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The 10-km challenge

No pain, no gain.. Studies show that the recommended time for weight-loss exercise is half and hour of brisk walking.
If you do this every day, you will shed off some fat from your waist.
On the average, 30-minutes of walking is roughly about 2.7km.
With this, you burn about 382 calories. In one hour, that's about 5.10km and two hours of exercise yields about 10km.
Walking is a low-impact form of exercise and if you decide to change your lifestyle, you can schedule it into your daily life.
I started by walking 5km a day which is split into two sessions: morning and late at night.
Why? Mornings around my neighbourhood can be quiet and since I live in a gated and guarded community, safety is never an issue.
A loop around the neighbourhood is roughly around 1.7km. This is sustainable on a long-term basis.
I begin my walk at 7.30am and to complete 5km, it takes around one hour.

Technology helps..

To keep track of progress, I use Endomondo fitness tracker. This is complement with my Mi Fit app and Mi Band (which has been bricked).
The Endomondo app has a voice-enabled notification. Once you have activated the app, the first thing it does, is to acquire satellites for a fix on your position.
When you hit the "start" button, the apps begins to record progress. At the end of 1km, it gives your pace and distance.
My average pace per 1 km is between 10 - 12 minutes.
In addition to Endomondo, I had Google Fit installed on my Xiaomi Redmi 2 smartphone. This becomes a back-up solution for the Mi Band and records steps and calories.

Atomic Huskies

My highly-energetic pooch provides company during my routine 10km/day walk. I decided to bring them along as they are very active dogs. They need the exercise to expand their energy and walking them in two sessions to clock-in 10km in a day helps.
But, before I took them for the long walk, I got them conditioned for a 2.7km walk and increased the distance to 5.11km and eventually, 10km.
They are comfortable with the distance and also kept me company during the workout.


Managing weight-loss is a routine that comes in pairs.
First, you will have to eat right.
Since July 16, I have been going easy on my carbohydrates.
I began by reducing my rice intake.
For breakfast, it's a wholemeal sandwich followed by rice for lunch.
I've began to wean off rice by eating only meat and vegetables for dinner.
It took some getting used to, but I am slowly conditioning my body to accept this.


I weighed-in at 101.0kg in mid-June. I have been walking for a month and clocked-in more than 280km in total distance. My present weight is 92.7km with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 28.6 (anything above 28 is considered as "obese"). My target weight loss is at 85kgs and I will begin weight training to firm up my body.
So, is 10km difficult? Not so if you love to walk and split your workout into two sessions in a day.
Commitment is very important in this case and there's really no excuse to be lazy.
Posted by Sam Cheong at 8/02/2015 10:55:00 PM Labels: brisk walking, Endomondo, fitness tracking apps, getting in shape, Google Fit, walking for fitness
