Steps is the Way to Go
There are several key reasons why steps are generally the best first port of call when it comes to increasing your activity levels.
1. It's scalable
A step count has the advantage that we can scale it to the client, it is relatively quick, cheap, and easy to measure, and we can increase or decrease our target based on progress and recovery.
2. It's easy to measure
Since walking is the main component of most people’s NEAT, your clients can track their step count using their mobile phone or pedometer.
3. It is low intensity
Walking has almost zero interference on training. It does not stimulate appetite, while cardio may increase appetite and cravings.
4. Proven mental health benefits
Walking has proven mental health benefits and represents a chance to unwind for otherwise busy and stressed clients.
5. Nearly anyone can do it!
It is relatively easy to structure into clients’ lifestyles. For example, they do not need to go to a gym to do it, it requires zero skill, it is relatively low effort and you do not need to take a shower or rest afterwards.
6. It's easier to incorporate into clients' lives
Walking does not need to be one set session. For instance, you can simply get off the bus a couple of stops early or park further away from your destination and walk.
7. You can also incorporate it into socialising
Many people struggle to juggle social events with dieting as so many occasions involve food or drink. Getting family and friends involved is a great way to build long-lasting lifestyle habits while not depriving the client of valuable social time.
If you tend to walk fewer than 5,000 steps a day, you typically fall in the ‘sedentary’ range. If you walk up to 10,000 steps a day, you are lightly active. Between 10,000 and 12,000 steps is what we would deem active and 12,500+ steps is what we would term ‘highly active’.
What’s the significance of 10,000 steps?
‘10,000 steps per day’ may be the magic number but the reason behind this number is not as scientific as it might sound.
As Japan prepared to host the 1964 Olympics, people were becoming more aware of the role of exercise in improving health. Because walking is an activity that anyone can do, it requires no equipment and does not involve any coaching, it seemed an ideal methodology.
A year later in 1965, Dr Yoshiro Hatano invented the first pedometer. This new device was named ‘Manpo-kei’, which translates as, ‘10,000-step meter’. While you might imagine that this number was based on years of painstaking research, it was simply an arbitrary number that the developer believed to be representative of an active lifestyle.
...But it’s still useful
However, there is another reason that the 10,000-step number could be useful for us when it comes to dieting.
It is estimated that the average person burns around 3-400 calories for every 10,000 steps. Doing this alone daily will help to create that deficit needed to lose one pound of fat per week.
Of course, this number varies according to the individual, how fast they walk, and so on.
All we need to know is that, like when we set up our diet, this number gives us a baseline to work from, which we can adapt through the process.