It’s exciting that in recent years, we can pinpoint just how active we should be — or how many steps we should take — for measurable health improvements.
For example, you’ve probably heard that getting in at least 10,000 steps a day can help with everything from slashing your risk of diabetes to adding years to your life.
Yet, for many of us, getting in 10,000 steps each and every day can seem like an impossible challenge.
Luckily, according to research from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, it may take far fewer steps than we’ve been led to believe — at least when it comes to warding off cardiovascular problems, like heart attack and stroke, to live longer better…
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Fewer steps + small increases = big benefits
To come to their conclusion, the researchers analyzed the results of eight separate studies involving more than 20,000 people from the U.S. and 42 other countries, finding that it takes as little as 6,000 steps a day to save your heart.
In fact, the researchers determined that older adults who walked between 6,000 and 9,000 steps per day had a 40-50 percent reduced risk of a cardiovascular event, such as a heart attack or stroke, compared to those who walked 2,000 steps per day.
“We found for adults over 60, there was a strikingly lower risk of a cardiovascular event or disease over an average follow-up of six years,” said lead researcher, Amanda Paluch. “When accumulating more steps per day, there was a progressively lower risk.”
This backs up earlier research in which Paluch and her colleagues found that waling between 6,000 and 8,000 steps per day was enough to lower the risk of death from all causes among older adults.
The overall message?
“People who are the least active have the most to gain,” says Paluch. “For those who are at 2,000 or 3,000 steps a day, doing a little bit more can mean a lot for their heart health. If you’re at 6,000 steps, getting to 7,000 and then to 8,000 also is beneficial, it’s just a smaller, incremental improvement.”
In other words, if you want to keep your ticker ticking, just get in a little bit more activity than you’re current level. Over time, you can work your way up to grab even more benefits.
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Does walking speed matter?
And there’s more…
The researchers also took a look at whether walking speed played a role in the heart health benefits achieved in the study.
And they say that intensity wasn’t a factor. Simply walking was enough.
There was no additional benefit with faster walking, beyond the total number of steps accumulated.
However, you might want to take this one with a grain of salt. At least one past study found that a faster pace showed beneficial associations for dementia, heart disease, cancer and death over and above total daily steps, and another linked slow walking to accelerated aging.
But whatever your speed, the message is clear. It’s time to step it up a bit for the health of your heart.
Sources:
Heart health tip for older adults in 2023: Step it up a bit – ScienceDaily