I think most of us have heard about the recommendation to get in 10,000 steps per day; it’s come in and out of fashion in the health world for as long as I can remember. Apparently it first started in the 1960s as a marketing thing in Japan and took off from there. It’s come and gone several times since then, and it appears that it’s the new buzz yet again in the world of health and wellness.
This time there’s some research behind it, and those studies have resulted in some pretty impressive statistics. Benefits include weight loss, lowered blood pressure, maintenance of bone mineral density, and improved lipid panels (particularly lowering the “bad” fat and increasing the “good” fat in the body) (Research HERE). In addition, mental health benefits have been seen, including decreased anxiety, depression, fatigue, anger, and confusion (Research HERE).
So how does this work? What are the rules? How much walking is 10 000 steps? And how do we realistically do this?
Let’s break this all down.
By most calculations that I’ve seen, and by my trackers, too, 10 000 steps is around 5 miles. WHAT?!!! Yup. Don’t quit here- keep reading!
First and foremost, this is NOT a must-do number. ANY amount of increase in your step count is beneficial. Remember when we were talking about increasing the number of plants you eat per week (That post is HERE if you need a refresher)? And the power of a 1% increase in your efforts (that post is HERE for you)? ANY amount above what you’re doing right now is fantastic. If you’re averaging 500 steps a day, then 10 000 is an unrealistic goal right now. But you could add a few more steps and go a bit further than you’ve been walking. On days when I walk my son to school and run errands, I can easily get in about 17 000 steps. But on days when I’m busy at work, and barely have any time between clients, I average about 3000 steps, and that includes a 45 minute strength training workout to start my day!
For me, I’m working at bumping up my step count on my busy work days. At this point, I’m aiming for 3500 steps, and I’ll increase that slowly each week. I really have no idea where I ‘ll even find time to get a full 10 000 steps into my crazy days, but I’m not even worried about that right now. It’s not a sustainable goal for me at this point.
My mother in law is struggling with this right now in a major way. She’s actually experiencing some pretty severe health issues as a result of her sedentary lifestyle. It’s hard for her, at this moment, to even make it down the hall of her apartment complex. Her daily goal is about 100 steps, and that’s ambitious!
If you’re someone who has a very active job, or if a daily walk is already a habit, then your step goal may be 17,000 steps or more!
The point is to do more than what you are doing right now. It follows my usual “small steps, smart swaps” approach. Don’t aim so high above where you are that you can’t sustain your goal in the long term. You’ll wind up discouraged and be more likely to give up and revert to old habits.
Moving on… what are the “rules” here? They’re basically that you need to move more than you are now. That’s about it. Every step you take is one that counts. It doesn’t have to be a high intensity workout step or a zone two cardio step. It could be a step out of bed, a step to the kitchen, a step to the car. It can be a workout step or a slow meandering step. It can be a jumping jack or a dance step or anything where your legs are moving you around. They all count toward your goal.
How do you count the steps? You can use any step counter- it doesn’t have to be fancy. You can use your smart phone (there are so many apps for this), a Garmin, a Fitbit, an Oura ring, even an old school pedometer (all of these are affiliate links for you- just click on the names in blue text)…SO many options!! And if you prefer a low tech, low key approach, you really can just aim to move more than you are right now. For someone like my mother in law, we don’t need any tracker, since there are so few steps to measure. Her current goal is to make the entire length of the hallway and back- and that is going to take a while to achieve. I’d suggest having some sort of way to count the steps you make, though, simply to keep you accountable and have a way to quantify your movement to watch it increase over time.
How to get in more steps? I have some suggestions in my NEAT blog, since they are akin to each other: add in more movement. You can read that HERE. Really, just find small moments in your day that you can move around.
Don’t know where to start? Need help finding those movement opportunities? As always, I’m here to help! Reach out HERE to start feeling healthier and be your best You!!
Blessings,
Melanie
