Having trouble reaching 10,000 steps a day? You might not need that many, anyway

Your Fitbit tells you to aim for it. Your mom touts it as age-old wisdom. Your doctor might even say it’s what’s best for you. But why is taking 10,000 steps per day the default goal?

It might be surprising to know that the number was chosen at random as part of a marketing campaign. But researchers have since probed the long-accepted step goal to figure out exactly what it takes to see maximum benefits.

What they’re finding is that we might need a lot fewer daily steps to see similar long-term health returns.

The first pedometer

After the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, a Japanese clock-making company called Yamasa released one of the first wearable pedometers. They called it the Manpo-kei, which translates to “10,000-step metre.” (Some believe that 10,000 was chosen because the character for the number — 万 — looks like a person walking.)

These days, we have Fitbits and Apple Watches. But the 10,000-step goal, though arbitrary, remains.

“The research suggests that … you get better health benefits with more, but that 10,000 steps is not necessarily a magic number,” said Sarah Woodruff, a kinesiology professor at the University of Windsor. And science appears to agree.

Putting the 10,000-step theory to the test

I-Min Lee, a Harvard University epidemiologist, was one of the first to question the scientific validity of the 10,000-step goal. One of her most recent studies on the topic, which focused on older women, found that those who walked more steps per day significantly reduced their risk of premature death.

However, the benefits plateaued at roughly 7,500 daily steps. And those who took fewer steps still saw improved health outcomes. 

A different study published in 2022 found that walking up to about 10,000 steps a day can lower the risk of dementia, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. That study said faster steps improved outcomes, and echoed that — for participants who were inactive to start — even a small amount of daily steps yielded benefits. 

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, keeping active can help prevent and reduce the risk of chronic conditions like hypertension, diabetes, strokes and colon cancer.

“It’s just not like any steps you take up to 10,000 are meaningless, and then at 10,000, you finally reach a critical point,” said Oonagh Duncan, fitness expert and author of the book Healthy As F–k.

Canadians not meeting activity goals

Although we may not need exactly 10,000 steps each day, research suggests about half of Canadian adults aren’t moving as much as we should.

Fifty-three per cent of men and 46 per cent of women take at least 7,500 steps per day, according to a 2021 report from Participaction, a non-profit that aims to promote healthy living and physical fitness, citing Statistics Canada data.

WATCH | How working from home may be impacting physical activity: 

Working from home means moving less, study suggests

A new survey suggests Canadians who work from home spend nearly twice as much time sitting than people who work at an office, which is shown to be bad for the long-term health of workers.

Federal guidelines say Canadian adults should be getting at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic physical activity per week — or about 20 minutes a day.

The Participaction report says 49 per cent of Canadian adults were meeting those goals in 2021.

The World Health Organization says insufficient physical activity is responsible for an estimated 3.2 million deaths each year, making it the fourth most frequent cause worldwide. 

Make movement a habit

To make physical activity feel rewarding, Duncan suggested choosing activities you find fun, listening to a favourite podcast or song while you move, or having a friend join.

Most importantly though, Duncan said the best way to build up one’s step count is to find small ways to move more often, and make it a habit. 

“So many people overestimate the benefits of doing their one-hour workout, and then they kind of sit all day,” she said.

Small bursts add up

One of the first epidemiological studies on the effects of exercise on health highlighted how small bits of movement add up to big health improvements. The 1953 study followed 30,000 bus drivers and conductors on double-decker buses in London. 

Over the course of their workdays, the drivers sat and drove, while the conductors popped on and off the bus, and up and down the stairs. In the long term, the latter group was found to have lower rates of coronary heart disease. The researchers linked that drop with the physically active parts of their jobs, compared to the drivers.

Data overload

Now that we’re armed with so much personal health and fitness data, Duncan says the challenge is keeping our focus on how we feel, rather than getting obsessive about the numbers. Not meeting a step goal shouldn’t derail us from staying active.

“For someone who’s not very active, 10,000 steps is going to be a big jump. And if you’re not achieving that, then you kind of feel crummy about yourself,” said Woodruff.

“Go back and take a look at what you were doing for the last week, and maybe set a goal of 1,000 more steps a day to start.”

Tips for building in more steps

Although we may not need 10,000 steps a day to thrive, the evidence suggests most of us are at no risk of overdoing it. 

“I am not all concerned about anyone getting too many steps,” said Duncan. “Most people are not getting anywhere near as much movement as is recommended.”

To add more movement into our days, we can try:

• Taking the stairs instead of an elevator.
• Parking further away from a destination. 
• Getting off public transit a stop early.
• Doing hourly laps around the office or walking during breaks.
• Getting friends together for a group walk, or calling friends while exercising.
• Buying a walking pad or portable treadmill to use during work, or while watching TV.