to rain all day. But, that, alas, won’t do as an excuse.

I have to get in my steps (~17,000/day, 500,000+/month) Rain, SNOW or SHINE. Plus, with the temperature in the mid-40Fs (7C) I was way ABOVE my (self-imposed) 5F (-15C) cutoff threshold.

I hate the RAIN. I will take snow any day of the week, provided it is not blowing in your face too much. Well today it was all rain & it was relentless. Kept on coming down. No escaping it.

I wasn’t dressed for the cold. It wasn’t cold. I was dressed for the rain. I had three layers. I was actually dry underneath. Just the outer layer was SOAKED. SOAKED.

It is still raining. But, I still have to go out in it TWICE.

It is NOT easy being I.

In the snow in Demeber.

Follow Anura Guruge on WordPress.com

‘Meredith’, New Hampshire, Sculpture Walk — A Small Sample From Today.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on April 13, 2023

Click images to ENLARGE.

Click image to access the Website.

This is such a wonderful initiative. BRAVO & Thank YOU, Meredith.

I wish it was there WHEN I used to live in Meredith, i.e., 1996 to 1999. That is OK. Meredith will always have a special place in MY LIFE.

I wish I could visit more often. But, I treasure every visit.

Today, I didn’t have much. It was late in the afternoon, it was HOT & I still had to get in 4K steps. So, I did a quick amble. These are what caught my eye. ENJOY.

If you can, please make a point of visiting.

Getting 500,000 Steps In A 28-Day February, In New Hampshire’, Requires Special Pigheadedness & A 3-Day Trip To Acadia.

Leave a reply

by Anura Guruge
on March 1, 2023

Click to ENLARGE.
Click to ENLARGE.
Click to ENLARGE.

28-day Februarys are a BIG challenge when it comes to meeting my self-imposed 500,000 steps/month goal (with at least 10,000 steps each & every day). End of January 2023 I was on a 31-month UNBROKEN streak. I wasn’t going to LOSE that streak without a fight.

500,000 steps in 28 days requires you to average 17,857 steps a day — just over 8 miles a day. It is 1/2 mile a day less on a 30 day month. Yes, it can be done & I have done it thrice now BUT it requires work, especially as February, in New Hampshire, also tends to be COLDEST month.

I have learnt that the easiest way to achieve my goal is to go for a quick 3-day break to ‘Acadia‘. Then, I can get in 90K — 100K in 3-days & that helps a lot. And that is exactly what I did. Yes, I check the weather & picked 3 good days. They turned out to be exceptional. No precipitation, not too cold & not too hot. Goldilocks for ambling. And that is what I did. On the 2nd day, my ONLY FULL DAY there, I got in 17 miles of ambling & that was a breeze. I wasn’t tired. SMILE. Yes, all this ambling does have some benefits. SMILE.

So, another February in the bag. Thanks to Acadia I actually ended up walking more steps in February than I did in January, December or November. Wow.