- A new study shows steps and minutes are useful ways to measure physical activity.
- Researchers found that taking more steps each day or exercising for a few minutes each week was associated with lower health risks.
- No matter how you pursue exercise, moving more and sitting less is still a good overall goal.
- Setting a goal of 7,000 or 10,000 steps a day is a simple way to increase physical activity, which can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and other conditions.
However, current U.S. physical activity guidelines recommend that people measure their physical activity in minutes rather than steps, specifically at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity per week.
So is it really better to count exercise minutes than steps?
A new study suggests otherwise.
Researchers found that step- and time-based goals were associated with a reduced risk of all-cause death and cardiovascular disease in older women.
This suggests that finding a method that works for you may be the best way to achieve your health goals.
“For some people, especially young people, exercise may include activities such as tennis, football, walking or jogging, all of which can be easily tracked via step count. However, for others it may include cycling or swimming, which makes it easier to monitor exercise duration,” study author Dr. Rikuta Hamaya, a researcher in the Division of Preventive Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, said in a press release.
“That’s why it’s important that physical activity guidelines provide multiple ways to achieve your goals,” she said. “Exercise is different for everyone, and almost all forms of exercise can promote health.”
The results were published May 20 in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.
Exercise time and steps
For the study, researchers examined data from nearly 15,000 healthy women aged 62 and older who participated in the Women’s Health Study.
Between 2011 and 2015, participants were asked to wear research-grade activity monitors for seven consecutive days, taking them off only when sleeping, showering, bathing, or swimming.
Women also completed annual questionnaires that asked about their health, including cardiovascular conditions such as heart disease and stroke. Deaths of participants were reported by family members or by mail.
Researchers are following participants until the end of 2022.
Participants’ average physical activity time was 62 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity, and their average number of steps was 5,183 steps per day. In other words, half of the participants got at least this amount of activity or daily steps.
As expected, higher levels of physical activity (measured as time or steps) were associated with lower risks of all-cause death or cardiovascular disease. This risk was 30 to 40 percent lower among women in the most active quartile (top quartile) compared with women in the least active quartile.
Additionally, after nine years of follow-up, participants in the top three quartiles of physical activity time and step count lived 2.22 and 2.36 months longer, respectively, than women in the bottom quartile. This survival advantage remained even when the researchers took into account participants’ body mass index (BMI).
Results from both analyzes were similar in terms of steps and minutes.
The study helps us understand different ways to track physical activity, but the researchers note that they only assessed participants’ physical activity at one point in time.
Additionally, this was an observational study, so causation cannot be proven. The researchers hope to later conduct a randomized controlled trial to better understand the link between health and tracking exercise by minutes or steps.
The best way to track your workouts
While step counting isn’t available for all activities, you can use it for activities like walking, hiking, and running, not just during workouts but throughout the day.
However, that doesn’t mean step counting is the best way to track this type of activity.
Karly Mendez, a human performance expert at Memorial Hermann Center, said deciding whether to use steps or minutes comes down to personal preference because higher levels of both are associated with better health.
Sometimes, however, tracking steps can help people keep training, says James Rodgers, a veteran coach and runner of 20 years.
“Some people respond well to setting specific measured goals and tracking their progress, which helps them stay motivated to reach certain goals,” he told Healthline. “As their health improves, they can try to gradually Increase step goals.”
However, “expecting beginners to meet step goals can put too much pressure on them,” he says. “Instead, it might be easier for beginners to quantify their active time” such as taking a 30-minute walk after lunch each day.
Rogers stresses that step counting also doesn’t take into account the terrain you’re walking or running on. For example, completing 8,000 steps on a hilly or mountainous road requires more effort than completing the same number of steps on a smooth, paved road.
“While counting steps on a mountain trail can be a great exercise for you, counting steps on flat terrain can be too much,” he says, “and you might risk training too much.”
So if you’re traveling through different types of terrain, tracking minutes instead of steps might be a better option. Plus, “you’re likely to make more consistent progress [with time tracking],” Rogers says.
Personalize your training
There are other ways to measure your physical activity, such as: B. Tracking duration and intensity.
This approach is more individualized, as a “vigorous” workout for one person may be a “moderate” workout for another. Pursuing something that feels strong to you will help you make progress over time.
Mendez recommends “working 80% of your weekly training volume in Zone 2 and 20% of your weekly training volume in Zones 4/5. This can be done with any activity you like.”
Zone 2 workouts are so simple that you can keep talking, while “Zone 4/5 workouts involve getting your heart rate up, keeping it there, and letting it settle,” she told Healthline.
You can also measure intensity by tracking your heart rate, Rogers says. “Exercising in different heart rate zones for specific durations can help prevent your performance from plateauing.”
Heart rate monitoring also takes terrain into account, because when you walk or run up a steep hill, your heart may beat faster to compensate for the increased exertion.
Rogers points out that while step counts or other training metrics can be great motivational tools, it’s important not to focus too much on them.
“A balanced training approach is crucial,” he says. “Include other aspects of training that may not require steps, such as: B. Strength training for optimal results.”
It’s also possible to make changes and track steps on one day and duration on other days, Mendez said. The key, however, is to do something active every day—move more and sit less.
“Do things you really enjoy and find a schedule and exercise that works for you,” she says. “That’s the best way to make sure you stay consistent and come back.”
Take away
Tracking physical activity through step counting is becoming increasingly popular, especially with the advent of smartphone apps and wearable devices. However, U.S. physical activity guidelines are based on minutes per week, not steps.
A new study suggests that steps and minutes may be a useful way to track certain types of physical activity, such as walking, hiking and running. Higher levels of both activity markers in older women were associated with lower risks of all-cause death and cardiovascular disease.
Experts stress that it’s important to find a method that works for you and not get too obsessed with tracking key points. Even in other types of exercise, such as strength training, balance is key, they say.