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Do-It-Yourself Guide: Take 10,000 steps a day
By Ellen Creager
(Public Access Journalism) Time is the enemy. You know you’re never going to make it to
the gym at lunch. And that early-morning run doesn’t seem to be in
your future.
Stop torturing yourself. Try turning “exercise” into “activity.” That’s the latest thinking from health experts, who’d still like you
to get moving, but now recommend doing so in the most manageable way
possible.
The goal of 10,000 Steps, born 40 years ago in Japan, is to make it
easy for you to “work out” with minimal thought and planning. All you
need is a low-tech step pedometer — the simpler, the better —
available for as little as $11 at many sporting goods stores or direct
from manufacturers. A pedometer measures steps, no matter how long or
short the stride. The idea is to clip on the pedometer and start with that first step of
your normal day. Within three weeks, you may be able to work up to
10,000 steps a day, roughly equivalent to the goal of 30 minutes of
daily physical activity recommended by the U.S. surgeon general. Since Americans already average 3,000 to 5,000 steps during a routine
day, it’s a relatively painless boost to that extra 5,000. Pedometer use has been found so effective that businesses, insurance
companies and even whole towns have distributed them as a preventative
measure for employees, health-care workers and residents.
If you’re reasonably fit and ready to take on 10K a day, get going.
But not everyone should shoot for the limit right away. Not when
there’s a more comfortable, gradual method, called the 20 Percent
Boost Approach.
Here’s a literal step-by-step primer, taken from a guide written by
Mark Fenton, host of PBS’ “America’s Walking,” and physical activity
program manager at the University of North Carolina’s Pedestrian and
Bicycle Information Center: WEEK 1
The goal: Measure steps in a typical week without any attempt
to walk more than normal. Each morning, reset the pedometer to “0.”
Set it to show steps. Ignore distance and calorie counts. Wear it all
day, from the moment you wake up until going to bed. At night, remove
it, record the number of steps taken in a log, and note any formal
exercise; for example, “20-minute treadmill walk.” Also note if
anything caused more (museum tour) or fewer (all-day meeting) steps
than usual throughout the day.
WEEK 2
The goal: Boost the average daily steps by 20 percent. Add the total
steps taken in Week One and divide by seven. Then multiply by 1.2. The
result is the new target number for daily steps. So, if the average
was 3,000 steps a day in the first week, try for 3,600 a day in Week
Two. Most physical activity counts, including formal workouts (a brisk
walk, using most exercise machines) and informal exercise (taking the
stairs instead of the elevator or even pacing on the subway platform).
WEEK 3
If you haven’t reached 10,000 steps, or if the goal is substantial
weight loss — for which many experts recommend 12,000 to 15,000 steps
a day — then boost steps again by 20 percent. Calculate the second
week’s daily average and multiply by 1.2. If aerobic fitness is a
goal, try boosting the speed of at least 2,000 to 4,000 of the steps
already being done.
Want to get in more steps during the course of the day? Here are some
tips:
- Conditions permitting, park in the farthest space from your
destination.
- Take a walking break instead of a coffee break at work.
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
- Walk the dog instead of just letting it out in the yard.
- Get off the train or subway a stop early.
- Don’t use the car for short trips; walk instead.
- Hide the remote and get up to change the channel.
- Walk your child to school.
For more information on:
For more on pedometers:
Ellen Creager is a health and fitness writer for the Detroit Free
Press.
(c) 2003, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
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