Should you walk 10,000 steps a day? Here’s the truth. (Photo: Getty Creative)
For many, walking is a great low-impact exercise — and it’s also completely free. Research shows that incorporating walking into your movement routine can reduce your risk of heart disease and even improve your mental health. However exactly how Many The walk one should do daily is up for debate.
10,000 steps a day probably comes to mind – a goal many people who track their step count each day strive to achieve. It’s the number associated with many fitness challenges and is the number many fitness TikTokers swear by for health and weight loss. Goal he is That number we should all strive hard every day?
Dr. Alexis Coslick, a specialist in sports medicine and rehabilitation at Johns Hopkins Medicine, notes that 10,000 steps per day was developed for a marketing campaign for the Japanese pedometer, and is not an official health recommendation.
She notes that “studies have looked at step counts related to health and weight loss benefits, but the majority of studies have also restricted calorie intake, rather than evaluating step counts separately.”
Koslik says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officially recommends “150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity and two days of muscle-strengthening.” Trying to reach an individual’s step count could, in theory, go toward these exercise goals.
However, the real reason step count is such an important metric is that it indicates the number of times you move throughout the day. Personal trainer Tony Covey, owner of Bloom Training, explains that an individual’s daily step count “is closely associated with increased cognition, mood, glycemic (blood sugar) control, reduced risk of all-cause mortality, blood pressure, and postprandial triglycerides.” .” Increasing the number of one’s steps — aka increasing the number of times you move throughout the day — may help you live longer, according to research.
“A recent meta-analysis examining more than 175,000 people-years showed that for every additional 1,000 steps you take per day, your risk of death from all causes decreases by 12%,” Covey tells Yahoo Life. “The data looked at individuals who averaged less than 3,000 steps per day all the way up to 16,000 steps per day. Walking less than 3,000 steps per day was associated with a 300% increased risk of all-cause mortality compared to the 16,000 steps group. To put that In mind, all-cause mortality rates are only 70 to 80% higher in smokers than in non-smokers. How much you move during the day is one of the biggest predictors of your overall life.”
However, you don’t have to worry too much about 10,000 steps, specifically. Michelle Olson, MD, clinical professor of sports sciences at Huntingdon College in Alabama, points out that, according to research, 7,000 steps per day might be the right place.
“In terms of making a big impact, one has to work out 7,000 steps a day. Compared to doing only 4,000 steps, taking 7,000 steps significantly reduces health risks,” she shares. “You can get additional health benefits from taking about 10,000 more steps per day, but the degree of health gains levels.”
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