This morning, I made another smoothie using Honey!
- One cup of frozen berries
- One cup of vanilla bean yogurt
- Generous squirt of Honey
- One scoop of Vanilla protein powder
Using my favorite mini food processor, I gave it a whirl and enjoyed in my to-go cup! 
The pedometer challenge is going really great. The person with the most total steps by the middle of July wins. I never really thought of myself as being very competitive, but I found myself taking this very seriously! I’m in it to win it. And I want to taste that victory so bad! I walked 14 miles yesterday to close a gap with some of the front runners. And now I’m neck and neck and I plan to stay there! But it’s just not feasible to fit four hour walks into my day, so I have to fit it in where I can.
I stepped up my game this week (no pun intended). I am walking to and from work. It’s 3 miles each way, so just commuting alone will net me six miles! On top of any other walking I do during the day. But walking to work takes some serious planning! It’s a work in progress for me, but here is my plan for success! So far, so good!
1.) Get Up Early
I’m not a morning person, but I also hate being rushed, so I set my alarm earlier than normal, and take my time getting myself together.
2.) Plan for Breakfast
Breakfast on the go is best for me, because I can multi-task. Walking, commuting and eating breakfast all in one! My smoothie today was perfect for the trek. I also packed a granola bar, but didn’t end up needing it. 
3.) Dress for the Walk
I prefer to walk in dri-fit clothes. I’m less sweaty when I get to work, and I just feel better. If I wore jeans on my walk, I’d be uncomfortable and miserable the whole time! Once the weather gets too hot to walk, I might have to take the bus to work, and then walk home. We’ll see. LA is still pretty cool lately, so it’s been nice.
4.) Get a Travel Bag & Pack Light
Purses hurt my shoulders, and a backpack would be too big. So for a six mile walk, I am using my favorite travel purse from Eagle Creek. I rolled up my work clothes and shoved them inside. And I paired down the essentials: keys, credit cards, phone, etc. There isn’t any wiggle room for any unnecessary items (change of shoes, snacks or lunch!)
5.) LUNCH!
This is a tough one. I always bring my lunch. I prefer to spend my money on things other than dining out at lunch (although lately, I’ve been doing it more, and my wallet is feeling it!) This is a major bummer. Unless I want to carry Tupperware containers 10K a day, it just doesn’t make sense. So the tradeoff to walking and saving money on gas is that I have to buy lunch later in the day. One solution may be driving on Mondays and bringing enough lunch to last all week, but I haven’t thought that far ahead yet.
6.) Bring Entertainment
You already know about my obsession with This American Life and NPR in general. The minutes seriously tick by with their stories! But I also have Pandora, Twitter, Emails and my phone to occupy my time. Walking is also a great way to transition from work to play at the end of the day. It’s a natural de-stresser! Irving came to meet me halfway tonight too! That was fun!
I’m hoping all of this extra effort will be worth it in the end. Even if I don’t win the contest, I can’t believe how much I’m loving the extra exercise. A body in motion stays in motion, and I just can’t get enough of walking lately! Who am I?! 
Even if you can’t walk to work, you can always walk to a bus or metro station! Or commit to walking before or after work! Or even during lunch!
Hope you guys join the challenge too!
Kelocity.com 