On Walking 100k Steps in a Day

Last weekend I walked 101,187 steps in a single day.

My Garmin watch says I covered 88.84km and burned 5000 calories. Sixteen hours of continuous walking.

No real reason, I just wanted to know if I could do it. There’s something appealing about arbitrary physical thresholds. It’s also a nice way for me to explore some areas of the city I hadn’t been to before.

The route

I took the subway to Grand Central around 4am, and started walking around then. Walked across the Brooklyn Bridge as the sky turned blue. Caught up with a close friend in Europe over the phone.

From there: Sunset Park and Bensonhurst. Even though I’d been to some parts of Bensonhurst before, I didn’t know how large the Chinese population in Brooklyn was.

I pushed all the way to Coney Island. I walked the length of the boardwalk to Brighton Beach. I enjoy seeing the Cyrillic signage in that area–it reminds me of my time in Central Asia. Then walked all the way back up through Flatbush, where I got some Jamaican food for lunch. Then Prospect Park, Williamsburg, and Greenpoint.

I was joined by a friend at Gantry Plaza State Park in Long Island City as I made it back to my home borough of Queens.

Walked to have a snack at Rainey Park, then across the bridge into Roosevelt Island. We looped the entire island, which was lined with cherry blossoms in full bloom. Then took the cable car to Manhattan.

Had a cup of matcha and then walked the entire length of Central Park. Then kept looping sections of the park until my watch was under 1,000 steps from the six digit magic number. This part of the walk is when you stop thinking about landmarks and start thinking about steps.

I finally reached 100,000 steps at 9:23pm.

We had Dave’s Hot Chicken as a reward. Standing up after sitting down for 40 minutes was challenging. Getting back to Queens took more effort than I’d like to admit.

Tips

Unlike when I ran my first marathon a month ago, during this walk I didn’t get a single blister. Here’s what helped:

• Petroleum jelly on your feet and inner thighs. Generously. Reapply on your feet a couple of times throughout the day.
• Running shoes. You need shoes with a lot of padding. I used my Brooks Hyperion Max (my running shoes). This will make a huge difference, especially if you’re walking on concrete.
• Merino wool socks. Merino wicks moisture away from your feet and keeps them dry.

Other tips:

• Backpack with essentials: bring water, snacks, and a power bank. Keep it light though.
• Eat and drink well: you’ll be burning a lot of calories. Make sure you replenish them.
• Start early: the last thing you want to do is be racing against the clock when your phone/watch step count resets.
• Have company: phone a friend or have a friend or two join sections of the walk. It really helps.

Other challenges I’m looking forward to in NYC

• Costco Ultra: Walking to each Costco in the city in 24 hours, eating a hotdog/slice of pizza at every one
• The Great Saunter (walking the perimeter of Manhattan)
• Walking the length of every borough:
  • Manhattan
  • Brooklyn
  • Queens
  • Staten Island
  • Bronx
• Walking every major East River pedestrian bridge in one day: Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, Williamsburg Bridge, Pulaski Bridge, Queensboro Bridge, and the RFK pedestrian path
• Walking from Battery Park to Bear Mountain