Women's Health In Midlife Begins With 6,000 Steps

Do you have any idea how many steps a day you walk?  I don't just mean fitness walks (although I am a big fan of those, my Achilles tendonosis is finally improving to the point that I can take short walks now, I am careful to stretch before and after so I don't set myself back.)  Right now on the days I fitness walk that gets in about 2,000 steps, but I honestly don't know how many steps I take in a day. 

I know for quite a while there was a big movement for 10,000 steps a day, and from what I have read that's not all that easy to achieve on a daily basis.  I ran across this article in Medical News Today that discusses a study done on the effect 6,000 steps a day has on the health of middle aged women.  Turns out there is evidence that getting in that level of movement in a day may reduce the incidence of diabetes and metobolic syndrome. 

I've been experimenting with pedometer apps on my iPhone with limited success, but I do have a cheap pedometer I use on my fitness walks.  I'm thinking I might put it on at the start of the day tomorrow and track my steps for 7 days and see where I'm at.  I don't have a "typical" week, often how far I walk or how much I move around is dependent on how well my back and hip are doing on any given day.  On days that the pain level is manageable, I do more, on days when my back is flared up, I rest more.  The weather here is supposed to be pretty good this week (albeit cold, I am going to miss my 65 degree days!) so hopefully most days I can get in a short walk to boost my numbers.  Steps I take during a gym workout will count, the only time I won't be counting steps during a workout is when I do water workouts. 

I'm posting this not just for informational purposes, although I think this article is important to share with everyone----I'm also hoping to hold myself accountable.  Look for an update next Sunday to see how many days I wore my pedometer, and how many steps I took each day!