The 10,000 steps!
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wisdomfromyou wrote: »Waow. Weird how so many people with very sedentary jobs seem to get so many steps in.
Based on my estimations, I am nowhere close to 10,000 steps a day - in fact, very far.
I walk back and forth to the gym and to the nearby store every day and that will give me about 2 miles at the very most. The steps I take around the house or at work (when I am there) for the rest of the day will not amount to more than a mile. I understand "the parking far away" trick and other similar measures but few acknowledge that such measures take away time from other tasks that MUST be completed during the day and for which employers or children do not make amendments.
Parking far away also means allocating extra time before leaving. I must leave much earlier which I most of the time I cannot afford because I often go with back-to-back with my tasks between children, career and cooking.
As people's workloads increase, the time they can allocate to just freely step around naturally decreases.
I will need to buy a pedometer that will give me the total number of steps I take throughout the day just to learn how far I am from the 10,000.
But based on my estimation, I am very far.
You will probably be surprised how many steps you take from daily activity. When I first got my FitBit I realized that I get about 6K steps just from the day to day tasks related to household and child related activities. If you add in a 2 mile walk each day, that would be another 4,000 or so steps, depending on your stride length.
My parking in the back of the parking lot adds an extra 5 minutes before work and after, but probably an extra 1000 steps. I have a pretty flexible job, but I wouldn't say that me fitting in some extra steps here and there negatively impacts the work I do or that my employer needs to make amendments for.
Believe me I get the idea of being a busy working mother. But you asked how people get their steps in, and I'm telling you it can be done. I average 15K steps a day and I don't think either my employer nor my children feels they are being neglected.0 -
wisdomfromyou wrote: »Waow. Weird how so many people with very sedentary jobs seem to get so many steps in.
Based on my estimations, I am nowhere close to 10,000 steps a day - in fact, very far.
I walk back and forth to the gym and to the nearby store every day and that will give me about 2 miles at the very most. The steps I take around the house or at work (when I am there) for the rest of the day will not amount to more than a mile. I understand "the parking far away" trick and other similar measures but few acknowledge that such measures take away time from other tasks that MUST be completed during the day and for which employers or children do not make amendments.
Parking far away also means allocating extra time before leaving. I must leave much earlier which I most of the time I cannot afford because I often go with back-to-back with my tasks between children, career and cooking.
As people's workloads increase, the time they can allocate to just freely step around naturally decreases.
I will need to buy a pedometer that will give me the total number of steps I take throughout the day just to learn how far I am from the 10,000.
But based on my estimation, I am very far.
I'm not sure why you are so worried when you don't even know your baseline yet. This number is not set in stone. Get a pedometer if you want, and see where you stand now. Then make small changes that increase your steps but that fit in with your life. You'd be surprised how it adds up.
And I park in the farthest parking space. For me, it adds 500 or so steps each way, but only a few minutes. I take the long way to the bathroom, and back.
You don't have to hit 10,000 every day. My fitbit just helps me become aware of how much I move, and how I could improve. Don't overthink it!0 -
Some easy ways that I get more steps in include going shopping, doing household chores, and walking my dog. Still, it is hard to get to 10,000 steps outside of exercise! I definitely wouldn't view it as minimum, though. I think that it's just a good goal number to keep in mind and you can feel really good about yourself if you do reach that goal!0
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ScubaSteve1962 wrote: »If you're doing cardio during your exercise don't worry about the 10k step myth. work more on getting your heart rate up during exercise.
http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/adults/index.htm
I hope you are right. Yes, I try to do both cardio and weights. I walk briskly (sometimes run with intervals) to the gym and once I get there I do some weights. Then I stop at the store nearby, pick up a few things and then walk back. That's usually my routine. There are about 0.7 miles to the gym and 0.7 back. So 1.4 miles walk and whatever happens to the gym where I do weights...but I must confess I don't exactly kill myself lifting.
I am a naturally low energy person. If left to my own devices, I would sit and read all day.
My idea of heaven is forever living in European coffee houses with coffee and croissants in front of me.
Most of my activity is cerebral, not physical. I could sit and read heavy books for hours on end but after an hour of exercise I feel like this is pretty much the most I can give in terms of physical exertion.
Unfortunately, I read that concentrating all of your physical activity in one hour of exercise a day doesn't make much of a difference and that you must be moving all the time throughout the day.
Whether some people have the type of jobs where they can constantly interrupt work to move around doesn't change the reality that in the 21st century, most jobs are sedentary and some require intense concentration that is not conducive to regular interruptions for healthy steps.
So I hope you are right that I can atone with 1 hour of exercise a day. :-(
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I will be 65 in September.
20-25k/day.
Office job, long hours. 45 minute commute 1 way.
I go to the gym 1st thing in the morning (very early, before work) always have between 10-11K after the gym. (mostly elliptical, but sometimes treadmill)
I get between 5-6K during the time I am at work. I have a desk that raises and I stand a lot of the day.
Walk the dogs in the evening (even in the winter & I live in Minnesota and it gets very cold here).
When I first got my fit bit (2/2013) I struggled to get 10,000/day. If you want it bad enough, you can do it.3 -
I sit at a desk all day. But I walk for an hour in the morning (7 steps), plus 30 minutes in the evening (2500 steps) and try to get up and walk around the office. I average 15k. I also run/walk 10 miles on Saturday mornings for a total of 75 miles per week. Must haves: a pedometer and good walking shoes.0
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wisdomfromyou wrote: »ScubaSteve1962 wrote: »If you're doing cardio during your exercise don't worry about the 10k step myth. work more on getting your heart rate up during exercise.
http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/adults/index.htm
I hope you are right. Yes, I try to do both cardio and weights. I walk briskly (sometimes run with intervals) to the gym and once I get there I do some weights. Then I stop at the store nearby, pick up a few things and then walk back. That's usually my routine. There are about 0.7 miles to the gym and 0.7 back. So 1.4 miles walk and whatever happens to the gym where I do weights...but I must confess I don't exactly kill myself lifting.
I am a naturally low energy person. If left to my own devices, I would sit and read all day.
My idea of heaven is forever living in European coffee houses with coffee and croissants in front of me.
Most of my activity is cerebral, not physical. I could sit and read heavy books for hours on end but after an hour of exercise I feel like this is pretty much the most I can give in terms of physical exertion.
Unfortunately, I read that concentrating all of your physical activity in one hour of exercise a day doesn't make much of a difference and that you must be moving all the time throughout the day.
Whether some people have the type of jobs where they can constantly interrupt work to move around doesn't change the reality that in the 21st century, most jobs are sedentary and some require intense concentration that is not conducive to regular interruptions for healthy steps.
So I hope you are right that I can atone with 1 hour of exercise a day. :-(
I understand the bolded, and I felt the same way. But I found when I incorporated some movement, I was actually able to concentrate better. I would walk around my floor two or three times, and it would wake me up a little and increase my focus. I also came up with some really good teaching ideas while walking around a bit.
Again, don't overthink it.2 -
wisdomfromyou wrote: »I see many people get up/interrupt work all the time to squeeze in steps. Unfortunately, my type of job requires long stretches of uninterrupted concentration. Just reading about how many times people get up from their desks to walk around makes me realize I would not be able to get anything done in my line of work if I did this.
I don't do anything apart from at lunch, personally, and I still get 20,000 - 30,000 steps in because I make time for running or walking outside of my working hours. Early morning, lunch, after work, the time is there for most people if they really want to take it. I don't like the cult of "busy"...we're all busy, we all have jobs and family commitments and hobbies and housework and all that, you know? But I want to be busy well into my old age and healthy and strong, so I had to find some time in my day to get off my butt and take care of my body so it can take care of me in the future.
That said, step-based workouts aren't necessarily important to your health and I think the "10,000 steps" thing is pretty meaningless if you're exercising otherwise. I'd argue that if you're getting to the gym or pool or on the bike or whatever every day, then walking a lot isn't really a big deal. The important thing is getting your body moving and breaking a sweat and getting your heart rate up for an extended period of time.
Sitting as much as we do isn't good for anyone, but a job is a job and not all of us have the luxury of doing otherwise, and I get that. Gotta pay the bills. But that's why I run, so that I can make up for all that sitting. It's really important to me so I do it even though it often means less downtime with my husband in the evening and a lot of planning my days.2 -
wisdomfromyou wrote: »I walk back and forth to the gym and to the nearby store every day and that will give me about 2 miles at the very most. The steps I take around the house or at work (when I am there) for the rest of the day will not amount to more than a mile. I understand "the parking far away" trick and other similar measures but few acknowledge that such measures take away time from other tasks that MUST be completed during the day and for which employers or children do not make amendments.
Parking far away also means allocating extra time before leaving. I must leave much earlier which I most of the time I cannot afford because I often go with back-to-back with my tasks between children, career and cooking.
As people's workloads increase, the time they can allocate to just freely step around naturally decreases.
I will need to buy a pedometer that will give me the total number of steps I take throughout the day just to learn how far I am from the 10,000.
But based on my estimation, I am very far.
Maybe you're not as far off as you think. My goal is 5 miles a day or 12,000 steps. I would encourage you to track your steps. It's very motivating and make those little things like parking further away seem worth it, even if it adds a few more seconds to your errands.
And if you have a job that requires a lot of concentration, I would think clearing your head every once in a while with a break might improve your productivity. Emmanuel Kant was a big walker. ;D
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I purposefully make the effort outside of exercise.
I do walk in the morning for 3miles which is about 6k steps.
Anything above that (office/desk job) is because of the following:
I don't email or phone I go and talk if I can.
Getting water/bathroom (take long way around)
Park at the end of the parking lot
Getting up every hour for a walk (usually to go down stairs to check mail etc)
Getting ready for work
Get home and I keep the house cleaned and usually walk around the yard and pick various weeds or do some yard work.
On the weekends it's even more with grocery store, errands and a 5 mile walk
On days with no walk I average about 6k steps.
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I have an office job and I sit at my desk for long periods of time as well. Doing the bare minimum of my daily life, I get 4500. I get 2k per day in the office just walking to the bathroom and the coffee pot and the water cooler when I do get up. One secret is when you do get up, be inefficient. I used to combine trips - bathroom and water refill all in one. Now, I go all the way to the bathroom, walk back to my desk for my water bottle, walk back to the kitchen, etc. This takes some extra time of course, but it's way to get in extra steps without taking extra breaks.
The other steps I get are taking my dogs on their potty breaks (3 per day, about 800 steps lapping my apartment complex, which is about all they can take during the AZ summers). My gym class is about 2500 steps (circuit training sort of like Curves gym, but it's more hardcore using heavy weights and kickboxing).
Then there's the steps you earn just walking around the house - bathroom, cooking, light cleaning, getting ready. I learned to be inefficient at home as well. Don't grab everything and go to the same area - make several trips.
Doing all this, I get in the area of 7k-8k ish. So, for that last 2 k, I have to go on a deliberate walk. 2k steps is one lap around my block and takes about 15 minutes. Boom. 10k and I really only spent 1 hour on exercise.
It's not impossible. If you remove the excuses, there are always ways to fit things in.5 -
HorrorGeekLiz wrote: »I have an office job and I sit at my desk for long periods of time as well. Doing the bare minimum of my daily life, I get 4500. I get 2k per day in the office just walking to the bathroom and the coffee pot and the water cooler when I do get up. One secret is when you do get up, be inefficient. I used to combine trips - bathroom and water refill all in one. Now, I go all the way to the bathroom, walk back to my desk for my water bottle, walk back to the kitchen, etc. This takes some extra time of course, but it's way to get in extra steps without taking extra breaks.
The other steps I get are taking my dogs on their potty breaks (3 per day, about 800 steps lapping my apartment complex, which is about all they can take during the AZ summers). My gym class is about 2500 steps (circuit training sort of like Curves gym, but it's more hardcore using heavy weights and kickboxing).
Then there's the steps you earn just walking around the house - bathroom, cooking, light cleaning, getting ready. I learned to be inefficient at home as well. Don't grab everything and go to the same area - make several trips.
Doing all this, I get in the area of 7k-8k ish. So, for that last 2 k, I have to go on a deliberate walk. 2k steps is one lap around my block and takes about 15 minutes. Boom. 10k and I really only spent 1 hour on exercise.
It's not impossible. If you remove the excuses, there are always ways to fit things in.
Yup that's it being inefficient...takes all my will power to do it tho....1 -
HorrorGeekLiz wrote: »I have an office job and I sit at my desk for long periods of time as well. Doing the bare minimum of my daily life, I get 4500. I get 2k per day in the office just walking to the bathroom and the coffee pot and the water cooler when I do get up. One secret is when you do get up, be inefficient. I used to combine trips - bathroom and water refill all in one. Now, I go all the way to the bathroom, walk back to my desk for my water bottle, walk back to the kitchen, etc. This takes some extra time of course, but it's way to get in extra steps without taking extra breaks.
The other steps I get are taking my dogs on their potty breaks (3 per day, about 800 steps lapping my apartment complex, which is about all they can take during the AZ summers). My gym class is about 2500 steps (circuit training sort of like Curves gym, but it's more hardcore using heavy weights and kickboxing).
Then there's the steps you earn just walking around the house - bathroom, cooking, light cleaning, getting ready. I learned to be inefficient at home as well. Don't grab everything and go to the same area - make several trips.
Doing all this, I get in the area of 7k-8k ish. So, for that last 2 k, I have to go on a deliberate walk. 2k steps is one lap around my block and takes about 15 minutes. Boom. 10k and I really only spent 1 hour on exercise.
It's not impossible. If you remove the excuses, there are always ways to fit things in.
Yup that's it being inefficient...takes all my will power to do it tho....
I agree. Especially as a working mom, I used to try to be as efficient as possible, doubling up on as many tasks as I could. I would say the biggest contributors for me in getting my steps in are the effort it took to train myself to get up every morning to try to get in an hour of exercise, looking for ways to get steps in where I wouldn't have before (parking in back of the lot, pacing when I read to the kids, etc) and literally not sitting down at home unless I'm eating or when I'm officially "done" for the day. I watch maybe an hour of television at the end of the night with my husband after the kids are in bed from about 9:30-10:30, I read for half an hour before bed, and that's it. I don't sit down (other than dinner) at home other than that.2 -
Would anyone be able to recommend the best pedometer at the lowest price that can measure ALL steps, including causal ones, such as walk from home office to kitchen?.
I understood some of them only start measuring briefly after a longer, sustained walk is initiated.
Thank you all.0 -
http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/adults/index.htm[/quote]
I hope you are right. Yes, I try to do both cardio and weights. I walk briskly (sometimes run with intervals) to the gym and once I get there I do some weights. Then I stop at the store nearby, pick up a few things and then walk back. That's usually my routine. There are about 0.7 miles to the gym and 0.7 back. So 1.4 miles walk and whatever happens to the gym where I do weights...but I must confess I don't exactly kill myself lifting.
I am a naturally low energy person. If left to my own devices, I would sit and read all day.
My idea of heaven is forever living in European coffee houses with coffee and croissants in front of me.
Most of my activity is cerebral, not physical. I could sit and read heavy books for hours on end but after an hour of exercise I feel like this is pretty much the most I can give in terms of physical exertion.
Unfortunately, I read that concentrating all of your physical activity in one hour of exercise a day doesn't make much of a difference and that you must be moving all the time throughout the day.
Whether some people have the type of jobs where they can constantly interrupt work to move around doesn't change the reality that in the 21st century, most jobs are sedentary and some require intense concentration that is not conducive to regular interruptions for healthy steps.
So I hope you are right that I can atone with 1 hour of exercise a day. :-(
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I disagree. "Most people?" Seriously, what do you mean by healthy steps? Are there unhealthy steps? I really dislike the constant interruptions during the day, but in fact, it is part of my job, whether I like it or not. It is part of servicing our customers and interacting with my co-workers. Office job, detail oriented, accounting, if I were glued to my chair for the 11+ hours per day I am in the office, I would have found another job long ago. Getting up and moving around is refreshing for me and give me a little energy boost. Besides, with all the water I have been drinking for the past 4 years since being on MFP, I definitely have to get up from my desk more often. The alternative would not be acceptable.
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All of the suggestions above are great....I typically make sure I get up and walk a short distance at least once an hour...just through the halls of my work...in fact, I've been on here a while so I'm going to get up and do that now!!! It IS possible and the most important point is that we do keep moving...we've settled into such a sedentary place....I like the challenge but some days it's impossible to get the steps in...don't beat yourself up, tomorrow's a new day!1
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wisdomfromyou wrote: »I work from home at the computer, so I don't even get steps walking to & from the car. My normal day is 1000 steps. I have to take 2-3 intentional walks per day to get my 10,000 steps and I do just that. Tomorrow is my 2 year fitbit anniversary. I've logged 5,5 million steps and 9200+ floors since then!
2-3 intentional walks a day would pretty much ruin my entire day in terms of attention allocated to other tasks (work, children, cooking). How long are each one of your walks?
20-40 minutes. Being overweight pretty much ruined my life, so I had to make some choices and decisions. My advice is to add 1,000 steps at a time. You don't have to immediately go from 0 to 10,000, especially if it will ruin your life. You don't have to increase your steps at all if you don't want to.1 -
Do you get coffee breaks and a lunch break? When I don't work out over lunch I go for a walk - can easily get 6000-7000 steps in in a 40 min walk.... Same with coffee breaks - have coffee at my desk while Im working and walk for 15 minutes.....
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wisdomfromyou wrote: »Would anyone be able to recommend the best pedometer at the lowest price that can measure ALL steps, including causal ones, such as walk from home office to kitchen?.
I understood some of them only start measuring briefly after a longer, sustained walk is initiated.
Thank you all.
A FitBit will measure all steps. The cheapest model is $50 (FitBit Zip). Given the software it comes with as well, it's a worthwhile investment. I've had all manner of those cheap pedometers that you clip on and they are garbage.1 -
wisdomfromyou wrote: »Would anyone be able to recommend the best pedometer at the lowest price that can measure ALL steps, including causal ones, such as walk from home office to kitchen?.
I understood some of them only start measuring briefly after a longer, sustained walk is initiated.
Thank you all.
This is probably going to be the cheapest one with any real accuracy: https://www.amazon.com/Omron-HJ-321-Tri-Axis-Alvita-Pedometer/dp/B007ZWIJR2
Wal-Mart or somewhere might have it cheaper. It picks up me walking from room to room in my house, but it doesn't necessarily catch my taking two steps from the kitchen counter to the fridge.
If I don't exercise or intentionally go walk, I land between 3000 and 4000 steps - I'm kind of surprised other people are saying their sedentary baseline is 5000+. I'm with you that getting up to walk around breaks my concentration. To get more steps in at work, I make sure I get up 2-3 times a day and get a couple of laps in - longer breaks instead of a bunch of short ones. I pace in front of the microwave while heating up my lunch. I do bathroom breaks and water breaks as separate trips. I never call anyone in the building; I go to their desks instead. It still doesn't get me that much more, so on non-cardio days I warm up for lifting by jogging a mile, and I try to get a walk in after dinner. If I get 8000 steps in, I'm happy.0
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