I walked 30,000 steps on a Treadmill at midnight: Here’s the reality

Sunday, January 26, 2025

Well, I took on the incredible challenge of walking an unexpected 30,000 steps in a single night as part of a virtual half marathon. Faced with COVID-19 restrictions, an intense heatwave, and bad air quality, I had to adapt my plans and complete the entire distance on my treadmill. Let’s go for a walk and recount my training journey, the physical and mental hurdles I overcame, and the lessons learned about endurance walking and fitness tracking. Also, discover my Google Fit data and what it felt like to push my limits during the drama.

It was August 2021...

The original plan? I was training for a virtual walking half marathon (slow walking, by the way). I started training in May and did the whole nine yards: new shoes, an electric treadmill upgrade from my manual one, and even some resistance band training because my upper body needed work. To add an even more “what the heck?” twist to this story, I ruptured both Achilles tendons playing squash and basketball between 2010 and 2017. Yup, both legs… sigh. For that story, check out my “home” section.

The original plan was to walk half of the 21 kilometers on my treadmill and then finish the rest outside, enjoying the good old outdoors. There was no original plan to walk the entire 21 kilometers, or roughly 30,000 steps, on a treadmill. Not a chance.

Everything was looking good, but then some roadblocks popped up. The most obvious one was COVID-19. We all know about the restrictions in my neck of the woods (Canada). Going outside and social areas were basically off the table.

That was that, but then two other challenges materialized out of nowhere. The first was a heatwave. My area reached some pretty crazy record temperatures, anywhere from 30 degrees to almost 40 degrees Celsius.

Now, the date of this marathon was the end of August. It usually gets pretty hot around that time of year anyway. The second challenge rhymed with the first. Because of the really hot weather, British Columbia unfortunately received a large number of forest fires.

Take those three events — COVID-19, smoke from the BC fires, and an unprecedented heatwave — and you get the perfect conditions to walk a 21-kilometer virtual half marathon… in your house, on a treadmill. But the story doesn’t really end there.

Let’s talk about the finishing time. I naively thought I could do this whole thing in about five and a half hours (lol). I don’t walk to race; it’s all for fun, just to finish.

Now, the new question was, where could I find a comfortable five-and-a-half-hour window? If I walked from 6 am to noon, the day would get progressively hotter, and the smoky air would still be an issue. The solution? Walk from 12:01 am to 6 am. As the sun comes down, the temperature drops, there’s no heatwave to contend with, and hopefully, the smoke would be calmer.

(Side note: Walking outside starting at 12 am was a no-no for me, but oh was I tempted.)

FYI, there’s no air conditioning in my treadmill’s chamber (the living room). Moving the treadmill to the basement was also out of the question because it was too heavy.

Fast forward to 12:01 am. The treadmill has fired up, the house is cooler, people are saying goodnight, and I’m turning on lights, sparking up the TV, and walking till the sun comes up…

The first hour, I felt fantastic. Nothing was stopping me. I was taking my breaks, and I felt 100%.

The second hour was the same — everything was great at this point.

From 3 am to 6 am, my whole body and mind started to get numb. I had to decrease the speed on my treadmill and take even more breaks.

Surprisingly, my treadmill made it through the night, with one unfortunate issue. The timer on my treadmill only goes up to 99 minutes, and it reset back to zero. I had to set my time manually using my Google stopwatch. I started it right at 12:00 a.m., so everything seemed okay.

No big deal, I was also tracking my kilometers on the treadmill alongside Google Fit.

Then, the unthinkable happened…

I accidentally hit the red safety clip on the treadmill, which shuts the machine off. Just like that, I lost all the kilometers I’d tracked on the treadmill.

Let’s take a closer look at the Google Fit data above.

As you can see, all 30,000 steps were recorded between 12:00 AM and around 6:30 AM. The walking pace then gradually slows down, likely due to my crazy tiredness.

From around 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM, I enjoyed a good sleep and then resumed my day with normal walking activities, such as going to the store for groceries.

Later in the day, after the initial 30,000 steps, there’s another peak of over 3,000 steps. I hopped back on my treadmill for some additional walking.

Therefore, the total steps for that day according to Google Fit were 44,310.

Here is my Google Fit data from the virtual half marathon (above)

Did I actually walk 30,000 steps exactly?

No, the actual amount of walking steps was 30,907 steps during my virtual half marathon.

How long did it take to walk 30,000 steps?

According to my Google Fit data, the move time was 343 minutes, which is 5.72 hours. I started walking at a medium pace, which was a speed of 3 on my treadmill. After the second hour, I reduced the speed to 2.5. Lowering the speed increased the total move time. That was a surprise, as I didn’t want to slow down.

How many kilometers / miles?

According to Google Fit, my 30,907 steps were 21.24 kilometers or 13.2 miles. I created a steps to kilometers and miles converter for general estimates over in the pages section of the website (just for fun). 

How many calories did I burn?

The calories burned were 1,328 calories according to Google Fit. I take the calorie count with a grain of salt. If I compare the 1,328 calories burned to how I was feeling during the 30,000-step walk, I would say the data seems a bit low, but who knows.

I wore the wrong kind of shoes

Here's where I made a bigger mistake than I anticipated. Originally, I planned to walk the 30,000 steps outside. Since I was training in my hiking shoes, I didn't want to switch from hiking shoes to running shoes on the day of the virtual half marathon. As a result, I kept my trail runners on, which have less cushioning. Luckily, my treadmill has a somewhat bouncy walking deck, so it wasn't that bad.

Here are some of the differences between my ankle-high hiking shoes vs. running shoes. 

I'll use my Men's Shadow Soft Shell Waterproof Shoes (which I wore for the half marathon on the treadmill) and my Asics Gel-Excite 7's (which I actually wear for treadmill walking).

Waterproofing: My Men's Shadow Soft Shell Shoes are fully waterproof with a softshell exterior, while my Asics Gel-Excite 7s are not waterproof and are designed for breathability and comfort. The waterproofing was the main reason why I trained with the hiking shoes, it was great on rainy days walking outside.

Cushioning: My Men's Shadow Soft Shell Waterproof Shoes provided basic cushioning, suitable for walking and hiking, whereas my Asics Gel-Excite 7s had something called AmpliFoam with GEL technology that was made for enhanced shock absorption. And yes, the Asics definitely has great cushioning.

Upper Material: My Men's Shadow Soft Shell Waterproof Shoes were made from a softshell material for weather resistance, while my Asics Gel-Excite 7s were not.

Traction & Flexibility: My Men's Shadow Soft Shell Waterproof Shoes' grip was optimized for trails and uneven terrain. Because of this, they didn't have much give in the flexibility department, but my Asics Gel-Excite 7s were equipped with a great rubber outsole, great for road and treadmill walking.

Did my body ache?

Yes, after the second hour of walking, my back and Achilles tendons started aching. I increased the frequency of my breaks, which helped me feel much better.

What was it like walking with those Achilles tendon injuries?

I already had major Achilles tendon ruptures in the past, so this was basically pushing my limits. Walking 30,000 steps in one night was fine for my body for the first two hours, but man, the last four hours were brutal. I was taking breaks, of course, but by the end, both my body and mind were completely fried.

My Achilles tendons surprisingly held up fine, but I don't think I would push them like that without more training.

My calves and back were sore. I had started resistance training in preparation for the walk, but I think it was too late to make a significant difference. As a result, I had to lower the speed on my treadmill after two hours.

Exhaustion led to some clumsy mistakes after 5 am. I accidentally hit the magnetic safety clip on the treadmill, which caused it to shut down.

Walking an additional 3,600 steps later in the day was a mistake. My body clearly needed rest. Unfortunately, I didn’t listen.

What was my sleep like after?

The sleep after the 30,000 steps was amazing. Man, I wish I could get good sleep like that every day.

Did I like walking on my treadmill? Which treadmill did I use?

I think walking the 30,000 steps would have been more enjoyable in the good old outdoors instead of on my treadmill.

As for the treadmill I used, it was the Altrax-Fitness Compact treadmill. It's still in my living room. I like it because it has a flat tray that attaches to the handrails, so it's easy to place my water bottle and Google TV remote on top of it. It beats the old-school treadmill trays that have the cup holders, although those styles of trays have their own wonderful purposes as well. The treadmill is also smaller than a traditional treadmill, and it has no incline, which makes it easy to move around in the house. However, in saying that, my Altrax treadmill is not light, weighing about 100 pounds or so.

How was recovery after?

I only had my vibrating foam roller to tackle all the sore muscles. Eventually, I got a massage gun, which does a much better job. I was definitely sore for a few days. My entire body, both upper and lower, was aching. Even my mood took a hit — I was cranky, irritated.

If I could go back in time and walk it all over again, what would I Do differently?

Footwear: I should have worn high-quality running shoes with good support and comfort throughout training. Using hiking shoes for walking and training was a mistake. Now, I prefer ASICS brand running/walking shoes.

Was walking 30,000 steps sustainable for me? Could I integrate it into my lifestyle?

No and no.

So, what lessons were learned from this extreme walking challenge?

Resistance Training: I regret not starting resistance training from the beginning.

Treadmill Location: Next time, I’ll definitely move the treadmill downstairs for a less cramped walking experience.

Activity Tracker: Using Google Fit during training was okay, but having an activity tracker would have been better. It would’ve allowed me to track daily steps and sleep patterns.

Relaxation: I took things too seriously. A more relaxed approach would have been more enjoyable.

Consistency: I should have aimed for consistent walk times. My walk times varied between afternoons and evenings.

Training Strategy: Short, frequent walks are preferable to sporadic bursts of overtraining.

Nutrition: My diet could have been better.

Walk Location: I could have gotten more creative with my walking routes. Exploring the nearby trails would have been more interesting than simply choosing left or right on the sidewalk.

Socialization: While I enjoyed solo walks, incorporating more walks with friends and family would have been a great idea.

Rest and Recovery: More rest days were definitely needed.

Stretching: Stretching should have been a priority. I didn’t take it seriously enough.

Visibility: Wearing bright clothing while walking outside is important for safety. I’m still working on incorporating that habit.

Pace Monitoring: I should have monitored my pace more closely throughout the walks.

Overall, it was a challenging experience, but I learned a lot about planning and preparation for future endeavors.

Resistance Training: What Did I Do?

When walking, the main issue was that after a few hours, my upper back would start aching, and this happened consistently. I wanted to do exercises that build up my upper body without putting any strain on my joints, so I went with higher-density resistance bands (looped).

Here are a few exercises I did to work the back and upper body.

Resistance-band Deadlifts: I found these worked well; they worked the back, legs, and core. It was a great mini full-body workout. Think of it like squatting down a bit with your back straight and picking up the handles of a wheelbarrow, but instead of a wheelbarrow, there are resistance bands. Something like that.

Bicep Curls: I would hold the resistance bands, then I would stand on the bottom part of the resistance bands with both feet, keeping about shoulder-width apart. Then I would do a bicep curl.

Palof Press: These worked my back and core. For this exercise, I had to attach the looped band to the door (the resistance bands came with a door attachment), then I would hold the resistance band with one hand and have the other hand supporting it. Walk back until the resistance band got a little tension, turn to the side until there was good tension, hold the band to my chest, hold, then push out extending both hands, hold, then bring it back to my chest. I would do this repeatedly.

Resistance Bands Tip: I found resistance bands on my bare hands were a challenge, so I got some workout gloves made for resistance bands.

Here is how long it took me to walk the virtual half marathon, over six hours with breaks (above)

Total time walked - Over six hours

How has my approach to fitness tracking evolved since the virtual half marathon? 

So, this walking adventure happened years ago, and I was using Google Fit at the time. Well, there's been a dramatic evolution in my walking tech since then. 

I started with the Polar m200 sports watch, then moved on to various Fitbits. I began with the Fitbit Inspire 2, followed by the Inspire 3, Charge 5, Charge 6, and currently, I'm wearing the Fitbit Versa 4. 

I chose the Versa 4 because of its large, easy-to-read display, and I found a clock face on Fitbit's app called "Big Time." So far, so good. 

I never thought clock face display would be important to me, but here we are in late 2024, and display quality is now a top priority when choosing a Fitbit. 

Of course, nothing is set in stone, and I've been exploring other fitness trackers and smartwatches, but we'll see what the future holds.

Conclusion and swinging back to mental health

Walking 30,000 steps was great, but it was grueling. However, I would say that not many people around me understood that I was walking a half marathon, so I did feel isolated at times. The solution, again, is having some sort of support network. 

There you go, that’s my experience walking 30,000 steps in one night. It was unforgettable, and I’m glad I gave it a try.

Related Blogs

Urban Hiking 101: My Essential Tips for Walking the City

Side note: I’m not a professional, please consult your local physician before starting any exercise program.

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