So much for that pedometer

The pedometer met a bad end yesterday. Yes, it was a cheap-ass little giveaway type unit and I kept resetting it by mistake, but its real problem was that the clip mechanism was just too deeply flawed and it wouldn't stay put on my waistband. Let's just say it was a watery end that it met.

But, as I said, I do love data collection -- and I promised charts & graphs -- so I bought a new one on eBay, and it's got a much sturdier alligator-type clip and you don't have to put it right over your hip, so it doesn't matter if I'm wearing a dress with no waistband. Plus it can tell whether you are running or walking and it is supposed to also tell you how many calories you are burning or some damn thing. I'm not sure this is very useful information, but data is data, and it's all good. I'll get it sometime next week, and if I'm still in this data collecting mood I'll be sure to let you know how it works. And one of my pals at work issued a challenge: whoever logs the most steps in June wins. We haven't decided yet whether the prize will involve chocolate or copious amounts of gin. Personally, I am more motivated by gin. Shoes would be even better.

There's something about the pedometer that I find bizarrely compelling, is all I can say.

In the absence of the pedometer, though, today when I went for my walk I decided to try out the exercise heart monitor my dad sent me for my birthday. I've been kind of grumpy about it. I mean, 'happy birthday -- you're not only old, you're also fat! love Dad,' was kind of how it felt, but there was a check & some other stuff in the envelope so I didn't get too bent out of shape. On the other hand, I didn't actually open it for a whole month. It's kind of fun. It took me a while to set it and calibrate it & everything, but I'm a geek, so I was entertained. After all that effort and hassle, I didn't feel much like working out, so I don't yet know whether it'll be any kind of useful. All I learned was that I didn't really do much to raise my heart rate while walking the dog; it's only a little faster while walking than it is while I'm sitting in a chair. Except on that one hill.