The Trash-Tracker Challenge

As a person who cares (maybe a little too much at times) about fitness and nutrition, I’ve definitely food-tracked in the past. I’ve tracked calories, I’ve tracked macros, I’ve tracked health stats like pulse rate and morning glucose levels. So the idea came: Why not track my trash?

Day 1 of the challenge. (You can see why 26 is not quite accurate.)

But (currently) there’s no app for that.

You can find Trash Tracker apps that are connected to area garbage removal companies, but an app that allows you to keep up with what you’re throwing every day? That has yet to be created. (Tech people, here’s your gap!)

So here’s what I did: I created a “Trash Tracker” note on my phone and decided to follow these rules: (1) Don’t count anything that can be composted or recycled (as long as I actually compost or recycle it). (2) Keep up with literally everything I throw in the trash—from pieces of string to stickers off an apple—for 10 days.

What I Learned

1. I throw away a lot of stuff. The first day I tried this, I got annoyed with my trash-tracking idea pretty fast. Little things I’d never thought twice about—like (dozens of) pieces of a dog toy, an unidentifiable piece of packaging, a piece of lint—I was now having to record. It felt like I was opening my Notes app every five minutes. My first day, I recorded 26 items . . . only to realize later that I’d neglected all of my baby daughter’s diapers and wipes because it didn’t register that her diaper pail is also a trash can. So, unfortunately, 26 is pretty far off.

2. I throw away a lot of the same things every day. I started to realize about Day 3 that I was repeating myself—often. Every day, I threw away at least one tissue or dryer sheet. Most days I threw away (on average) two toddler pouches. Some days I threw away four. Also, I apparently use antibacterial wipes on the daily . . . and some days, more like hourly. These repetitive items made me reconsider some choices I was making. More on that in a bit.

How It Helped

Overall, trash tracking made me think twice about what I was throwing away. Sometimes it’s easy to get lazy, and you throw something away that, with a little effort, could have been composted or recycled. Track tracking held my feet to the fire a bit.

This was especially true when my husband and I took a mini vacation in the middle of my challenge. Instead of making the excuse that we were away and we didn’t have a recycling can in our room, I set aside recyclable items and brought them home to our bins. It wasn’t hard. It just took a little thought, and I’m not sure I would have had the idea had I not been tracking.

What I Changed

Back to those items I kept writing down every day . . . I decided that after the 10 days, I wanted to then challenge myself to make three eco-friendly changes. After looking over my lists, I decided on these:

1. Make my own applesauce/purees and buy reusable pouches.  

2. Find a better alternative to antibacterial wipes.

3. Stop using dryer sheets.

The first change hasn’t been all that hard; it just requires time and a little prep. I found reusable pouches on Amazon (plus, a friend had already given me two), and I used my baby-food maker to make the purees. (For recipe inspiration, I use Pinterest!) It helped that I already had experience making my daughter’s food; now it’s just a matter of getting it into a pouch.

A mango-carrot-chia puree in reusable pouches.

The second change, I’ll be honest, was a little more expensive than I’d hoped. I didn’t want to keep buying the plastic containers that you throw away after using antibacterial wipes, not to mention throwing away all the wipes, not to mention all the chemicals on the wipes . . . so after a little research, I found Biom. The dispenser is reusable, the wipes are non-toxic (safe even on skin!), and they’re 100% plant-based and biodegradable.

While there are many things to love about Biom wipes (I particularly love that they’re safe on my baby’s face), they aren’t cheap. Though, like other eco-friendly products, you may find that you save money in the long run because you aren’t rebuying wipes and their containers each time.

My final change was, frankly, something I should have done a long time ago; but I hadn’t given it much thought until I did this challenge. Using wool dryer balls instead of lint sheets is a pretty easy and a very economical change. I found a six-pack of wool dryer balls that I can use again and again for about the same price as a name-brand pack (130-count) of dryer sheets.

What I Recommend

Trash tracking definitely helped. It opened my eyes to information I wouldn’t have had otherwise. It held me accountable. And it helped me make positive lifestyle changes that I may not have otherwise been inspired to make.

I recommend trying it, but I’ll be honest, tracking perfectly for the full 10 days was tough. Some days I couldn’t find my phone every time I found a piece of trash. Some days I simply forgot. But I’d say that even though I didn’t track perfectly, I still tracked a lot, and I got good information about my habits nonetheless.

All that to say, if you try this, show yourself some grace. Set a goal—10 days, 7 days, 3 days. (I’d say choose something longer than 1 day, but much shorter than a month.) And most important, set a goal for yourself when you finish: Will you make 3 lifestyle changes? More? Maybe one?

Choose the number that feels right to you because, honestly, the number isn’t what matters. Change matters, and every step in a better direction is a step worth taking.

I hope this helps you find your next steps toward a more creation-friendly and Creator-honoring lifestyle. 💛