Incidental Step-Idiots
I was just reading an article from the Australian trash news service that I use because it is free, with the headline saying the 10,000 steps a day "rule" was debunked, and that there was "no benefit". Of course, this is just clickbait titling, but I clicked, as I am interested.
Now, I don't care much about my steps per se, but they are tracked (pretty accurately) through the Oura Ring I have and I tend to go over the 10,000 most days. However, my "goal" is flexible and the ring decides with some days the goal being under depending on my signs and sleep etc, and sometimes over, when I am seemingly in better condition for the day.
In the article though, they didn't actually say there was "no benefit" in walking more, they said that the benefits increased at a declining rate. This is quite different.
Researchers found that walking at least 7000 steps a day was linked to improvement in eight major health outcomes, including heart disease, dementia and depressive symptoms.
And, so is this.
Notice something missing there? Sure, the eight different outcomes improved, and while there is no links to the study itself it seems, weight isn't mentioned.
In particular, the researchers found that walking 7000 steps a day reduced the risk of death by 47 per cent, almost exactly the same as 10000 steps.
Death might be reduced, but I would also like to know what the increase in quality life is when checked against the amount of steps. And in this case "steps" should be taken with a grain of salt, because walking has a lot of variation in it, depending on many factors. However, a typical 72 kilo person (160 lb) could burn around 30-40 calories per 1000 steps. This means that there is between 90 and 120 calories difference between walking 7000, or walking 10,000.
7000 steps is easy.
7000 steps is a normal day, walking around, going shopping, doing random things in the home. It doesn't take anything overly special - it is incidental exercise. Incidental exercise is great!
But is it enough?
Lately I have read a few bits and pieces about how some studies are showing that intentional exercise has more effect than incidental exercise. And this is something that fits in with my own experience, which is why I don't usually listen to music when I am exercising. There is something about the focus on the exercise that makes it more challenging to complete and, I also feel I get a better workout when I am paying attention. It makes sense to me.
However, when it comes to those incidental 7000 steps that most people should easily accomplish each day anyway, that extra 3000 are more likely to require intention. It means that people will have to actively make some different decisions in their day to get a few more steps in, and perhaps take an intentional short walk after the daily grind. This means that not only are they burning an extra 100 calories or so, but they are also getting the reward of making a decision to do something that is performed to improve their health.
Intention matters.
So does attention. When we do something with intention, it means that we also have to pay attention to what we are doing. We aren't just doing it on the side, we are doing it with purpose. We are making decisions, and that means taking responsibility. I suspect that the reduction in depressive symptoms would be further enhanced with the increase in intentional exercise - or just paying attention to what is done, and how it is done instead of being passive.
When we make decisions to act, we are empowering ourselves.
There is of course a law of diminishing returns on exercise, but I think it is dangerous to keep lowering the bar by cherry-picking the bits of information that make people feel better about being less active. As they said, any exercise is better than no exercise, but I think that intentional exercise has greater benefits because it is an active decision, and requires a host of other improvement factors that help build an all-round healthier individual.
As for me, while I don't count the steps, I do look at my "inactive time" which is all the time spent sitting around - including typing. Writing is by far the biggest contributor to my inactivity during the day, because I don't spend much time sitting at screens passively consuming. But still, my inactive time is between 5-8 hours a day, sometimes lower, and rarely higher. But even my physical inactivity is intentional activity of my mind, and brings a different kind of exercise, with a changed set of benefits.
As far as I understand and have experienced personally and through observation, intentional living is far more valuable than living on defaults. Perhaps we wouldn't do things differently if we paid attention to what we do daily, but I suspect, most would. We would likely eat better, move more, and treat people more humanely. I believe that if we acted with intention, we would better align what we do, with what we value, because we would firstly have what we value in mind, and then act to meet our values.
Not our steps.
People shouldn't value meeting the metrics, they should value improving outcomes. Doing more might have a diminishing rate of return, but doing less can have an *increasing rate of return. The problem is, it is increasing more of what we don't want. We shouldn't aim to do the bare minimum, we should look to meet our potential, and explore what are our maximums. That doesn't mean we have to maximise our steps though, because there are many ways to increase our activity.
Which activity should you increase to improve your wellbeing?
What do you intend to do about it?
Taraz
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Mmm, shifting the focus from a quantitative to a qualitative goal: the purpose of movement, heh, heh, heh. Suggesting that the conscious decision to be active is as significant a value as the physical act -law of inertia-. Your perspective challenges the simplicity of metrics and promotes holistic wellbeing -it can be- it certainly is a deliberate choice and becomes the real driver of change -law of action and reaction-, not just the accumulation of steps -statistics-.
Quantitative gives the evidence for many as to why they should do something, especially when most people aren't very good at evaluating their own outcomes. But the metrics don't have to be very complicated or in depth to make decent heuristics. Same with eating healthy - it isn't hard.
7000 is the number that I have heard for quite some time now. Sad thing is, even with exercising this morning (mostly weight lifting), I still only got about 5500 steps today. Tomorrow will be better as it is a treadmill day for me.
You sit a lot for work, but what about what you do after work? Any extra places to add activity there? Also, I think in the Us it is similar to Australia - lots of driving, very little walking, unless forced :)
Yeah, the distances are just too far. We live out in the country too, so walking on the road where people are going 55 MPH is kind of dangerous. During the summer I usually get extra steps mowing the lawn or disc golfing with my friend, but the weather has been so hot and muggy lately that isn't much of an option. We've also been dealing with poor air quality from the Canadian wild fires. Those are just excuses though, when that stuff isn't going on I probably get just as few steps.
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I have been spending so much time studying, online, that I have put on weight and my ankles are swelling in this heat. I must get up and walk, intentionally, now and then. Now I know why so many women my age are on treadmills when I meet with them for classes or meetings online. Business attire, on treadmills. Might have to get one for myself.
I do not count my steps, but a friend once gave me a fitbit to wear and, except on days when I took long brisk walks, I didn't make it to 7000 steps. I feel fairly fit though. Maybe Tai Chi, which doesn't even register on a fit bit, does enough for the likes of me.
The best exercise, for me, seems to be cleaning the house. I want so much to get it over with that I work up quite a sweat, and my heart rate goes up quite a bit, more than if I go for an intentional walk. I don't measure a thing. I like it that way. I can feel that I have gotten a work out. Intentionally.
I know a few who do this. My wife usually schedules a walk in her calendar too - even if it is only for ten minutes. Unless it is scheduled, it doesn't happen though.
Tai Chi is great exercise from what I understand. It is more like a controlled resistance perhaps - very deliberate. Very intentional.
Cleaning the house is a good too. I have also thought about getting one of those weighted vests to make it harder - though our vacuum cleaner is a heavy beast.
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Read more books! That's what I should do. I mean, reading on Hive is very insightful and really cool, but books by the big masters are just a different story. Not sure how I can get to that, though. I try to read when I go to bed, but often fall asleep while doing so, or are already too tired in the first place, as I spent too much time looking on digital letters.
The obsession with numbers is an interesting remark. We tend to put everything in numbers, in order to be able to qualify it somehow - the quantity let's us interpret the quality. That gives us the perception of control, maybe? I always laughed at the "pain on a scale from 1 to 10" as the same injury would be a 4 for me, and an 7 for my girlfriend, for example.
What I see in the article is the drive towards more efficiency. A false friend, in the case you make. It's the health improvement/step coefficient is better when you only walk 7,000 steps, so don't waste your time walking 10,000! Why do 1h daily exercise if the health effects are not more than 20min? Because it makes me feel better. Not on a scale, neither the weight scale nor the 1-10. It's just better.
Do you do audio books? Different than reading though. I can't read books anymore. :/
I think so. It makes us feel like we can change something and the numbers tell us if we did or didn't. We should be better at actually noticing the changes though, right?
I have always wondered how the people who are constantly doing the bare minimum, feel about themselves.
I do podcasts about philosophy and other topics I find interesting. I didn't jump to the audiobook-side, yet, as I hope to be able to find the time to read on paper. I'm not good at standing still while listening. So I would probably do something else while listening to the audiobook, which would likely lead to lack of concentration.
Absolutely, but we're not only disconnected from each other, but also within us. At least many people are, either not noticing, or ignoring the signs the body gives.
I aim at 30 000 or more a day - now that would be a day of sufficient activity. But it's a fight against daily duties, optimizing time and getting other results, too. I tend to pick the result-bringing activities in terms of actual family wealth over the result-bringing activities in terms of personal health.
We should not forget these are connected, though.
Monitoring me eating and drinking habits, and actively choosing against some desires, is also a part of the process. Now, that's what requires attention and intention on my part. For I am generally weak. Strong choices take energy... but after a while... they start to bring some energy with them, too.
Twelve kilos down since the beginning of the year, about eight more kilos to go...
That is a lot!!
I only do that when on holiday in a new city normally.
This is why when changing to a new habit, "make it easy" is so important at the start. Too much, and it will fail due to the energy it takes.
That is massive! Well done!
I have been away from the mountainbike for many months due to several reasons but although I do not count my steps, am confident taking care of the farm makes me walk quite more than 10K, but I plan to start taking short bicycle trips in the mornings to explore the sourranding areas.
I think you will find the exploration trips really rewarding!
It's a fact that when we have a clear purpose, we usually make better choices in different areas of our lives.
Isn't it funny how many of our "choices" are done outside of what we intend to do?
If we don't have the rope.
For me 12,000-14,000 steps a day helps me to lose weight, but it’s probably connected to my calorie intake. 10,000 steps doesn’t have the same effect. But 14,000 steps takes almost two and a half hours, which is a lot on a daily basis.
Depending on the variables, the extra few thousand might be 200 extra calories burned.
Yep. This is why most should come from daily living and then some activity from intentional movement :)
The research is surprising. I'm someone who exercises regularly, and sometimes I feel like 10,000 steps is insufficient. Does that 7,000 step count for everyone? Some people have fast metabolisms, some slow ones. Some are fat, some are thin. There's a huge difference between intentional and accidental exercise. It's like the difference between a construction worker and a gym-goer.
I don't think so. If already fit, 7000 would be nowhere near enough.
7000 steps are often enough for me, although I feel good after 10-12k steps. The main thing is that the walk in the fresh air (together with rest) lasts 3 hours or more.
7000 is not enough for me. It feels like I haven't moved at all. 12,000 is good I reckon, but it really depends on what else I am doing. Today, it was almost 6 hours of straight heavy labour work in the garden - I still walked 12,000, but I am sore now!
I agree that there’s a big difference between walking just to get steps in and walking with real intention. The idea that 7000 steps still have strong benefits is encouraging, but like you said, it’s not just about the number. It’s about how and why we move. Intentional exercise brings mental focus, discipline, and purpose, which can lead to even deeper health improvements. Also, the point about living intentionally overall really stood out. When we make conscious choices, we tend to live better, not just physically but mentally and emotionally too.
Some take intentional exercise to the wrong extreme too, focusing on tiny muscles (mostly for show). I think large group muscle work and heavy enough is good for most people to stay aligned.
I’ve had so many steps to last me a lifetime and probably not die in early. Now, I’m stuck with back pain from walking so much everyday.
Walking is good, yes. But I believe there’s a limit to everything. I no more track my steps on my phone everyday because the cost of closing my right would be a night of no sleep and pain. Now, I resort to jogging a few times a week and I’m good to go.
Yeah- it depends on other parts of life, doesn't it? :)
Incidental movement is great, but nothing really replaces focused, intentional exercise. I feel way more energized after a proper workout than just hitting my step count doing errands.
I agree with you. Even after a lot of steps, I still want to do a "proper" workout.
Hahahaha i never saw the significant progress with just steps
Honestly, i never counted my steps neither ever trusted on those apps. Even I uninstall #actifit app after few checks. As said intention is more important than attention. If you really have the intention for a healthy well being, many things needs to focus on rather than mere counting the steps. I personally belive if you focus on number of steps then you carrying an extra burden on your mind and it does not going to get you the results. Focussing on walk and then stretching your body gives out a better result. I usually walk for 3km, I never looked at the distance but finding my body fits this distance I am ok with it.
Focus on being healthy is the goal - doing the things that it takes - all the things - not just the fun stuff :)
Really thoughtful post, a great reminder that intentional effort often brings deeper rewards than just hitting daily goals. Best regards🙂.
In terms of exercise Actifit is keeping me motivated to reach for more steps, on most days I achieve at least seven thousand steps and frequently even ten thousand. But since my job involves mostly sitting on my butt some days it is a challenge to get even five thousand steps.
I would like to do more frequent weight lifting sessions, right now I mostly do two times a week, I intend to do it at least three times a week and reach for four times...
Knowledge work is a killer for physical activity. And then when finished for the day, the "mental tiredness" gets mistaken for physical tiredness and we sit on the couch.
Ideally, I would like to hit the gym 5x a week. It is about the right amount for me. Though I am also happy with 6 or seven sometimes. Though, I usually only get there 3.
Five times a week is great, six or seven times you have to be a pro to manage properly :)
I completely agree. I was in my best shape when I was participating in a CrossFit gym, and we all worked through thr same exercises everyday without music. We always focused on getting the fork right and I was locked in to grtt8ng thr motions correct.
As for steps, I can breeze past 10K during a typical day teaching and usually topple 15K on the weekend when I spend the night dancing away at the club. Those are my favorite workouts to be honest, as I'm in tune with the music and dancing for hours with a community around me doing the same. For years now, the club is a place to get moving and let myself be free rather than looking for people to meet and finding ladies to please.
It's those school-free days when I don't have a show to go to when I really struggle to get my steps. I lack intentionality and I don't have the errands needed to get me out of the apartment and on the move. If I had more discipline about those days, I'm sure I could be close to 5M steps on the year with some focus. If only I was as consistent like you posting to actifit every single day of year, I could probably get close to that mark just through the automated step tracking!