It is well known that sitting all day long is bad for your health. Now researchers at the Charles Perkins Center at the University of Sydney have discovered a secret weapon for improving your health: walking.
Yes, this simple act of putting one foot in front of the other can dramatically improve your health, regardless of how much time you spend sitting. This research urges us to abandon the “all or nothing” mentality and embrace walking as a powerful tool.
research focus
The research team analyzed data from more than 70,000 people to determine whether daily steps could offset the health risks of sedentary behavior.
Experts used wearable devices to track the number of steps each person took each day and analyzed how this correlated with the likelihood of developing heart disease and death. Additionally, we looked at how much time participants spent sitting.
Walking has benefits for your overall health
This study confirms that walking is an easy and achievable way to significantly improve health for most people. Even if he walks just 2,200 steps each day, he can contribute to improving his overall health.
By increasing the number of steps they took each day, all participants experienced significant improvements in their health.
Optimal number of steps per day
Experts have found that people who take 9,000 to 10,500 steps every day are more likely to live longer. This amount of walking seems to be the ideal amount to get maximum health benefits without any more strenuous exercise.
Moreover, this goal is achievable for most people because it doesn't require much extra time or effort.
Combating the health risks of sitting and walking
Spending a lot of time sitting, whether at work or relaxing, can increase your risk of heart disease and early death. But the good news is that even if you don't reduce the amount of time you sit, you can significantly lower this risk by simply walking more each day.
Studies have confirmed that walking approximately 9,000 to 10,000 steps a day reduces your risk of death by 39% and your risk of heart disease by 21%. It's an easy way to improve your health because it doesn't require you to make any major changes to your daily routine.
“This is by no means a get-out-of-jail-free card for people who sit for too long, but it is an important reminder that every move counts and that people can and should strive to offset the health impacts. “This has a strong public health message: increasing the number of steps you take each day does not avoid sedentary time,” said study lead author Dr. Matthew Ahmadi.
Tips to increase your step count
Increasing the number of steps you take each day is an easy way to improve your health. Here are some tips to help you do this.
- Start your day with a walk: Take a walk in the morning to enjoy the peace and quiet and feel energized for the day.
- Talk while walking: Whether you're talking to a friend or at work, you can make calls while walking.
- Set reminders to move: Use your phone or watch to remind yourself to get up and walk around every hour, especially if you sit at a desk all day.
- Take the stairs: Choose the stairs over the elevator whenever possible. This small change adds many steps to your day.
- Park further away: If you're driving, park further away from the entrance for a few extra steps.
- Have a walking meeting: Invite your co-workers to participate a little by suggesting a walking meeting to discuss work.
- Let's go for a walk during lunch break. It's a great way to clear your head and increase your step count.
- Take an evening walk: Go for a walk after dinner to aid digestion, spend time with family or relax alone.
- Use a pedometer or fitness tracker: Track your daily steps to stay motivated and reach your goals. Many cell phones have step tracking apps, and you can also use fitness trackers.
- Make it fun: Listen to music, podcasts, audiobooks while walking, or walk with friends and family to make time go by faster.
“Step counts are a concrete and easily understood measure of physical activity that can help people in the community, and even health professionals, accurately monitor physical activity,” said Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis, lead author of the study. states.
“We hope this evidence will inform the first generation of device-based physical activity and sedentary behavior guidelines, which should include key recommendations for daily walking.”
This research British Journal of Sports Medicine.
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