10,000 Steps really??????
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RemarkablyUnremarkable wrote: »I have a general question about fitness. I am steadily losing from 2-2.65 pounds a week apprx. So I am losing, I am working out a minimum of 40 minutes a day. I am trying to build on that a little each week as well. I am fairly sedentary ( I think). I am a stay at home Mom of a five year old, the other kids are in various stages of education up to college. I also own my own business and work from home, much of what I do is on the computer.
My question is... Is 10,000 steps really the end all of how fit you are? When I worked at the hospital I did that and more. Now, I find it really hard to rack up the steps. My activity tracker goes off every 15 minutes and I am thinking, I am SMACK in the middle of a design UGH! I feel like in between sitting at the computer for work, then packing orders, house work, laundry, shopping, picking up kids I am constantly going from the moment I open my eyes until I collapse in the bed late night. My overall goal is to lose the excess weight and be fit. I want to be able to go on runs etc. Can an hour a day of working out get me there?
I don't have a tracker. But I often have my phone with me and I tried checking what I did a few months ago...to see what the hype was. On cardio days when I do about 45 minutes and just normal walking (not a lot, just listening to music while cooking or going to pick up the kids), I'll get pretty close to 10k. If I do 60 minutes, I'll always hit it. On lifting days, I almost never hit it. And on a rest day, I don't get many steps at all.
I also think that when I was doing more lifting, I looked better than when I did more cardio. (Now I try to mix it up.) I try not to get caught up in the 10k hype because I know if I walked 10k a day and didn't lift, I wouldn't look/feel as good as when I lift 3x a week. That's just me though.0 -
You arguably are getting plenty of activity with your workouts. Until August, I had been very sedentary and wanted to walk because it's a very simple thing for me that I can do at a time of my choice in regular clothes. In the past 4 months, I have walked 3-6 miles almost daily, often more if I'm busy outside of the formal "walk" steps. I also got serious in MFP tracking to keep my calories within a range to lose.
I am post-menopausal and that makes weight loss slower (in my experience anyway). I have managed to lose 9 lbs in 4 months but I don't feel as toned as I used to when I was doing Jazzercise or other type workouts. I am using the 10K suggestion as a minimum since I'm doing no other workout, but likely need to strength training to get better results (plus weight training could help stave off osteoporosis, etc.).
If you can find your activity in the MFP list of exercises or otherwise can figure out the appropriate calorie burn for your particular workout, I'd recommend logging that so you can feel like it "counts" on your calories earned. Then just ignore the tracker alarm and know you are doing fine. You have lots to juggle so you don't need extra guilt over this! Good luck!0 -
I have been having the same question ... how n earth I can also pile up 10,000 steps when I bike on average 40km , 5 days a week and still I need to do on top of this 10,000 steps !
Its ridiculous but last night I intentionally walked in my house so I could reach the target
)) as it seems I am off target if I don't do the 10,000
Happy Christmas to everyone 0 -
makisperdikaris wrote: »I have been having the same question ... how n earth I can also pile up 10,000 steps when I bike on average 40km , 5 days a week and still I need to do on top of this 10,000 steps !
Its ridiculous but last night I intentionally walked in my house so I could reach the target)) as it seems I am off target if I don't do the 10,000
Happy Christmas to everyone
You don't have to do 10,000 steps AND other exercise. The whole idea is to get moving.
Personally I aim for 60-90 minutes of exercise (walking, cycling, rowing, weightlifting, or whatever) ... each day.
I do quite a bit of walking included in that, and probably reach 10,000 steps most days, but my focus is more on the time than the steps.
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I went for a lovely day hike yesterday and decided to push for my Fitbit 55k step badge. Ten hours. Admittedly I was in no hurry, I was exploring and stopping to take photos, and I took decent rest breaks and stretched regularly (I learnt from my experience getting my 50k badge!). I'm pretty fit, and I was definitely feeling it by the end. I actually don't feel too bad today considering (thanks yoga!), and still clocked 20k, but I am definitely calling bullkitten on people casually clocking 50k + on the regular. Not unless they have no life and do nothing but walk all day.
Also, I officially have no need to acquire any more imaginary daily steps badges (please remind me of this in six months when I decide 60k is totally doable!!).2 -
The thing is, anytime you see someone posting 50,000 steps ... do the math.
In my case, my stride is 0.8 metres, so ...
50,000 * 0.8 metres = 40 kilometres.
A marathon is 42.195 kilometres, so 50,000 steps is almost a marathon.
How many people are walking a marathon every day or even once a week? Not many!
Even if you use 0.7 metres as your stride ...
50,000 * 0.7 metres = 35 kilometres.
How many people are genuinely walking 35 kilometres a day?
If your pedometer ever shows 50,000 steps (or even 40,000 or 30,000), do the math and use Google Maps to map out where you walked that day.
In fact, it's worth it to do the math and use Google Maps to map out where you walked for shorter distances as well ... just to double check what your pedometer is showing you.3 -
The basic premise of 10k steps a day is that your natural BMR has an affect on your calorie burn and walking that 4 miles at any speed helps your metabolism to burn more calories as energy expenditure and yes walking and body movements of any type will help you lose weight with proper diet and less calorie intake just not as quickly as of course running, cycling or other more intense exercises. Even being sedentary the bodies metabolism uses energy
(BMR) for digestion, muscle movement, heart beat ect. Keep moving and keep losing the walking around, doing house work, doing things with the children, cooking and all the nice house person things you do are contributing to your overall health and well being keep it up!
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Please don't stress out over a general guideline of 10K steps. This is meant as a motivator for some people to get moving. If, however, you're doing what you need to do to make yourself more physically fit, then by all means, pat yourself on the back and let go of these numbers. It's a similar situation with those who obsess about the number on the scale (and/or weighing in every day), this can drive one crazy (I know! It did me for years!). Best of luck with your mission to getting and staying healthy. Peace. A*0
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What Sexy Stef wrote was very helpful. Thank You very much! Linda!0
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makisperdikaris wrote: »I have been having the same question ... how n earth I can also pile up 10,000 steps when I bike on average 40km , 5 days a week and still I need to do on top of this 10,000 steps !
Its ridiculous but last night I intentionally walked in my house so I could reach the target)) as it seems I am off target if I don't do the 10,000
Happy Christmas to everyone
The idea is to move...as has been stated numerous times in this thread, 10K steps is an arbitrary guideline that came out of Japan in the '60s to market a pedometer...just move, you don't have to do a bunch of exercise and 10K steps on top of that. I cycle and lift...none of my fitness is step based...I'm pretty healthy and fit.1 -
makisperdikaris wrote: »I have been having the same question ... how n earth I can also pile up 10,000 steps when I bike on average 40km , 5 days a week and still I need to do on top of this 10,000 steps !
Its ridiculous but last night I intentionally walked in my house so I could reach the target)) as it seems I am off target if I don't do the 10,000
Happy Christmas to everyone
If I was riding 40kms a week I wouldn't get too hung up on the 10,000 steps.. Your bike riding would take a lot more exertion, fitness and stamina than my daily walking.3 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »makisperdikaris wrote: »I have been having the same question ... how n earth I can also pile up 10,000 steps when I bike on average 40km , 5 days a week and still I need to do on top of this 10,000 steps !
Its ridiculous but last night I intentionally walked in my house so I could reach the target)) as it seems I am off target if I don't do the 10,000
Happy Christmas to everyone
The idea is to move...as has been stated numerous times in this thread, 10K steps is an arbitrary guideline that came out of Japan in the '60s to market a pedometer...just move, you don't have to do a bunch of exercise and 10K steps on top of that. I cycle and lift...none of my fitness is step based...I'm pretty healthy and fit.Christine_72 wrote: »makisperdikaris wrote: »I have been having the same question ... how n earth I can also pile up 10,000 steps when I bike on average 40km , 5 days a week and still I need to do on top of this 10,000 steps !
Its ridiculous but last night I intentionally walked in my house so I could reach the target)) as it seems I am off target if I don't do the 10,000
Happy Christmas to everyone
If I was riding 40kms a week I wouldn't get too hung up on the 10,000 steps.. Your bike riding would take a lot more exertion, fitness and stamina than my daily walking.
^^This. If I'm cycling I don't get too hung up on my step count. My cycling exertion falls more towards the 'leisurely' end of the spectrum so I do it more for fun than for fitness, but it's still part of being active. Interestingly, my Fitbit does actually record some steps while I'm cycling (presumably from the slight arm movement as I bounce along). So I usually meet my step goal anyway. It will just be lower than if I'd spent that time walking.2 -
I used to be obsessed with trying to reach 10,000 steps but I don't worry any longer. Most of my exercise is lifting weights, doing a minimal amount of cardio and taking my dog for a walk on a trail weather permitting. Since I lift weights, I won't get many steps, but I burn more calories than doing cardio.0
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Lots of good responses already. I've just started using a fitbit tracker and really like it. I do strive for 10000 steps a day...which is much more than I would do previously. I also like how it sends me a little reminder if I havent walked 250 steps each hour. This reminder is great because I have an office job and it is too easy to sit in meetings all day without any exercise at all. I'm sure that other activity can replace steps so 10K may be too much for someone doing housework and such, stuck at home looking after kids etc. No big deal though, reset for a lower target and aim for that.
The most important thing in my view is to stay active...when I have lost focus on activity I usually have lost focus on calories intake too and on my scale. Much better to keep each of these things in focus though...I'm feeling more alive these days.
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I am a lifter but I personally hit the 10k a day because I choose to.PowerliftingMom wrote: »I used to be obsessed with trying to reach 10,000 steps but I don't worry any longer. Most of my exercise is lifting weights, doing a minimal amount of cardio and taking my dog for a walk on a trail weather permitting. Since I lift weights, I won't get many steps, but I burn more calories than doing cardio.
It's not about calorie burn totally as I am aware the 30mins of lifting I do does a lot for me...it's about moving more...raising heart rate etc.
I've done just cardio..I've done just lifting...I prefer maximizing both.3 -
Average day is about 18,000
Busy day is about 25-27,000
Just gives me a rough idea for
My cals for the day0 -
Once I walked 10,000 steps and discovered that it burnt approx 300 calories or a bit more than that. So what I do now, is I do not focus just on walking 10,000 steps. I go for a walk during my work break in which I burn approx 100 calories. Then I burn the remaining 200 calories in the gym doing cardio (treadmill, cross x trainer etc) after I hit the weights. So basically I have a goal to burn at least 300 calories by doing cardio only. And I am getting fit than before 2
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http://www.livescience.com/43956-walking-10000-steps-healthy.html
same as 1200 cal ... one size does not fit all. I'm losing weight and I average 5-7k per day. pretty sure I'll need to amp it up as the weight comes off though.0 -
The steps can be so misleading, or at least feel that way! I worked as a grocery store Santa this weekend, so I didn't have really any time to do a lift or HIIT work out. I did log 20,000 steps each day, but it felt like I hadn't moved all weekend.
Personally, I shoot for more exercise that makes me work hard and elevates my heart rate. Not for everyone, but it is my personal definition of exercise. Hitting 20,000 steps doesn't hurt, but it didn't feel like an adequate replacement. Some clever person earlier on son that a 30-minute run causes you to hit 10,000 steps much more quickly and allows for many more steps throughout the day. The 10,000 mark is semi-arbitrary and more a nice benchmark for increasing activity, in case you somehow step fewer than 10,000 in a day at your current level of fitness.1 -
Maybe it's an arbitrary number, but for me it's helped. I don't play sports. I don't have access to a gym at the moment. I have a sedentary job. I need to do something. I am looking at doing more, but at least I no longer feel winded at walking a quarter of a mile. I can do 3-5 flights of stairs without feeling out of breath.
It got me moving.5
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