10,000 Steps really??????
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Humans need physical activity to be healthy. If you get that doing formal workouts or cycling or swimming or whatever, then your step count isn't particularly relevant. For people who have desk jobs or similar, aiming to get 10,000 steps/day is a completely reasonable and achievable way to ensure that they get a minimum amount of physical activity. For most, that corresponds to walking about 5 miles. So, an hour of walking (for 6,000-7,000 steps) plus general putzing about and life to get the other 3,000-4,000 steps.
You could pick a different arbitrary number - as long as it was reasonably high. Obviously, those with physical limitations would need to look to other ways to get their activity or set goals that were more appropriate to their specific situation.9 -
Christine_72 wrote: »If you want to be entertained, check out the forums on the fitbit site, especially the multiple-year threads titled "How Can Anyone Do [50,000, 80,000, some other random number] Steps In A Day?????" And people who join contests on the internet with people who may or may not exist, and complain that people are cheating.
Hhmmm I had a few of those in my last challenge. I swear some of them put their fitbits in the tumble dryer or something to get 50+k steps 7 days a damn week!
Someone came up with an ingenious way to cheat. Get a partner and each of you walk for say 3 hours a day wearing both fitbits. Instant double steps. Not that anyone would do that, right?0 -
RemarkablyUnremarkable wrote: »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!/
If your in a mind spiral about having to get 10,000 steps, strap a "fitbit" like device to your ankle instead of your wrist and peddle on a floor/desk cycle.
I think if your doing 40 minutes of activity per day that's a good thing. However, there is some health concerns about sitting stationary for too long. Check out the Mayo Clinic write up on this.2 -
Not sure about the step issue? It is simply a function of time. Each hour of purposeful walking will usually yield 6-7000 steps. How many hours you put into it... is up to you!
10,000 steps more than covers the moderate exercise portion of the WHO exercise recommendations: http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/factsheet_recommendations/en/.
It falls short of "walk for weight loss recommendations" I run into a while back (I think either the american council for exercise or the president's council for health or something) which was closer to 12000.
Some would argue that if you can put in 5 hours of walking you might be able to put in one hour of running instead and get more results. Knees, age, weight, general condition may all argue for or against that point.
As to the fitbit question I really don't understand it! Obviously you just tie the fitbit to your dog's tail and offer her cookies to wag her tail faster. I thought everyone did it that way!7 -
I get 6-8k steps a day when I don't try. I have a desk job and a commute but I still get that many running errands, taking my dog for a walk, and doing basic chores.
With my fitbit I'm motivated to move even more so I jump on my stepper at night until I hit 10k and it vibrates. I think it's a great tool if you're trying to increase your activity but if that isn't a personal goal I wouldn't stress about it.0 -
Christine_72 wrote: »If you want to be entertained, check out the forums on the fitbit site, especially the multiple-year threads titled "How Can Anyone Do [50,000, 80,000, some other random number] Steps In A Day?????" And people who join contests on the internet with people who may or may not exist, and complain that people are cheating.
Hhmmm I had a few of those in my last challenge. I swear some of them put their fitbits in the tumble dryer or something to get 50+k steps 7 days a damn week!
This is so funny to me!! Even on the two occasions I have ran marathons, I've only gotten up to ~45000 steps! 50k every day would be a nightmare6 -
That's one of the things I dislike about step counters. When I take the car to walk, I could get 300-500 steps for the way (walking from my house to the parking lot, walking from where I park to the office). If I take the bike, it's nearly zero steps, because I cycle door-to-door. And the activity reminder only counted walking around, so I might be in the middle of a sweaty workout doing pushups or crunches, and it would beep at me to remind me to be more active. A goal of 10k steps is a great incentive to get moving if you would otherwise spend your time on the couch. My retired parents bought step counters and have now started the habit of doing a daily walk around their village to get their steps, which I think is awesome. But if you do other activities, I don't think you should obsess too much about that number.RemarkablyUnremarkable wrote: »storyjorie wrote: »I never have trouble hitting that number if I get in a half hour of exercise...if I run 3 miles in the morning and go to the grocery store that day, I'm done. Not sure whether the steps themselves actually matter, but as a fairly active person, I rarely go to sleep with less than 10k hit (except on days of rest, when I'm lucky if I see 4k).
This is what my goal is, I really want to run! For now though I am on machines, eliptical and bike and alternate with the treadmill. I shouldn't let it get to me but I cant help but feel irked I spin 15 miles and get no credit!
Just looked it up - my marathon six weeks ago was 48551 steps. I guess I got 50k steps that day, but I don't think my feet and legs are up for that every day - if those people don't cheat, they must be ultra-runners or somethinglilolilo920 wrote: »Christine_72 wrote: »If you want to be entertained, check out the forums on the fitbit site, especially the multiple-year threads titled "How Can Anyone Do [50,000, 80,000, some other random number] Steps In A Day?????" And people who join contests on the internet with people who may or may not exist, and complain that people are cheating.
Hhmmm I had a few of those in my last challenge. I swear some of them put their fitbits in the tumble dryer or something to get 50+k steps 7 days a damn week!
This is so funny to me!! Even on the two occasions I have ran marathons, I've only gotten up to ~45000 steps! 50k every day would be a nightmare
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I made a couple discoveries with the pedometer given to me for the Step Challenge I did ...
-- if I had the pedometer with me on the bus or in a car, it would log steps. Probably a step for every bump. One particular bus route would give me 1000 steps for the round trip. But another was a smoother route and would only give me about 400 steps. But every motor vehicle ride gave me steps.
-- if I had my phone in the breast pocket of my jacket on the same side as I was wearing the pedometer, I would get double steps because the weight of the phone caused my jacket to swing a bit and tap the pedometer, which would log a step for every tap, in addition to my real steps.
I had my suspicions that some people in the challenge hadn't made those discoveries ... or had, but were ignoring them.1 -
I made a couple discoveries with the pedometer given to me for the Step Challenge I did ...
-- if I had the pedometer with me on the bus or in a car, it would log steps. Probably a step for every bump. One particular bus route would give me 1000 steps for the round trip. But another was a smoother route and would only give me about 400 steps. But every motor vehicle ride gave me steps.
-- if I had my phone in the breast pocket of my jacket on the same side as I was wearing the pedometer, I would get double steps because the weight of the phone caused my jacket to swing a bit and tap the pedometer, which would log a step for every tap, in addition to my real steps.
I had my suspicions that some people in the challenge hadn't made those discoveries ... or had, but were ignoring them.
I too had a step challenge at work earlier this year, in which we were given pedometers. Very cheap crappy pedometers. I ran mine alongside my Fitbit for a while (until I got sick of it constantly resetting itself to 0 and tossed it aside in disgust), and the difference was hilarious. I felt kind of bad for people who thought they were genuinely getting 10k steps a day when they would have been well under though.0 -
Nony_Mouse wrote: »I made a couple discoveries with the pedometer given to me for the Step Challenge I did ...
-- if I had the pedometer with me on the bus or in a car, it would log steps. Probably a step for every bump. One particular bus route would give me 1000 steps for the round trip. But another was a smoother route and would only give me about 400 steps. But every motor vehicle ride gave me steps.
-- if I had my phone in the breast pocket of my jacket on the same side as I was wearing the pedometer, I would get double steps because the weight of the phone caused my jacket to swing a bit and tap the pedometer, which would log a step for every tap, in addition to my real steps.
I had my suspicions that some people in the challenge hadn't made those discoveries ... or had, but were ignoring them.
I too had a step challenge at work earlier this year, in which we were given pedometers. Very cheap crappy pedometers. I ran mine alongside my Fitbit for a while (until I got sick of it constantly resetting itself to 0 and tossed it aside in disgust), and the difference was hilarious. I felt kind of bad for people who thought they were genuinely getting 10k steps a day when they would have been well under though.
Ours were decent pedometers ... but they were a bit sensitive, and there was no way to turn them off when we were doing non-walking activities.0 -
I maintain 2100-2600 and I only get 3000-6000 steps a day lol whatever.1
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Christine_72 wrote: »Yep! I asked one of them how they did it, and they replied "walks around the neighborhood in the morning and evening ". I felt like asking if they lived in the middle of Africa lol
On my last marahon I did 51k steps, my last Ultra was 74k steps.
There is no way people are sustaining that kind of mileage unless they're training for something.
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The main reason I don't wear a Fitbit is because I won't be told by a plastic wristband what to do! It's mind over matter, just fit what you can into your busy schedule and be as aware of the importance of exercise as you are healthy eating. My dog gets walked 2 miles every morning then I'm active gardening, occasionally swimming and generally getting on with life.... that's plenty exercise for me to maintain my weight loss.0
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Christine_72 wrote: »If you want to be entertained, check out the forums on the fitbit site, especially the multiple-year threads titled "How Can Anyone Do [50,000, 80,000, some other random number] Steps In A Day?????" And people who join contests on the internet with people who may or may not exist, and complain that people are cheating.
Hhmmm I had a few of those in my last challenge. I swear some of them put their fitbits in the tumble dryer or something to get 50+k steps 7 days a damn week!
I managed 1 week with all days over 30k and 2 days above 50k but it is not sustainable unless you don't work and have amazing walking shoes.2 -
As a desk dweller, a couple tips.
1. Park further back in the parking lot.
2. Drink throughout the day. take the long way to dehydrate, upstairs or down if that is an available dehydration option.0 -
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yesterday my tracker went off telling me I had reached 10,000 steps... uh I was at my desk all day. However, i was crocheting with it on. Apparently my crochet form makes my tracker think Im walking!3
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OP asked, "Is there a tracker that measures spinning/eliptical etc? That would be nice."
Yes. It's the Misfit Flash Cyclist Edition. On sale for $19.99 at the moment. It's not waterproof like the Shine however. I believe the Shine would count "steps" if attached to your shoe when cycling.
I have used the Shine, and now have the Shine2. They are swim-resistant, which I love because I walk the perimeter of the pool in the summer. Also, they use a battery so you never have to take them off to charge - or to shower. I wear mine ALL the time on my ankle, but most wear them on the wrist or pocket or on a necklace. I've been wearing them for about 2.5 years and LOVE the Shine. The Shine is on sale for Christmas right now for $29.99 from $69.99 (what?!?) and the Shine2 is $79.99, down from $99.99.
I can't speak highly enough of their customer service. Had my first Shine for about 6 months when it leaked after a day in the pool. They replaced it within days, no questions asked. That one leaked too, and they replaced it within days, no questions asked. After that the Shine & now the Shine2 have never leaked. Oh - they also sent me a free replacement battery just before mine wore out!
I think they're more attractive than the Fitbit, too.
No - I don't work for them, just very impressed by this product.
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TrishSeren wrote: »this is what I use it for...the 10k steps I mean
Per this article
1) <5000 steps.d (sedentary);
2) 5000-7499 steps.d (low active);
3) 7500-9999 steps.d (somewhat active);
4) > or =10,000-12,499 steps.d (active); and
5) > or =12,500 steps.d (highly active)
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715035
basically tells me how active I am most of the time unless it's a cooking day then it gets shot to hell...
for me I get about 4k in the winter at work...and I am trying everything, summer at work 6k (walk outside) around the building. If I am shopping on my lunch break about another 2k...
so it's the treadmill I go to get the 10k..mainly for the extra food.
So does this mean in MFP I'm low active as I walk this much every day because I walk to and from work?
depends on if you are doing the walk to work because you have to or for exercise...
If purposeful exercise then no...your activity in MFP is before purposeful movement.1 -
Oops. Just checked their website, and seems the original Shine is out of stock. At that price I'm not surprised.
Also, I neglected to mention that I try for 11k steps a day. If it's a day when I run a lot of errands I can get my steps by adding a walk of 2-2.5 miles in the evening. Otherwise I need a walk of about 3-3.5 miles to get the 11k. Since I began suffering from plantar fasciitis I've been taking smaller steps (long strides exacerbate the PF) so it's been easier to get the 11k in - lol.1
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