Reaching the golden number of 10,000 steps a day has long been lauded as one of the best ways to keep us in peak physical and mental health.
Studies have suggested reaching the five-figure step count can cut your risk of suffering a range of serious health issues including dementia, type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
But walking this far at a regular pace can take about two hours, an impractical target for many with busy lives.
However, experts say you can reap many of the same benefits of 10,000 steps by walking faster for shorter bursts or exercising for less than half an hour.
Here, MailOnline highlights this history, the science of 10,000 steps goal and asks personal trainers and exercise experts if we really need walk this amount every day…
Studies suggest the magical number can cut your risk of developing dementia, type 2 diabetes and heart disease
Where did the ‘magic’ number come from?
Walking 10,000 steps a day has long been seen as the holy grail of regular fitness.
It’s automatically logged into many pedometers, fitness watches and smartphones as the default recommended step goal.
But surprisingly, the number wasn’t the result of large forensic scientific study.
Instead, it was plucked out of thin air as part of a clever marketing ploy by a Japanese company trying to sell pedometers 60 years ago.
The 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games were underway at the time, and many companies in the country were trying to tap into, and profit off, an increased focus on fitness.
One company, called Yamasa, launched a pedometer called the Manpo-kei, which literally means ‘10,000 steps metre’ in Japanese.
Although not foreseeing it at the time, they launched a global fascination with this number and daily fitness.
But the arbitrary figure was not grounded in any science at the time. Instead, it was chosen simply because it was a nice, round memorable figure.
The 10,000 steps goal originated from a clever marketing ploy by a Japanese company trying to sell pedometers in the wake of the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. At that time, there was an increased focus on fitness in the host nation and firms had tried to capitalise on the craze surrounding the Games (pictured, an advert for the original gadget)
Health benefits of walking 10,000 steps
Although the original campaign to walk 10,000 steps a day wasn’t based on science, researchers have since found it might have merit.
In fact, since the 1964 Olympics, studies have consistently shown that 10,000 daily steps is a good ballpark for anyone looking to stay healthy — and that it appears much more beneficial than simply sticking to 5,000.
Experts universally agree walking every day has a myriad of health benefits.
‘Increasing physical activity such as your step count through walking contributes to improved cardiovascular fitness, weight management, improved mood, better sleep and enhanced cognitive function,’ Lindsay Bottoms, exercise and health physiology researcher at University of Hertfordshire told MailOnline.
Walking is not only ‘simple’ and ‘accessible’, making it a ‘practical’ exercise for people of all ages, it also lowers the risk of many chronic illnesses, Ms Bottoms said.
It can also reduce the risk of of developing chronic illnesses such as dementia, and certain cancers. Additionally, it can also improve existing health conditions such as diabetes and give the immune system a boost, she said.
One study found that for every 2,000 steps a day, equivalent to about a 15 minutes walk, the risk of an early death fell between 8 and 11 per cent.
But there does appear to be an upper limit, with the researchers finding any health benefits from walking over 10,000 steps were negligible.
Another study, which followed 78,500 Brits aged 40 to 79, had participants wear a pedometer for a week to track their daily step count.
The researchers, from Denmark and Australia, then checked back seven years later to see if any of the participants had a dementia diagnosis.
Results suggested that 9,800 steps was optimal for preventing dementia, seemingly cutting the risk by 51 per cent.
According to a recent study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, walking between 9,000 and 10,500 steps a day cuts the risk of heart disease by up to 21 per cent and an early death by up to 10 per cent, in ‘highly sedentary’ adults.
Do you really need to hit 10,000 steps?
Experts say 10,000 steps is far from a magic number for everybody.
Although touted as the ideal goal to keep fit and healthy, not everyone has the time to complete 10,000 steps every day, the equivalent to walking five miles.
Instead, experts say walking less steps at a faster pace could reap many of the same benefits.
‘There is not a need to get a set number of steps done each day,’ London-based celebrity personal trainer Matt Roberts told MailOnline.
He explained that, instead of 10,000 steps, moving for a shorter 40 minute or more period each day will improve your chances of burning fat.
However, doing these steps all in one go in ‘one spell of long, fast walking’ is better than lots of short pacing throughout the day, he explained.
‘This would be around 3,000 to 5,000 steps of quite fast walking and your gains are achieved,’ he said.
‘The reason more steps might be needed is that for most people there simply isn’t a spell when 3,000 to 5,000 steps are done in one period.
‘Walking more steps over the course of the day burns more calories but there is no guarantee it’s burning fat if that’s your goal.’
Although it has been touted as the daily goal to keep fit and healthy, not everyone has the time to complete 10,000 steps, which is the equivalent to walking five miles
Studies have also shown health benefits for lower but faster step counts.
The researchers that found 9,800 steps was optimal for preventing dementia also revealed walking 6,300 steps but at a fast pace (40 steps a minute) made people 57 per cent less likely to develop dementia.
This suggests less steps at a faster pace could be just as good or better.
Studies also show you don’t need to be counting your steps if you are doing additional exercise, even for less than half an hour a day.
A meta-analysis involving 11,000 people published in 2023 found those who exercised for just 22 minutes per day had a 40 percent lower risk of death compared to those who didn’t exercise at all.
Simply moving more and not being sedentary could also be enough to make a significant impact on your health.
Ms Bottoms said: ‘In recent years research has shown that prolonged sitting times can increase our risk of various health issues and this can be reduced by just moving more.
‘For some people though, having a target to achieve helps to motivate them to move.
‘I would focus more on breaking up sitting time and ensure you can get as many steps in as possible and just be more active.’
She suggests aiming to get around 7,000 steps in a day and if you can’t reach this then increase your step count by 1,000 a day to gradually get closer to your goal.
