Walking & weight loss

Should 10,000 Steps Be A Priority?

My guess is that ten years ago, you didn’t have a clue how many steps you took each day. Only the coolest of cats was wearing a pedometer on their hips — at the time no one knew they were ahead of the curve — while the rest of us were guessing, at best.

You probably had a rough idea of how active you were, depending on your movement for work and any exercise, but you were none the wiser as to whether you did 7000 or 12,500 steps for the day.

The rise of smartphones, trackers and watches that measure step count has led to a fascination with our daily number and 10,000 has become the default goal for anyone trying to improve their health, be more active and even lose weight.

But do we need to make 10,000 steps a daily priority, or should we place an emphasis on other aspects of physical activity before worrying about our step count?

Most people need to walk more to hit 10,000

Research from the Canadian Society for Clinical Investigation found that most people fall short of the 10,000 step target by 3000 to 6000 steps each day, depending on their lifestyle.

This means that lifestyle or employment modifications are required to make up the deficit and hit 10,000 steps each…