We love to create challenges. It gives us goals and a sense of purpose to go on and keep hitting those miles. It gives us purpose to find new adventures. In general, we are very competitive people and need our motivation.
Set Your Mileage and Go-
A daily, weekly, monthly, or whole year goal of how many miles you will walk. For example, we hiked around 300 miles last year. This year our goal is to double down. That’s 600 miles on the trails or bushwhacking. Not a hiker? That’s cool. You can track how many miles you do in your daily life.
What’s the point of creating challenges?
Gives you purpose. Motivation to keep going. You are now working toward something. It is also a great sharing experience with others. For us, it’s a mother and daughter duo. We have really bonded setting out various challenges together. Abby is one competitive child.
What can I work toward or am I working toward nothing?
Perhaps it’s a healthier you. Just remember that just exercise isn’t enough. I walked over 300 miles last year and due to stress and unhealthy eating still ended up closing 2020 thirty pounds overweight and took a trip to the ER via ambulance a few short months before. They thought I was having a heart attack.
We like to work toward something physical. We have started a patchwork wall hanging where for each year, every challenge that has badges or pins, we put those badges on a square. At the start of a new year, we start a new square. It’s something we can see. Something we can share with others and tell them our stories and in turn, motivate others to go do something they find epic.
What happened to us on the Columbia County Challenge? Watch the video
What challenges have we completed?
We have completed several challenges that you can do too. In one weekend, we knocked out the High Five Challenge. You hike a certain amount of trails in the Columbia County Conservations Areas and receive a badge and other awesomeness. We just made it more challenging by setting a goal of all ten in one weekend. We ended up completing most in a half a day.
Hyde Park Trail System has the challenge to earn a badge. We always do the paperwork and forget to turn it in. So we only have two years of badges. But, these trails are mostly easy and fun to do. Rumor has it that a new length of trails is being added in the spring too.
Every year is Get Fit Hudson Valley too. We are fitness ambassadors for it and have a blast. You don’t win badges but for every level of workouts you do, you are eligible to win awesome prizes. One year, we received a gift card to Fleet Feet and Go Fresh. They also giveaway t-shirts.
Some other challenges we have found
Go hike the Catskill 3500s if you want something more challenging. We completed one peak to see how it is in 2020. However, this year, we hope to complete all 35.
There are other challenges around the state of NY too. A couple we are looking at completing this year. Maybe we will see you on the trail!
What About non-hiking challenges?
We mostly discussed outdoor physical challenges. However, there are other challenges that you can set too.
-visit x amount of parks. Stop and notice or even write down your experiences.
-visit x amount of museums
-try x amount of new foods or foods from x amount of new countries. I want to try Thai food! Hanna’s in Danbury is our recommendation for Lebanese food!
-Learn a new language
-read x amount of new books
-are you a Christian like us? Share your faith with at least one person in 2021
-Learn x amount of new skills
-Teach yourself a new instrument and put on a concert at end of 2021 for your friends in family. Hopefully, it will be in person. However, there is always Zoom! Make the challenge that you will be able to play x amount of songs even if it is simple stuff such as Twinkle Twinkle.
-Be a kinder person. As Daniel Tiger says “you can choose to be kind.”
Final Thoughts about Creating Challenges
2021 is here! Let’s go do something epic with it whether it is putting down the remote and going for a walk around the block, learning a new skill or hitting a more aggressive challenge. Do you know of any challenges? Share them with us! If you complete any challenges we mentioned, tag us on social media and we will share your post and give you a special mention. Let’s go on adventures just like Adventures of Abby Girl!
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