10,000 steps per day?

[disneysteve]

I think the point of the 10,000 goal is to show that all activity counts whether it is jogging on a treadmill or walking up and down the aisles of the supermarket. Even getting off the sofa to change the TV channel instead of using the remote contributes to that 10,000 goal. The goal is to incorporate more activity into your daily routine.

 

[sweet angel]

getting off the sofa to change the TV channel instead of using the remote

Ahhh the humanity!

 

[Laurajean1014]

On an average WDW day, I walk 6800 steps...... not even the average! And everyone thinks there's a lot of walking at Disney! I think I figured it out - you would have to walk WS 8 times to get 10,000 steps.

 

[Razor Roman]

don't most pedometers that do "mileage" allow you to calibrate it for your stride. That could be why the mileage is off for so many people

 

[disykat]

Mine is fairly accurate. I usually have to have two sets of exercise to make 10,000 on days I'm not working - like exercise or treadmill in the morning and a walk at night. If I'm home all day, I can feel like I'm up and moving all day and barely get any steps - simply because the distances are small. If I've worked, just the walking up and down long hallways, to and from the parking lots, walking around monitoring students, etc. can add up easily to 7 or 8 thousand just during the workday and then it's easy to make it. I find I have to be careful about keeping it on all day for things to add up. Every step counts!

 

[DoeWDW]

I swear by my Oregon Scientific pedometer, after trying 3-4 other brands. It is very accurate for steps. It lets you adjust the step sensitivity. I only paid $20 for it through Amazon.com.

I never calibrated my stride and entered it. I just paid attention and figured out that a mile for me is 2250 steps. Lisa, that's a step for each foot.

My average was around 5000 - 6000 steps per day. I could bump it up by walking over lunch hour and by taking the stairs instead of the elevator. I can remember marching in place in the living room late one night just so I could get to that magical 10,000!

 

[disykat]

I can remember marching in place in the living room late one night just so I could get to that magical 10,000!

I used to do that all the time before I got my treadmill!

 

[disneysteve]

A couple of interesting tidbits:

Classification of pedometer-determined physical activity in healthy adults:
1) Under 5000 steps/day may be used as a "sedentary lifestyle index"
2) 5,000-7,499 steps/day is typical of daily activity excluding sports/exercise and might be considered "low active."
3) 7,500-9,999 likely includes some exercise or walking (and/or a job that requires more walking) and might be considered "somewhat active."
4) 10,000 steps/day indicates the point that should be used to classify individuals as "active".
5) Individuals who take more than 12,500 steps/day are likely to be classified as "highly active".

http://www.pbs.org/americaswalking/health/health20percentboost.html

 

[Cindy B]

Well I did it easily at WDW! Those days I topped off at 17K one day!

But yes, I don' t walk as much as I need to though. To solve this problem, I walk to pick up my kids from school and walk back with them. I should take my pedometer to work and see exactly how many steps it is. (I walk all around the school builidng so I'd have to see).

 

[elgerber]

Even getting off the sofa to change the TV channel instead of using the remote contributes to that 10,000 goal.

I have to ask, how many of you can change the channel without the remote? Except for up and down of course. I have Dish network, and getting off the couch and walking to the TV wouldn't help me change the channel, unless I wanted to go only channel up or down LOL.

I think I will have to get a pedomoter too to see how many steps I take. I do 2-4 miles 7 days a week on the treadmill, and park far out in all parking lots, but I bet I am still not even close.

 

[disneysteve]

I have to ask, how many of you can change the channel without the remote?

I can. We don't have cable or satellite tv. Just an antenna.

I'm alone in the office so I just got up and did a few laps back and forth for about 200 steps. Only took a minute or two. If I did that whenever I had a break during the day instead of checking in with DIS, I'd probably hit that 10,000 with no trouble .

 

[disneysteve]

I think this topic shows just how very sedentary our lives have become. Even those of us who exercise regularly, myself included, have trouble reaching the 10,000 steps/day goal.

The study that was done a while back in an Amish community showed that even though the participants consumed plenty of calories including plenty of fat and refined sugar products, their obesity rate was far below the rate of the general population. Why? They wore pedometers throughout the study. The average man logged 18,000 steps per day. The average woman logged 14,000 steps per day. Compare that to what everyone has posted so far on this thread and you'll appreciate the difference.

 

[Kahana-ri]

We got pedometers through work with a wellness program. Its not easy reaching 10,000 steps. One average I do about 3,000-4,000. To get to 10,000 I have to walk in the morning before work and workout the same night. If I did do 10,000 steps per day it does average out to about 45 minutes to an hour of physical activity per day, which is what I should be doing. People just don't get the same amount of physical activity anymore as they once use to. I found the pedometer useful though-its incentive to just take a quick walk to get your step count up.

 

[swilphil]

Steve--

I think the Amish study is significant. I know when I went from teaching at a large high school to staying at home with my kids I stopped getting less exercise. I used to change classrooms several times a day, and even when I didn't I would often take short walks during the 5 minute break between classes. I also was on my feet and moving around a lot while teaching.

With the rising gas prices, I've been reading how we (as a society) need to change the way we design our communities. Unlike the Amish, most of us have to drive to get anywhere. I know I have to drive to get to any store, restaurant or business in my area. I'm luckier than some because we can walk to our elementary school and a couple of neighborhood parks. When our kids are out of school, we are talking about moving to a more urban neighborhood where we can walk to more places.

 

[disneysteve]

With the rising gas prices, I've been reading how we (as a society) need to change the way we design our communities. Unlike the Amish, most of us have to drive to get anywhere. I know I have to drive to get to any store, restaurant or business in my area.

That's a good point. Think of Celebration, FL. However, I think a lot more of us live within walking distance of stuff by older standards but we've gotten too lazy and have changed our concept of "walking distance." For example, one time a couple of years ago, DD and I took a walk to our local supermarket. It probably took about 15 minutes, not terribly long. We had never done it before and we've never done it again. Growing up in Philadelphia, the older women all had little wire carts that they would take as they walked to and from the stores to carry their purchases. Who among us does that today? Nobody. We all hop in the car and drive half a mile.

We live in the suburbs, but I'd say within a 15 minute walk we've got several restaurants, banks, post office, supermarket and various other shops. Do we walk to any of them? Never. We are all too lazy and too rushed to take the time and effort to do so. But we'd all be slimmer and healthier if we did so.

 

[trappednabox]

I bought a pedometer & wore it at work one day I put it on when I woke up and took it off when I went to bed, I walked over 12,000 steps that day. I doesn't hurt that I work in a flower shop in a hospital so I walk around helping make deliverys, & I walk everywhere I can.

 

[sweet angel]

I would walk more places, but can't get DBF off his lazy butt. Maybe I should leave before him and then he can drive and meet me.

 

[mum4jenn]

I have purchased three different ones and have not found and accurate one yet. Once I walked a mile around my neighborhood and when I looked at it it only showedsomething like 78 steps!! Another time it moved up 40 steps just by attatching to my waistband.

 

[Mary Anne]

...the older women all had little wire carts that they would take as they walked to and from the stores to carry their purchases. Who among us does that today?

I live in NYC and still do that. I never drive to a store and in fact do not even have a drivers license. By the same point, I can guarantee you I do not do 10,000 steps a day either and I probably do far more walking for daily stuff then the rest of you do.

Very interesting thread.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I wear a pedometer all day, every day. It helps give me the motivation to get off my rear end and walk and alerts me to days that I'm not moving much. I don't get 10,000 steps a day, but average close to that. I'm a SAHM and on days that I do chores around the house (I have 4 kids and 6 pets so I'm always doing something) and some errands I can get to 10,000 steps fairly easily. Or on a day I'm not as active with chores and errands I can take a walk and still get my steps. Days that I do both are good!

One thing that wearing the pedometer does encourage me to do is more walking when I'm out. If I'm at Costco I go ahead and walk up and down all the aisles. If I'm driving to a store I'm more likely to park in a spot away from the building and walk a few more steps. When I play tag or frisbee with my kids I see the steps add up.

And it's way cool wearing it at WDW!