I just wanted to add my thanks to the many others who are benefiting from your web site. I have lost 13 lbs since joining up this past May and I know that consistent walking has been the difference. Your site is the easiest I have found to keep track of miles walked and it challenges me to make an entry every day. Unfortunately, I may have charged out a little too exuberantly. I have developed blister on both heels! So I will be backing off a little for the next couple of weeks, getting in what I can.  But thanks again for your wonderfully simple but extremely useful web site!

I usually try to swim laps 60 minutes a day in our pool, and find that the most exhausting of all the exercises I do, so I would think that would contribute most to my total fitness points. Last year, before the swimming category was created, I entered my swimming minutes in the aerobics category. I know that gave me points doing it that way. Your web site is a great motivator to get moving. I'm always challanging myself to keep my total “Fitness Points” as high as possible, and doing so has really improved my total fitness.

I thank you for your web site!!!

It's been a lot of help to get started with some type of program that doesn't involve running right away. I have had 3 stress fractures in about 13 months and can not do any running this year. This has been a help to watch the miles accumulate on this site as I am developing a base for marathon training (for a fall marathon-walking). I only log miles that I have walked as part of an exercise period. I walk about 2-3 miles at work but do not count this. I like the option of setting the goals of walking across each state. It makes it a bit more of a challenge and fun.

Thanks for the great site and keep up the good work.

I have been saying to people, because of knee surgery in October and the fact I have to snowshoe instead of walk (and snowshoeing is a LOT slower that walking!), I set a new record for most days needed to reach the 100 mile goal!! But I did it, at least in part because of the website. Yes, it has helped. Writing to congratulate others who reached their goals helped me realize that I could do it too, kept me motivated.

I use the site to keep track of walking, strength training, and biking. I enjoy seeing how the other members are doing, how far they are walking and that they meet the goals. I like that the site keeps track of lots of different activities. The special events are fun to watch, too. I wish your message board was more active, but I guess people are all out walking!! The sense of community is nice, since I live in the middle of the woods in Maine and don't have a community handy! I am grateful the site is there. Oh, I also like the walking across the states aspect of the site. Another site I used to go to did a similar thing, but the miles walked did not match up to the miles they gave me (they gave way more than I walked, so it wasn't a true picture of how far I walked). I like how you do it.

I thank you for the work you do to run the site. It is making a difference in the amount I snowshoe/walk, thus it is making a difference in my life.

Thanks for a well-thought-out event!

Ellie has been a great motivator for me. I read about her in our newspaper the first year of Healthwalkers and decided that I, too, could walk. She has motivated me by staying on top of the list and also by personally encouraging me by e-mail.

I have been going to Weight Watchers 2 years tomorrow. By walking, riding a bike, exercising and physical therapy I have needed to do I have become more athletic - at 56 years of age! Of course, diet also plays an important role. I have learned how to eat healthy and try to walk every day.

The total amount of weight I have lost because of all these factors is about 72 pounds as of yesterday. I still have at least 24 more pounds to go, but I KNOW I can reach my goal.

Healthwalkers has kept me accountable for recording activities and trying to maintain a status on the front page, even though I've had some surgeries and some medical problems during this time period. I also challenged one HW member to a goal to be higher on the first page by Dec. 10, 2005. I did win the challenge, but I actually think we both won because we are both more active because of this. By challenging her I have also gained a long-distance e-mailing friend.

Keep up the good work!

Thank you, Healthwalkers!

I think this is so clever how you have this website set up. It is a great idea, helps to keep me moving.

Thank you so much.

When you walk around the mall, you'll get more than you bargained for: A leg up on fitness. Mall walking is a perfect way to make exercise feel less like a chore and more a part of daily life. Shopping centers are heated in winter, air-conditioned in summer, safe, well lit, and free of snapping dogs and pollen. Not only will you burn calories and tone your legs, if you maintain good posture when you walk, you'll give your abs a workout. Keep yourself straight up while holding in your ab muscles; every step becomes a mini sit-up. Most of us lean forward when we walk, but we can catch ourselves easily at the mall: Just check your posture in your reflection in the windows.