7000 Steps Are The New 10000, For Walking Exercise

Nov, 2022 - By WMR

The logic behind arbitrary target of 10000 steps is not justified. Scientists claim 7000 steps are good enough to gain the benefits.

After the corona outbreak, people around the world are becoming more and more cautious about their health. People exercising in morning are a very common sight these days. New and innovative ways of exercising are also being invented these days. But there is an old way to exercise, which is probably chosen by most of the people is morning walk. A simple exercise of putting one step ahead of other has many health benefits such as, reduction of body fat, strengthening of muscles and joints, improvement of cardiovascular fitness etc.
Many people nowadays bear a fitness watch, which has a step tracker in it. This watch helps the person to count the steps he walked throughout the day and the calories burnt due to it. Usually these fitness devices have a target of 10000 steps too. But there is no logic given about why exact 10000 steps?
Howard Luks, an orthopaedic surgeon in New York tell that a human body needs only 7000 steps daily to derive the benefits of walking. Luks also claims that more the age of the person, lesser are the steps needed.
NiCole Keith, professor of kinesiology at Indiana University, also suggest the same. He advices that when a person is starting the daily morning walk, he must keep in mind his body capacity rather than running behind just an arbitrary number.
A study published in a journal named ‘cell metabolism’ in 2017, discovered that if there are finite intervals taken in between walks, the benefits are more. Also walking fast, can improve the muscle power in the people aged 65 to 80.
So it is not only about reaching the target of 10000 steps, but benefits of walking depend upon how one walks