The Walking Machine: Walking 15 Hours Straight with Runtastic
It’s one thing to lose weight initially, but it’s quite another to stay consistent and keep that weight off, ideally, forever! It takes a lot of dedication to form new healthy habits that keep you on the right path. In all honesty, it’s easier to fall back into old ways than it is to stick to new ones. But, we have seen in some of our amazing success stories that it is definitely possible.
Do you remember the walking machine Joe Hilyar and his amazing weight-loss success story we shared on the blog nearly 2 years ago? He’s the guy who found himself weighing nearly 330 lbs (150 kg) with diabetes that was spiraling out of control. His doctor warned that he would have a major heart attack before he turned 50 if he didn’t take action fast.
Joe’s Secret to Success? Walking
So what did he do? He started walking. Not only did he start walking, but he started walking during a time when smartphones weren’t very common. So, he would drive his car to map the distance of his walking route, walk that route and calculate it all by hand. After one year, he walked nearly 1,000 miles (1,600 km)!
After that year, he finally got a smartphone and downloaded the Runtastic app to track his walks. Let’s keep in mind that Joe is from Minnesota where the winters are brutal (to say the least!). That didn’t stop him, and he continued to walk (ski goggles and all!) his way to a healthier life. And he quickly found out the incredible benefits of walking for weight loss!
Last time we checked in with him was October 2015. He was down to 210 lbs (96 kg), and his longest walk ever was 42.17 miles (68 km) in 13 hours and 49 minutes!
Well, we recently caught up with him to see if he was continuing to make progress and how he was feeling. And, as we expected, he’s still going strong!
Here’s his update:
I am feeling absolutely awesome lately. Since my success story, I have lost an additional 10 lbs (4.5 kg), and I am now at a comfortable 200 lbs (90 kg), with a total weight loss of 130 lbs (59 kg).
Joe has walked a total of 12,658 km and burned 1,290,755 calories
My longest walk this summer with Runtastic was on June 15, 2017. I walked 50.2 miles (80.7 km) in just short of 15 hours with an average speed of 3.4 mph (5.5 kph). Since October 20, 2013, when I started to use the Runtastic app on my iPhone, I have walked 7,865 miles (12,658 km) in 860 activities and burned a total of 1,290,755 calories! I now enjoy a few 20-mile (32.2 km) walks during the week to maintain my health, and I continue to choose wisely when it comes to making healthy food choices.
I would like to share my own original quote that was at the end of my Runtastic success story: “With a lot of time and effort, you can achieve great things. With a little help from Runtastic, you achieve even greater!”
Joe, we couldn’t be prouder of you and your continued success! Your motivation and determination are absolutely contagious, and we know you will continue to inspire others through your walking to weight loss success story!
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