You’re getting some extra days this week for the Dog Walk Challenge because as of Monday, we are done with Year 2 of the challenge! That’s right, for two years, we’ve taken at least one walk of a mile or more each day. For Year 2, our goal was to average two miles a day. So, how did we do?

First, we achieved the main goal, which is a walk of one mile or more each day. As of Monday, that means we have taken a walk of a mile every day for 730 straight days over the course of two years. If you had told me when we began what was supposed to be a 30-day challenge that we would ever reach this point, I wouldn’t have believed you. But here we are!

Second, our goal for Year 2 was to average two miles of walking each day. Some days we walked less, some days we walked more. Drum roll, please, for the final daily average for Year 2:

2.5 miles per day!

That’s a lot of walking – 919.6 miles over the course of the year total on walks. Some of those walks were less pleasant than others (see: April snow), but overall they have been wonderful.

As an added bonus, the walks (and portion control on her meals) have really made a difference for Choppy. Last year, our vet told us she should lose about 10 pounds to get to an ideal weight. Choppy, the overachiever, dropped 14 pounds this last year. She now weighs the same as she did at her lowest adult weight. Hopefully, this will help give us as much time as possible with her – and it can’t hurt.

So what is in store for Year 3? I think we’ll be doing the same as Year 2 – doing at least a mile walk each day and averaging two miles a day overall. This seems right for us; it’s still a challenge many days, but it works with my schedule. And, as always, we’ll have our weekly posts to let you know how things are going.

As always, you can see our stats below. And tomorrow, almost all the numbers reset back to zero. And from there, there is no place to go but up!

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Choppy: Ready to get going on Year 3.

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The Walks:

Day 722/358 (April 22 – Home) – Total Mileage: 3.9 Miles (1 Walk)
Day 723/359 (April 23 – Home) – Total Mileage: 3.4 Miles (2 Walks)
Day 724/360 (April 24 – Home) – Total Mileage: 2.1 Miles (1 Walk)
Day 725/361 (April 25 – Home) – Total Mileage: 2.1 Miles (1 Walk)
Day 726/362 (April 26 – Home) – Total Mileage: 3.4 Miles (2 Walks)
Day 727/363 (April 27 – Home) – Total Mileage: 2.1 Miles (1 Walk)
Day 728/364 (April 28 – Illinois Beach State Park) – Total Mileage: 2.3 Miles (1 Walk)
Day 729/365 (April 29 – Lake Geneva, Wisconsin) – Total Mileage: 3.0 Miles (1 Walk)
Day 730/366 (April 30 – Home) – Total Mileage: 3.4 Miles (2 Walks)

The Stats:

Weekly Mileage Total: 25.7 Miles (Average: 2.8 Miles/Day)
Year 2 Mileage Total: 919.6 Miles  (Average: 2.5 Miles/Day)