Machka 

I was watching a show on health and fitness . . . and they recommend using a pedometer, as we start to work toward fitness, and walking a minimum of 10,000 steps a day.

Hmmmm ... I might have to dig out my pedometer and see how many I actually walk!


They also recommend this website/program:
https://www.interventusa.com/
It is a life-style monitoring, informational program to help people loose weight and become fit.

Deederdoll

Doing it....10,000 steps is roughly five miles a day.(for me) I live in the city, and walk as much as I can, but it is hard to do 5 miles every day --really walking at any speed, that is -- I'm not counting puttering around my house. I can generally do 3 -- but have to consciously plan to get in the last two miles, and I can't do it every day either....more challenging than people realize!

good luck!

SandySwimmer

I did this - wore a pedometer and wrote down the number of steps each night for a month. It was interesting. During the first week, it let me see that my intensely active lifestyle (as I saw it) was really a sedentary one. I added each day from the day before until I reached 10,000 about 5 days a week.

Did you see the study about the Amish? Researchers had a group of Amish people who had very little incidents of Western diseases . . . the average Amish woman walks 14,000 steps (7 miles), Amish man walks 18,000 (9 miles) and an Amish man following a horse and plow while working in a field 51,000 (25+ miles).

A few habits that are now ingrained in me from wearing the pedometer . . .
I always take stairs
I park the furthest away in a parking lot
I pace when I am talking on a phone
I take extra trips instead of trying to carry things in one arm full

Sandy

Machka 

The show I was watching mentioned that at first people might think they get a lot of exercise but once they wear the pedometer they discover that they really only walk about 2000-3000 steps. They went on to say that if a person finishes the work day with only 3000 steps on their pedometer, hopefully that will be incentive to go for a walk after supper rather than sitting and watching TV ... and apparently some people have used it exactly like that.

I, too, will take the stairs, park in the far corner of the parking lot, etc. etc. In fact, when I lived in Winnipeg, I didn't own a car, so I walked to the grocery store 2-3 times a week (1.6 kms round trip), and to church once a week (3 kms one way), and sometimes, especially during the winter on the days I didn't ride my bicycle, either to work, or home from work (6.7 kms one way). If I didn't walk the whole distance, I would try to get off the bus at about the halfway point and walk half the distance.

All that was combined with the fact that I cycle a lot, and in the winter I weightlift regularly, and cross-country-ski and snowshoe now and then.

And people would ask me how I remained as slender as I was! Hmmmmm ...

Recently, unfortunately, I have been placed into a situation where I have to drive, and the sad things is that it is tempting to drive everywhere, where I would have walked to some of those places before. And this year, for the first time in about 8 years, I have struggled with my weight.

However, I have just started University, and it turns out that if I want free parking, I have to park about a kilometer away from the school ... so that's good. Plus my classes are at opposite ends of the campus, so I have to do a lot of walking back and forth every hour or so ... so that's good too. And I've joined the college gym and am running/walking on the treadmills and weightlifting three times a week. I've just got a new job too, and it is about 2.5 kms away so I intend to walk at least some of the time. Plus I'm still cycling, of course. Hopefully, with all this additional exercise, I'll drop about 5 lbs over the next few months ... that would be GREAT!

Powerful Pete

Hhhm. You guys have gotten me curious... there must be a pedometer around the house somewhere...

jazzy_cyclist

wonder if that would equate to 10,000 revolutions on a bike -- at a cadence of 80+ that would be a couple of hours. If I could get in two hours of biking a day, I'd be ecstatic.

Powerful Pete

OK, checked for two days with the wife's pedometer. I average about 9,800 steps a day, which is equivalent of about 6km. In a way I have been cheating though, because with the pedometer on I have become more aware of the steps that I am [or am not] taking and make a point out of taking a nice long, brisk walk at lunch time.

But, I guess, that is positive!

Guest

Wow. We just talked about this at a convention over the weekend. You sure you weren't there, Machka?

The 10,000 steps per day would work well for sedentary folks, but for the more active folks looking for results, better to look at your intensity of your exercise than to put a pedometer and think that such a low intensity exercise will actually do something for you.

Koffee

balto charlie

I just broke my wrist in a bike crash yesterday. I won't be able to commute by bike for a long time. Y'all have given me an idea. I usually use a bike to get to the train and then another bike to get to work. The 2nd bike ride is slightly less than 3 miles. I think I'm gonna drive to the train then walk the last 3 miles. I think it will take about 45 minutes to walk...we'll see. It ain't cycling but better than traffic jams. Charlie

chroot

I ride about 150 miles a week, so I don't really care how much I walk.

- Warren

Powerful Pete

Fair enough, I was just curious!

Beyond intensity (not good to jog at lunchtime in a suit!) I guess walking longer distances would not hurt...

... even though riding is always best!

Machka 

No, I wasn't at the conference, but I pay a lot of attention to health and fitness types of shows on TV, etc.

But I will add that even if a person is very active in something like cycling (a non-weight-bearing exercise), walking at a low to moderate intensity can still have some benefits ... mainly in the bone density/anti-osteoporosis area.

Plus it all goes back to that whole cross-training and keeping active thing. I ride a lot, and that develops my muscles in a certain way ... and if I haven't been walking much at all, when I first go to do a walk of any significance (in terms of either distance or intensity), I hurt the next day because my muscles aren't used to moving like that. If we do a variety of exercises (cycling AND walking AND ... whatever else) we develop our muscles more evenly and that can help prevent overuse injuries.

Not only that, but even a slowish walk for 30 minutes burns over 100 calories whether you are fit or not. So if you are looking to lose a few lbs or something, five 30 minute walks at lunch during the week will burn an extra 500+ calories per week ...
https://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/cbc

So doing something like taking a nice long, brisk walk at lunch time is great from the perspective of cross-training, injury prevention, weightloss, and it is also a great idea as a stress reliever.

Powerful Pete

Exactly! Especially the stress relief part! I often don't even know what the weather is outside - inside an office, staring at a computer screen from 8 AM to 18:00ish (which is why I now go outside for lunch and a walk!

SandySwimmer

I agree that walking is great.

I'm very active in my workouts. I have found many benefits to increasing my steps during my "off" time. It has really helped stress-relief. Walking is so much slower than any of my other activities . . . it really forces me to see what is around me, to take time to breathe deeply, to increase my awareness. I see it more like one might look at meditation or taking a break each hour. I never really made a conscious effort to do this until I started monitoring my steps.

I think it is a great supplement to an already great workout schedule. And it strengthens the bones and joints like nothing else can.

Sandy

grgs

I also have a very positive opinion about walking for fitness. The biggest thing that I haven't yet seen mentioned is this. If I walk a lot, I feel less bummed out when I miss a workout. This helps prevent sliding out of good habits. Instead, I think "Oh, I missed today. I'll get back to it tomorrow"

Machka 

Today I wore my pedometer to see how many steps I walk. It's not even 5 pm, and already I've walked my 10,000 steps! Now according to my pedometer, 10,000 steps is about 5 kms, not 5 miles. It depends on stride length, and stride length is measured from the tip of the toes on the forward foot, to the tip of the toes on the back foot.

Just from my car to my first class of the day and back is about 2500 steps. From my first class at one end of the building, to my second class at the other end of the building, and back to my third class is about 1300 steps. Plus the steps to the cafeteria, library, etc. quickly adds up to about 5000 steps. So that's an easy minimum for me ... by noon each day! That's all wearing a 15 lb backpack too.


BTW - for those who are thinking, "who cares about walking", just keep in mind that cycling is doing nothing for your bones. Weight bearing exercises, like walking, are the way to build up strong bones and reduce your chances of osteoporosis.