Way back in July of 2011, when I started this whole GlobalFit exercise (pun somewhat intended), I had the silly thought that since 10,000 steps was what is generally considered active, that I would use that as a guideline of something to ascribe to.  Now, nearly 3 years later, I find that I’ve actually crossed that plateau only 31 times.  As I spend today flying home from California, with the expectation that I will be adding at least one or two days to this list, I thought it would be sobering, and perhaps inspiring, to look back at the top 20 of those 31 days.

1: 6/6/2013 – 24,988 steps

My best single day total came during last summer’s trip to Disney World.  The day’s excursion to both Epcot Center and the Magic Kingdom ended up with a total of approximately 12.5 miles.  And yes, it does bother me that I didn’t get those 12 additional steps to reach 25,000.

2: 7/27/2013 – 20,592 steps

My second highest total came nearly 2 months after my highest, thanks to the BTN 5K and a, for lack of a better word, misunderstanding about where I should be picked up after the race.  These 2 days are the sum total of my days over 20,000 steps.

3: 6/8/2013 – 17,852 steps

My third highest output brings us back to Disney World, this time for a day split between Animal Kingdom in the morning and Hollywood Studios in the afternoon.  Sadly, this also ends our collection of days greater than 15,000.

4: 9/9/2012 – 14,957 steps

The fourth best day I’ve had in the last 3 years is my highest total outside of the United States.  A Sunday in Belfast spent walking down to the Titanic museum

5: 6/7/2013 – 14,940 steps

We round out the top 5 with another day of last June’s vacation to Disney World.  This day started with a morning trip to the hotel pool, followed by an abbreviated day at the Magic Kingdom.

6: 7/28/2012 – 14,668 steps

The inaugural BTN 5K places about 6,000 steps below the one from a year later.  This one involved less confusion and more driving.

7: 6/9/2013 – 13,124 steps

Another entry from the Disney trip, this time a day spent entirely at Hollywood Studios.

8: 6/5/2013 – 12,916 steps

The first day of the Disney trip, which included an early morning trip to the airport, followed by an afternoon at the Magic Kingdom once we arrived in Florida.

9: 3/21/2012 – 12,644 steps

The first day on this list that I have no idea what I did.  Apparently, these 10,000 step days were a little more commonplace back during the first year I did this, so I didn’t note anything out of the ordinary to explain this total.

10: 9/15/2012 – 12,324 steps

The day was intended to have a limited number of steps, since I should have been flying home from Belfast.  Instead, I ended up staying an extra day with Jeff and Cary and we ended up walking around the city, shopping and sight-seeing.  All while my undiagnosed sciatica was in full swing.

11: 3/27/2012 – 12,312 steps

Another day with no record of what I did.

12: 8/7/2012 – 12,100 steps

A post-work trip in to the city for dinner and a Garbage show at the Metro.

13: 9/14/2012 – 11,803 steps

Another day from my most recent trip to Belfast, this one spent travelling to Carrickfergus Castle.

14: 3/19/2012 – 11,796 steps

Yet another day with no information on what I did.  March of 2012 was a pretty active month.

15: 8/29/2011 – 11,540 steps

A morning trip to the gym followed by a White Sox game.

16: 7/19/2013 – 11,536 steps

Another day whose total can be attributed to a trip to the ol’ ballpark.

17: 10/10/2011 – 11,424 steps

An exciting work day that allowed for some walking around the campus.

18: 9/12/2011 – 11,360 steps

Once again, a trip to see the White Sox contributed to a nice total.

19: 7/30/2012 – 11,284 steps

A combination of walking around the grounds at work followed by a trip to the bowling alley.

19: 10/14/2011 – 11,284 steps

A Friday spent working from home while waiting for my sparkling new iPhone to arrive included a walk to the FedEx Office.