Australia’s outdoor-loving population has made it easy to enjoy the vast variety of hiking trails that crisscross the most scenic areas of the country.  The Noosa Heads area, on the Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane, is home to some of the most celebrated beaches in the world.  And the amazing network of walking trails allow you to explore the seaside as well as the hinterland.

The Noosa Trail Network—for hikers, horseback riders, mountain bikers–has

Sunday was a perfect sunny, winter day for outdoor activities.  There wasn’t any wind and the temperature was in the fifties.

As we were walking along a creek near Roswell Mill, hares surprised us

Hot on their trail was a pack of hounds that had to cross a treacherous pipe spanning a creek carrying their bikes.  Amazing feat since bike cleats and slippery pipes are not a good combo.

You might ask when do hounds

Our friends won’t believe us but after 1 week of doing isometric exercises, Joe and I are seriously toned.  Like Superman’s flimsy disguise as Clark Kent, our fitness disguise is layers of fat.  However, don’t be fooled  . . . we can now proudly flex our muscles and say “which way is the beach?” with The Arnold.

Here is the story of our unexpected 1 week journey to turbo isometric muscle tone

Joe’s relative wanted a Steel-Bow Bullworker for

Being a nightowl, my husband and I often walk late at night on the back roads in our community. 

Uneven pavement, dark nights, streets with inattentive drivers and an 85 pound dog that needs the Dog Whisperer to come for a house call makes walking a challenge.  Until the other night, I had been wearing regular street shoes for my new 10,000 steps per day goal. 

In hindsight, that was a huge mistake.  Street shoes aren’t designed for long

Discover Walking downloaded several iPhone pedometer apps with and without gps for this review

Discover Walking’s criteria for evaluating pedometer apps might be very different from your criteria.  Some of you enjoy social networking your walks.  We are not fans of telling the world where our house is and where we walk every day even though that is a cool feature for many walkers. 

When deciding which app to choose, know your criteria and read the reviews

One mile equals approx 2,000 to 2,500 pedometer steps.  

Therefore 10,000 steps is between 4 to 5 miles distance.  If you walk reasonably fast, 10,000 steps is about 1 hour of activity.  If you walk slowly, 10,000 pedometer steps will take you 2 hours.   Therefore, it will be easier to achieve your goal if you increase your pace.

An added benefit to a 10,000 step goal is that you will burn approximately 100 calories