I did a bad thing. I bought an iPhone in 2010.

The first 30-days were pure bliss. The iphone told me where to go, accessed my Word & Excel documents, received and answered all my emails, made instant Messaging a cinch, it told me the time, allowed me to write notes, record memos, create reminders, provided weather forecasts, and had a Facebook app. I mean, I could even make phone calls with it.

But it had something dangerous on it. A step counter.

Being a somewhat competitive German, I enjoyed watching it count my steps each day. One day I got seven thousand steps and another day almost nine thousand steps! It was the beginning of the end for me. I was addicted, and there was no way out.

Hooked on Steps

I began imbibing in steps daily, furtively sneaking in an extra trip down the hallway when no one was looking. It was super fun at first, but I was headed for compulsive step disorder and there was no SAMHSA program to help me kick the habit.

My wife first noticed my step abuse when I began parking as far away from the store entrance at WalMart as possible. In hotels, I would avoid the elevator and use the stairs whenever possible. I started hiding extra steps in the walk-in closet and the basement. When I came home from work she could smell steps on my clothing, so I began chewing gum to hide it. She would say (with hands on hips) “Have you been walking again?” “Aren’t you getting carried away with this step thing?” I assured her that I had it under control and could quit anytime.

People who should have helped me overcome this addiction only made it worse, like Mark Finley who flaunted his 10,000 steps a day average in a 2016 sermon in Celebration Florida. “Hey, I could maybe beat that” I thought. I was hooked.

Six days later I set a personal record of 26,201 steps. Thanks a lot, Finley.

Setting Records

In 2017 I raised the record to 33,795. In one day. That should have been enough, but addictions don’t work like that. Soon I was craving even more steps. In January 2018, I walked 41,597 steps. Then, in August, 44,200. Blisters were a small price to pay for this accomplishment. Maybe I could get 50,000 one day!

In January 2019, I got 71,450 steps in one day. Now my addiction was getting painful, I was in recovery mode for 5-days. This record hurt too much to even think about beating it. Compulsion was out, moderation was in—until I read about a special Fitbit club for people who had walked 100,000 steps in one day. Hmm...

I don’t know if it was the compulsion, the fact that I turned 60 this year, my competitive spirit, the joy of vigorous exercise, or the frustration of being trapped in a whole Year of Murphy’s Law (2020), but I decided to give it a try this Fall. It was probably a combination of all five—and I thought I better train for it.

100,000

I trained throughout the month of October this year, averaging over 20k steps per day, and some days doing 30k. When to go for the record was the question. I chose November 29. It was a Sunday, a full moon, and no precipitation in the forecast. Not too warm and not too cold, a clear night and a sunny day. Perfect.

I went to bed on Sabbath evening at 5 PM and set my alarm for 11:30 pm. I wanted to start at midnight. You will need most of 24-hours to accomplish 100,000 steps. I chose three separate walking places all within a 10-minute drive of each other, and made my plan.

The Goal

Start at midnight 12:01 AM
Walk seven hours in the dark
Breakfast - banana and apple. 7-ish
Try to get 50,000 by 9AM
By noon, 70,000. Lunch Take a 30-minute break at noon (I didn’t)
Take a GU every two hours (energy gel)
By 4PM - 85,000. By 7 PM — 100,000

Time to Go

I pulled into Duke Park in Troy, OH at 12:10 AM. It was roughly 4,000 steps around the park. After putting a gel cap on my left pinky toe and middle toe, I ate a banana and a Clif Bar, drank some grape juice and started walkin’. What a gorgeous, clear night—full moon, no wind, temperature was about 32°. It was slightly chilly but I was doing OK. I set a pace of 5600 steps per hour. I can walk faster but this was a marathon, not a sprint. At this pace, it would take 18-19 hours to reach my goal of 100,000.

The moon was so bright I could read my watch by it; the park was calm and surreal all night. I was very careful to make no noise because the governor (bless his heart) had decreed a curfew from 10 PM to 5 AM. Fortunately, no one noticed or said anything. I recalled Scriptures and prayed occasionally as I walked. I thought about Bible verses that mentioned walking. There are quite a few of them.

At 2 AM I ate a 1.1 Oz. GU energy gel (no caffeine), and just about every two hours thereafter. They helped, (amino acids, potassium, calcium, electrolytes and stuff). 9,592 steps and counting. Walking and walking...

I was seriously cold from 4 AM to 7 AM so I walked to my car and put on extra shirts. It helped, although I was just one-half step ahead of being chilled to the bone for about three whole hours. I was never so glad to see the sun rise as I was that morning :). The temp was 27°. I reached 20k steps at 4:05 AM.

At 5:15, my left knee started to hurt a bit under the kneecap but I pushed through it. I was 26.2% completed (26K steps).

I ate a quick breakfast in the car at 6:30. Banana, nuts and peanut butter Clif Bar. A banana never tasted so good. I drank coconut water, trying to hydrate even though I wasn’t sweating, due to the temperature. I turned the car heater on full blast to warm up. Step count is now at 31k.

After the sun came up at 7:30, I left the park and drove to a bike trail about 3 miles away—along a river. I was at 37k steps.

9:50 AM. 50,095 steps. I am halfway there after 9 hours of solid walking. “Only halfway..?”

At 10:30 AM. A hot spot was developing on the ball of my left foot. My socks were damp. Uh—Oh. That’s how blisters happen. I walked back to the car and changed into dry socks. I also put LeukoTape on the balls of my right foot and left foot. Toes were fine, thanks to the gel caps. 53,000 steps and counting. I removed my coat, it was finally warming up. Let’s walk.

By Noon I had 62,011 steps. I had hoped for 70k, but I was satisfied with the progress. I upped the pace slightly to 5800 steps per hour.

At exactly 1:41 PM I broke my old record (which was 71,450 steps). I didn’t exalt over that, I was so focused on 100,000 steps as the goal. I recorded a short video on my iPhone and kept going.

I reminded myself to not get cocky. A 38-year old athlete that tried this had a breakdown at 75,000 steps. He sat down on the track and wept. He called it his “Die Hard” hour as he thought of giving up. But he rebooted and pressed onward finally making it.

2:40 PM, I had 76,550 steps. I went back to the park I began with and completed a couple laps which was another 8100 steps. Every step is now record territory.

At 4 PM I drove 10 miles to another bike trail closer to our home. 83,095 steps. Left knee really hurts but I am getting used to the discomfort and ignore it. I also took an Aleve. I checked my watch and did some calculations. I now know I will not reach 100,000 steps before dark. Rats. Walking walking, walking... The mental strain is becoming incredible. Every cell says “Stop.” My determination said “Nope! Keep going until we reach 100,000.”

Walking in the dark was a drag, though. To mitigate the risk, I chose some familiar paths and carried a flashlight. My pace is slowing, I can tell. Feet are fine, upper body is fine, but my legs are really aching.

At 6:53 PM, it was 97,717 steps. I have walked the last hour and a half in the dark. Both legs are hurting, slowing my progress to 4200 steps per hour. I was walking like an old woman with gout and rheumatism. I decided it was time to go home and finish up there. The only problem was, I knew my legs would go on permanent strike during the ride home. Even pausing for one minute for a bathroom break during the last 15k steps had made it hard to get them going again. They eventually got used to the idea—after about three minutes of protest. But I knew on the drive home, they might check out for good.

I arrived home. It actually hurt to get out of the car. I limped in the house. My wife was there to greet me. “Did you make it?” Not yet. 2300 steps to go. That small amount of steps looks huge. The mental strain is almost as hard as the physical. I plopped down on the couch like a fat kid on a teeter totter and talked with my wife. I glanced at my watch. It’s now 7:30 PM. I haven’t made the goal yet. That bothers me. I told Nan “I am going to get 100,000 if I have to walk on my hands.” I am determined, but the legs are determined to stop. I finally coax the legs to hobble and crawl upstairs to the great room (carpeted) and walk around the room. I got to 98,770 there, but started feeling nauseous—probably a combination of Aleve, GU gel and extreme exertion. I go downstairs and sit on the couch. I fell asleep instantly. I woke up at 9 PM. I stumble to the bathroom and discover that my legs actually work a little teensy bit. That might be good enough. I walked (hobble) around the kitchen island and dining room table for twenty minutes, checking my phone every few minutes. At 9:20 PM I reach 100,023 !!!! Fantastic. I send my wife a text with an emoticon 100 on it, even though we are only about 25 feet apart. I hear her laughing in the other room.

100,000 Steps is roughly the equivalent of two marathons in a row (56K each). Total distance covered was between 40–45 miles. It took me about 19.7 hours of walking.

Confession

Earlier, on the ride home when my legs wouldn’t work I sort of panicked. I ‘bumped’ the iphone to simulate between 400-500 steps. But that’s cheating.. and I wanted 100,000 legitimate steps. What to do? I went into the iPhone setting to erase the ‘bump steps’ but you can’t do it. Rats. So I set the phone down and walked another 1,100 steps around our house (counting them manually). I did penance !!

By 10:30 PM I had 100,730 legitimate steps. It’s over. It was the hardest thing physically I have ever done, but immensely satisfying. And I learned a few lessons.

Practical Lessons:

We can do more than we think we can.
Don’t give up.
Don’t cheat or compromise.
Just put one foot in front of the other and the journey will be completed.

Spiritual Lessons:

100,000 Steps may get you into an elite club. But it’s not worth anything compared to eternity. As Paul says, “Bodily exercise profits a little.” It is worth something, but the real elite club you and I want to be a part of is to belong to the Bride of Christ. That’s worth it all.
There are times when we have to slow down to get where we want to be in life. The Christian life is not a sprint, it’s a marathon. Go at the best pace you can manage in life. The Holy Spirit will help you (2 Corinthians 5:7).
It’s easy to get tired on the journey of life (Revelation 2:3). When you start thinking about how far you have to go, it can discourage you. The more tired you are, the bigger that distance appears. The closer I got to the end, the more insurmountable it appeared. The last 10% was huge.
It’s ok to look back once in a while. See how far you have come. But the central focus of the Christian life relates to the future, where are you going? (2 Timothy 4:8).
If you’re going on a long journey you need to prepare for it. Especially heaven (Mark 13: 28-37).
Don't cheat or compromise. I did and regretted it. I also made it right, but sometimes you can’t undo wrong decisions you have made. Stay on the right path (1 Corinthians 10:13).
On the last 10k of the journey little things looked like big things. I would see a stick in the path up ahead I remember thinking “Oh no, I have to go around it or find a way to lift my leg over it.” The stick was only about 1/2” in diameter (Galatians 6:9).

Conclusion

People sometimes ask “Why did you do this?” One person even said “Is there something wrong with you?” (haha). There are a couple reasons.

I like to push myself once in a while and see what I am capable of. I think it’s important to set challenging goals and then attain them. It’s also good just to test your limits once in a while and find out what you’re made of. The last thing I want people to say about me when I am gone is “He was a very mediocre guy.” Life is too exciting to settle for mediocre. Great things never came from comfort zones.
One of my philosophies is that occasionally enduring voluntary hardship can make it easier to endure involuntary hardship in life. I also like to stay as physically fit as I can.
Ps. I was kidding about Mark Finley. He is actually an inspiration.
The feeling of breaking your own personal record(s) is immensely satisfying.
I know we have some hikers that read Fulcrum7. Kudos to you. Keep going!

I think this personal record will stand. I won’t try to beat it. If I ever try, I may need a 12-step program (pardon the pun).

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“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16).