It's time to decide -- is this a healthy habit that can be realistically worked into day-to-day life?

• Piece of cake! I can definitely work this into my daily routine.
• Not my cup of tea. This is harder than I imagined. Still, I plan to stick with it and do my best.
• Nuts! This seems nearly impossible to keep up. But I'll definitely do it whenever possible.

It's a tie! And here's why: I really enjoyed my week of walking everywhere. I got plenty of fresh air and sunshine, lots of extra exercise, and I saved on fuel and did my share to protect the environment. But I also realize that walking or biking everywhere just isn't practical 100% of the time. We had really great weather all week long, but the cold, rain, and snow are on their way, for one thing.

We also made some sacrifices this week, a few that I'm not willing to make every day. For instance, instead of taking my three-year-old to a tiny tumblers class in a neighboring community, I took her to our neighborhood park instead. Sure, she still had fun and got some exercise, but she also missed out on an opportunity to socialize with other kids her age.

So here's my compromise: WalkScore said our neighborhood was 60% walkable, so 60% of the time (or more), I'm going to do my best to walk or bike. We'll keep walking to school, to neighborhood activities, and to use the nearby business district to fill as many of our needs as possible. That way, when we do climb into our van for something that's a little farther away, I can feel good about the fact we're using it far less than we used to.