It has not even been 10 years since the world woke up to the importance of taking 10,000 steps every day, and yet it has become a magical, aspirational and inspirational figure for millions of people, everywhere.
Those who wonder about the reason that makes these 10,000 steps make all the difference are likely not to know an important fact. Contrary to popular belief, it is not for one reason alone, but several - walking is not just about losing weight or battling obesity, but also, improving health and lengthening life on many other fronts.
The global obsession with 10,000 steps can be traced back to Japan in the 1960s, as it geared up to host the Tokyo Olympics. As a fitness fever spread across the country, a Japanese company launched a small product called Manpo. Translated into English, it simply means ‘10,000 steps’, and this number was selected after their research revealed that walking 10,000 steps led to burning at least 300 calories per day or 2,000 calories per week, which resulted in better fitness and a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Since then, the 10,000 steps programme slowly became a commonly-acknowledged goal for daily fitness across the world. Over the years, international research and experimental studies have shown that walking more, and walking regularly,have several health benefits. More than 300 peer-reviewed medical articles have focussed on the advantages of the 10,000 steps per day protocol, and these include improved cardiovascular health, improvements in Type 2 diabetes and obesity, mood elevation, and other variables that contribute towards healthy living.
Walking works several major muscle groups in the legs which help pump blood back to the heart, and exercising them improves overall blood circulation, muscular endurance, anddynamic balance. Even for those who are very healthy, the cardiovascular exercise associated with walking reduces the risk of developing diabetes by lowering blood glucose levels,and heart disease by improving circulation.
10,000 steps a day is roughly equivalent to 30 minutes of physical activity, and this also leads to lower Body Mass Index (BMI), increased energy, less stress, and better quality of sleep.
International authorities and public health bodies also promote taking 10,000 steps as the way to improving health and quality of life. The American Heart Association says that brisk walking, done regularly and over time, can lower high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes, and uses the 10,000 steps metric as a guideline for improving health and decreasing health risks. Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare recommends a daily walk of 8,000 to 10,000 steps. The UK National Obesity Forum says that a person who walks between 7,000 to 10,000 steps a day qualifies as being moderately active.
According to the National Health Service in England (NHS), “Sometimes overlooked as a form of exercise, walking can help you build stamina, burn excess calories and give you a healthier heart. Setting yourself a target of walking 10,000 steps a day can be a fun way of increasing the amount of physical activity you do. This magic number of steps is the equivalent of moving almost five miles. When you walk this distance, you will burn somewhere between 35 and 120 calories per mile.”
While the number seems set in stone, how about the steps to get to the milestone mark? “Start slowly, but make steady progress,” advises Dr. Sarah Turkistani, Senior Health and Community Service Manager at Nahdi, the leading retail pharmacy chain in the Middle East and North Africa.
She also emphasises that the 10,000 steps programme is crucial in contemporary Saudi Arabia, where incidences of obesity, diabetes and heart disease are ranked dangerously high. “We are being labelled as lazy and inactive people, and to many of us in the Kingdom, the very thought of taking 10,000 steps daily may sound like a daunting task. But for those who are not normally active, the slow and gradual method works particularly well – no one expects 10,000 steps on the first day. Although it may prove hard on the first few days, practicing it every day makes the task so much easier, and quickly achievable.”
Turkistani joins several experts when she says that the 10,000 steps can be woven into common, everyday activities like using the stairs instead of taking the elevator, parking further away from the entrance and walking towards it, getting up to change the television channel instead of using a remote, and walking around a room while using a mobile phone.
“As you make progress, consider going outdoors for a daily walk, or choose an indoor location like a shopping mall and use your walk to window shop pleasurably. Establish a time of day for your walk, ask a family member to come along, and learn to enjoy this time of day.”
For those working in large offices – and especially for long hours – the smallest of tasks can help achieve the daily quota of steps: walking to the stationery store or pantry instead of asking an assistant to fetch something, walking around the building a few times during lunch hour, or walking to the restrooms located on other floors of the building.
Setting a target of walking 10,000 steps everyday can also become a fun contest among friends, or simply, an easy way to build up stamina for more demanding activities like swimming or a variety of sports.
