Can't get to 10,000 steps. :(

I started back using my fitbit, and yesterday I got 7,000 steps with A LOT of effort. Today I'm at 3,334 and almost worn out. Any suggestions?

Replies

  • mhook760
    mhook760 Posts: 42 Member
    it won't happen overnight. I started with about 2/3k a day and a few months later clocked 28k. gradually build up!
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    edited June 2016
    Look up "walking" videos on YouTube. Leslie Sansone or Jessica Smith workouts will help you get your steps in. You can always go at your own pace because these aren't choreographed.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnCMUGnWVIg

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njeZ29umqVE
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    A long-shot. Do you have a Wii?

    Wii Walk It Out is great for getting steps in. You walk around an island, earn points and build up the island using your points.
  • TehLaughingDog
    TehLaughingDog Posts: 200 Member
    I suck at hitting 10,000 steps since I'm depressed in the summer. But when I take my dog for a walk we hit ~9,000 after our 4 mile walk. Doing that once at night then again in the morning helps.

    Maybe set up a routine for daily walks. Either one longer walk before bed or after waking up or you could break it up into two smaller walks (i.e. 2 miles each). That is my plan at least. Good luck! :)
  • kooshky
    kooshky Posts: 77 Member
    Yea maybe I'm trying to do too much too soon :neutral: I will check out the videos. I don't have a wii, but that does sound fun!
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    I only get about 6000 per day. No big deal.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    Just don't expect to go from 0 to 10k over night especially if you're not used to my hubby activity.

    Keep adding to your 3k each day a little and you'll be back in a month if not sooner to tell us you're doing that 10k easily :smiley:

    I have my FitBit almost 3 years and I was perfectly happy hitting 10k in the beginning. These days I average 18-20k and they come easily.
  • kooshky
    kooshky Posts: 77 Member
    It just makes me feel like I'm lazy when I can't reach the target "10,000 steps" people always talk about.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    edited June 2016
    My tips for getting extra steps:

    Jog on spot while brushing teeth :smiley:

    Take a few walks / or do an indoor walking workout (see youtube)

    Park car further away when doing errands etc

    Get up and move every 30 mins if you're around the house for a few mins at a time.

    When I'm washing hands I jog on the spot.

    Get creative and the steps will keep adding up :smiley:
  • kooshky
    kooshky Posts: 77 Member
    Thanks everyone! All good advice.
  • TehLaughingDog
    TehLaughingDog Posts: 200 Member
    Don't feel lazy at all! You can still be very active and lot under 10k, just depends on what activities you're doing. For myself I've been working on laundry around the house the past few days. So that's really very minimal walking time but I'm still busy. Or when I'm studying or reading - still busy just not in walking way. I also bike at the gym so that doesn't log as walks but I burned 700+ calories in the gym even though my steps are ~2k. Each person is different and that's okay :)
  • Golbat
    Golbat Posts: 276 Member
    There's a way to change the goal for your Fitbit so it's, say, 6000 instead. Don't stress. Just try to hit 6,000 as consistently as you can for now and see if you're able to work that up to 7,000 or 8,000 at some point.
  • JoanneKendrick
    JoanneKendrick Posts: 151 Member
    I jog on the spot whilst cleaning my teeth, waiting for the kettle to boil, washing my hands. It soon builds up. If you can jog on the spot for 10 minutes a few times a day x
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    10k is my absolute minimum. If I'm under...I just get up and walk. It sounds like you are saying you physically can't do it though? Just start slowly.
  • mumblemagic
    mumblemagic Posts: 1,090 Member
    If you're tired, don't stress. Build up your fitness slowly. If you're struggling to fit in with your schedule, try taking the stairs instead of the lift. Park a little bit further away from work. Get some audio books and go for a 30 min walk instead of 1 episode of your favourite TV show. :-)
  • hellonew2015
    hellonew2015 Posts: 327 Member
    kooshky wrote: »
    I started back using my fitbit, and yesterday I got 7,000 steps with A LOT of effort. Today I'm at 3,334 and almost worn out. Any suggestions?

    Quality steps over quantity is my approach, I Brisk walk, jog, run and climb stairs within 30 minutes and that is all below 7000 steps.
  • happysquidmuffin
    happysquidmuffin Posts: 651 Member
    I hear you. Having a sedentary job doesn't help me one bit. But getting up for a quick walk about every hour to an hour and a half helps (that's realistic, though ideally I'd try to do it every 30 minutes), and going for a 2.3 mile walk on a beautiful outdoor river walk where I live helps me get about 6-7K on a good day. At least once a week I do hit 10K but I can really empathize with how difficult it actually is, for some people. I think the most I've ever done in 15K in one day. I do not understand how people can do over 20K. DO they just not work and spend the entire day walking constantly??? :wink:
  • CincyNeid
    CincyNeid Posts: 1,249 Member
    I float between 7,500 and 8,800 most days. IF you're that short and you're getting wore out that early build slowly. Download a GPS app like Endomondo, Strava, MapMyFitness and go for a 1/4 mile walk. Then a 5/16 mile walk. Then a 1/2 mile and build weekly. It'll come.
  • JensJourney11
    JensJourney11 Posts: 90 Member
    Don't feel bad. I work in an office so I'm sitting most of the day. A typical workday only gets me 3000 steps. At least with the nicer weather I spend my morning and afternoon 15 minute breaks walking around outside. My evening workout will add some steps. Other than that, I get up and jog on the spot during commercial breaks when I'm watching TV. If I'm on the phone, I walk around. That type of thing. My friends and family have gotten used to me stepping in place all the time at this point!
    And those Leslie Sansone DVDs are great walking workouts. Highly recommended! Good luck :)
  • mommazach
    mommazach Posts: 384 Member
    Today I spent 6 hours in conference calls. 6 lonnnngggg Hourssss of nothing to say, but information I needed to get updated on. I also got up and moved. Stepping in place, and making sure I got my 250 steps per hour. It's weird that I need to accomplish this, but I noticed that I have a small sense of accomplishment doing this. I also walk around the conference room while on phone calls. My co-workers are all used to it. Some people pace, I do laps. Get more friends and do the daily challenges. I know they keep me motivated when so and so is creeping up on me. LOL. Enjoy your fitbit and know that it can add goals for you to keep moving and reminders that you have been sedentary.
  • michelleepotter
    michelleepotter Posts: 800 Member
    I don't know how people get so many steps in a day. I walk up and down every single street in my neighborhood, and that's only 2,000 steps. Then I spend the whole rest of the day walking and working around my house as a SAHM, and it's still a good day if I get 8,000 steps total. And I've been doing this for a year and a half.
  • Golbat
    Golbat Posts: 276 Member
    I have to have a good amount of time specifically devoted to walking in order to reach 10,000. If I just try to keep busy and get moving on a regular basis during the day, I might reach 7,000 but not always. Whether I have time to devote to walking is outside of control. If the kids are in school, I walk on the treadmill at the gym quite a while (with my Fitbit in my pocket) so I get to 10,000 pretty easily. It isn't so easy to get time to myself in the summer. I try to get the kids out walking on trails and things but sometimes we're busy with other stuff.

    I don't beat myself up if I can't get that many steps in. I try to just use it as a reminder to exercise and just generally walk around more. Like if I take my daughter to the park, the Fitbit reminds me to stand up and wander around instead of sitting on a bench.
  • mysticatgal1
    mysticatgal1 Posts: 106 Member
    I started only getting about 4-5k a day. I started to work my way up to 7k and 10k over the last year. Now I can't sit too long. I clean my house more which is a bonus and just play with my kids. Start by seeing where you're at and build up 1000 steps at a time! You'll get there
  • mickey2942
    mickey2942 Posts: 71 Member
    I really worked on cleaning my house the last few days. It is amazing how many steps you get in, when you focus on not sitting in front of the TV and vegging out.
  • fitness1398
    fitness1398 Posts: 11 Member
    I find when I go to work m-f I get in about 15,000 steps. This has been gradual over two years. Now I get excited when I hit 25,000. I walk to work in the morning. I walk on my coffee breaks (1km) twice a day. I tried to walk at lunchtime. How I really got here? I just tried to beat yesterday's steps even if it only meant a couple more each day. You can do it but it might take a few weeks. YOU CAN DO IT.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    kooshky wrote: »
    It just makes me feel like I'm lazy when I can't reach the target "10,000 steps" people always talk about.

    I overrode that goal to 7000 for myself, on work days I get there. On days when I'm studying, I don't get anywhere near it. It doesn't mean I don't work out in other ways (swimming, lifting). That 10,000 is one metric out of so many possibilities. I spent two hours walking my dogs today and still didn't hit that number. Do it, or don't. Just don't let it influence how you feel about yourself.
  • kooshky
    kooshky Posts: 77 Member
    mickey2942 wrote: »
    I really worked on cleaning my house the last few days. It is amazing how many steps you get in, when you focus on not sitting in front of the TV and vegging out.

    I was never in front of the TV yesterday. Actually, I was cleaning...
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    10,000 steps is really just some generic metric...I work at a desk and doubt I get anywhere near that on a daily basis...but I do a lot of other training...I'm a cycling enthusiast and I lift...I primarily do endurance cycling but currently I'm training for a couple of time trial events I'm slated for.

    10,000 steps is just a singular metric, and a very generic one at that...it doesn't really have anything to do with whether you're fit or not.
  • batman5250
    batman5250 Posts: 5 Member
    You can get to 5 billion steps, kooshky! Don't let little things like that get to your head.

    https://youtu.be/nFYLntDCulI