If you are looking to improve your health, walking is the panacea. For those with the ability, simply putting one foot in front of the other on a regular basis during a certain part of the day tones the heart muscle, reduces the risk of disease, reduces joint pain and boosts immunity.
It’s about a exercise For the most part, it doesn’t require any special equipment, can be done indoors or out, and is available to people of almost all fitness levels. It’s so close to perfection that Dr. Thomas Frieden, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, called it “the closest thing we have to a wonder drug.”
Still, scientists have been digging deeper to see if we’ve gotten the maximum benefit from this super exercise.
7,000 are the new 10,000 steps
When you put on any kind of fitness watch or step counter, the default programmed daily step goal is usually 10,000. But where did that number come from? A recent study in the lancet did a deep dive into the merits of 10,000 steps a day and found that 7,000 steps is closer to what people need to maintain good health.
“Those 10,000 steps were never a peer-reviewed number,” says Howard Luks, an orthopedic surgeon in New York and author of Longevity…Simplified: Living a Longer, Healthier Life Shouldn’t Be Complicated. “There have been a lot of studies lately showing that we really only need 6,000 to 7,000 steps a day to get a pretty significant benefit.”
And the older you are, the more you benefit from fewer steps a day, says Luks. The under-40 set can aim for the higher numbers, such as 8,000 or more.
When setting a step goal, think about your own personal improvement first rather than an arbitrary number, says NiCole Keith, professor of kinesiology at Indiana University-Purdue University and immediate past president of the American College of Sports Medicine.
“Ten thousand steps is a lot of steps,” he says. “If you’re an active person and you’re walking all the time, or you work a manual job and you’re on your feet and you’re carrying things and walking… that’s great. But if you’re a receptionist and you only get 3,000, then make it a goal to get to 3,500. Then see if you can get it up to 4,000.”
Intervals and walking poles add extra perks
Certain walking methods may have specific additional benefits. A 2017 study in the magazine Cellular metabolism found that interval training, seasoning your normal walking pace with faster bursts, helps reverse muscle cell breakdown and improves muscle power in people ages 65 to 80. recent study on walking while holding canes (Nordic walking) can improve heart function faster than normal walking.
But while these particular modifications may bring certain advantages, Keith advises not to let the search for the “perfect” walking method stop you from walking at all.
“It’s nice to have these studies and for people to pay attention to them, but we don’t want people to walk away thinking they have to do it this way or not at all,” she says. “The bottom line is just walk, get out there, and do it in whatever way is accessible to you.”
The after effects of immobility and sedentary behavior are dire, says Luks. Focus on moving your body regularly so the steps add up and you get the benefits you need.
“There is no ‘wrong’ way to walk,” he says. “I think it’s too easy for people to find excuses not to do something if it’s too challenging. Is walking faster probably a bit better? Of course. Walking a little more is a little better? Of course. However, if at the end of the day, your watch or phone shows that you’ve racked up your total steps, that’s fine.”
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