Walk the walk

No gym membership, no problem. Pushchair bound, no worries. Comfortable footwear, great – let’s get going on foot.

Are you sitting still? Now we will begin

One way to determine your activity level is to count the amount of steps that you take in an average day. Modern research says that taking 10,000 steps indicates an active lifestyle, but due to many of us being office based many are failing to take the recommended steps. According to Public Health England, as a nation we spend as many as 60% of our working days in a sedentary position. It is increasingly thought that too much sitting can have as much negative effect on the body as smoking. It is thought to double your risk to heart disease if you sit for more than 8 hours, compared with sitting for 4 hours or less. Being sedentary is also liked with obesity, type ii diabetes and some cancers.

Are you getting enough?

In order to know if we are active enough we need to know how many steps we are taking. These days there are many ways to record your steps including pedometers (that start at under £10), to smart phone apps, smart and sports watches to fitness trackers. Pedometers just tend to measure steps forward, whilst fitness trackers tend to use accelerometer which monitors movements in all directions, and some also recoding elevation such as hills and stairs using an altimeter. You may also be able to set alerts for when you are not moving enough, which can give you extra motivation. Or if you are the competitive type, you may want to link up with others via your smart phone app or fitness tracker to do a walking challenge.

Using a simple pedometer? Why not set your own challenge, such as walking the equivalent of Leeds to London in 3 months. Just remember to record your steps taken/distance each day.

All different equipment measures in slightly different ways, so even if you walked the same route as your friend you would be unlikely to get identical results – plus your stride length would be another variable. The value comes from being able to compare from day to day on how you are doing, so you are consistently getting in enough activity.

Get on track

If you find you are constantly missing the recommended 10,000 here are some ideas on how to get more in:

• Park at the far side of the car park at work and when shopping
• Get off the bus a stop or more earlier
• Using public transport instead of cabs
• Get up to the printer every time you print rather than letting it collate
• Go over and speak to your colleges rather than email
• Use stairs rather than lifts
• Walk around when on the phone
• Find walking workouts online to do inside if you are not liking the weather
• Use your lunch break
• Have walking meetings at work
• Instead of sitting down with a coffee to catch up with a friends, take a stroll together
• Look to see if your Council does free Health Walks
• Go for family walks#
• Try activities such as tennis or ice skating