A few weeks ago, I hit a milestone that seems silly but gave me a huge sense of accomplishment. I reached my goal of closing all three of my fitness rings on my watch for 365 days in a row.

Closing the rings on my watch requires standing at least one minute per hour for 12 hours a day, moving enough to burn 350 calories and exercising for at least 30 minutes a day. None of those activities are very difficult. Even together they are not that impressive. This accomplishment was about consistency. Doing any activity every single day for a year takes determination and persistence.

My original goal didn’t have a timeframe in mind. I wanted to change habits to be healthier, make sure I was moving and doing a little physical activity every day. I set the goal small enough it would be hard to talk myself out of it when life got busy or I was tired.

I started by incorporating walk during my workday, taking a lap around the block a few times each day helped avoid the trap of “not having time.”  

As spring grew lovelier, I walked at home. We have a view with Instagram worthy sunset almost every night. In the heat I would walk at first light and enjoy sunrises. Each day passing the same crops and cows up close gave me a view of how they grew and changed in real time.

Midsummer I almost broke my streak. I arrived home after 9 p.m. on a busy day with almost no exercise minutes logged. A thunderstorm had rolled in unexpectedly. Not wanting to lose momentum, I walked for 25 minutes around all the rooms in my house, up and down the stairs and anywhere I could get 10 to 15 strides at a time. Poor KitCat, who likes to follow me around, was very confused about my strange pattern and eventually got tired and laid down.

I realized if this goal was important to me, I needed to plan better and be prepared to walk in less than ideal conditions. I got rain boots, a headlamp and various other items to take on whatever Mother Nature threw my way.

I walked in the rain, snow, heat, cold; on nights when it was pitch black and others that felt like hitting my head on the cosmos because the sky was so bright. I walked when I was tired, sick, in pain or just didn’t feel like it. I walked on treadmills at hotels, interstate rest stops, the streets of New York, the Mall in Washington, D.C., and along the rugged coast of Ireland. It didn’t matter where or how, I kept up the streak.

The most trying times were when the goal slipped my mind. I had one or two nights where I crawled into bed only to see my watch and remember the rings. Each time I mustered the motivation to change back into workout clothes and head out to get the minutes.

At Christmas time, I was gifted a mini-treadmill that helped me make it through the worst of the winter days that would otherwise have broken my spirit. That was the point I knew I would reach my goal. I had overcome all obstacles and excuses. Nothing would stand in the way because I was committed.

Thirty minutes of exercise sounded simple, but over 12 months I walked 3.5 million steps and more than 1,600 miles. It gave me a new perspective on what it means to be committed. When you truly commit to something there will be obstacles and trials; make it your priority. Push past the hard and keep showing up — that is how you achieve your goals.