Why 10,000 Steps A Day?

The idea of walking 10,000 steps a day to keep fit came from Japan nearly 40 years ago. It was discovered back then that the country was slipping into an obesity crisis. A Japanese doctor Dr. Yoshiro Hatano set out to determine an appropriate activity level for achieving weight loss. He discovered that at 10,000 steps the average person will burn about 500 extra calories a day. Over the course of a year that equates to a 50 pound weight loss!

Other researchers discovered that those who walk between 5,000 and 10,000 steps a day are 40 percent less likely to develop metabolic syndrome, a condition which can lead to diabetes and heart problems. If your step count is 10,000 or more per day, you are 72 percent less likely to develop this condition.

Another study carried out in the University of Tennessee asked overweight women to wear pedometers. Half of the group was asked to walk briskly for 30 minutes, most days of the week while the other group of women was asked to walk 10,000 steps a day.

The group who counted their steps averaged over 10,000 a day while the other group only averaged 8,270 to 9,505 on the days they did meet their 30-minute goals, and only 5,597 on the days they didn’t exercise for 30 minutes.

This study indicates that setting your walking goal in a certain number of steps per day versus a certain number of minutes per day may be the best way to increase physical activity.

Dr. Catrine Tudor-Locke developed the following classifications following her research on pedometer walking:

Under 5000 steps per day indicates a "sedentary lifestyle"
5,000-7,499 steps per day indicates a "low active lifestyle"
7,500-9,999 steps per day indicates a "somewhat active lifestyle"
10,000 steps per day indicates an "active lfestyle"
More than 12,500 steps per day indicates a "highly active lifestyle"

10 reasons why walking is good:

Walking Aids In Weight Loss
Walking Decreases The Risks of Diseases
Walking Improves Your Sleep
Walking Reduces Stress
Walking Increases Energy
Walking Builds Healthy Bones
Walking Increases Lung Capacity
Walking Improves Social Life
Walking Slows Down The Aging Process and Prolongs Life
Walking Is A Low Cost Exercise

Source: Culled from numerous Internet health and fitness sites