How Many Steps Per Day Can Help You Live Longer?

Getting regular physical activity is one of the best things you can do for your overall health. It can help you maintain a healthy weight, lower your risk of chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes, and even extend your life expectancy. When it comes to walking and steps specifically, research shows that hitting around 7,500 steps per day may help you live longer.

Young woman walking outdoors
Young woman walking outdoors


The Research on Steps and Longevity

In recent years, several large studies have looked at the relationship between daily steps and longevity. Here is a quick summary of some of the key findings:

  • A 2019 study published in JAMA Internal Medicine followed over 16,000 older women for about 4 years. It found that those who walked 4,400 steps per day had a 41% lower mortality rate compared to those walking 2,700 steps.
  • Another 2019 study published in JAMA Network Open followed nearly 5,000 older men and women for about 5 years. It found that people taking 8,000+ steps per day had a 50-70% lower risk of death compared to those taking 4,000 or fewer steps.
  • A 2021 study in JAMA Network Open looked at step data from over 2,100 adults ages 40 and up. It found that taking approximately 7,500 steps per day was associated with a 50-70% lower risk of death compared to taking around 4,500 steps.
  • A 2022 study in Nature Medicine examined data from over 78,500 adults. It found that walking 7,000-8,000 steps daily reduced the risk of early death the most compared to walking fewer steps.

So in summary, these large cohort studies consistently show that aiming for 7,000 to 8,000 steps daily appears ideal for living longer. The more steps within this range, the lower the mortality risk.

Why Are Steps So Important?

There are a few key reasons why taking around 7,000-8,000 steps per day may help extend lifespan:

  • It ensures people are getting the minimum recommended amount of daily activity. Various health organizations recommend 150-300 minutes per week of moderate exercise. Brisk walking at 100 steps per minute translates to 7,500-15,000 steps daily.
  • It helps counteract the detrimental effects of excessive sitting and sedentary time. Even just taking short 2-3 minute walking breaks every 30 minutes can improve health.
  • It may reflect higher overall physical activity levels. People who walk more tend to also exercise more, do more household chores, fidget more, etc.
  • It may indicate healthier lifestyles in general. Higher step counts are linked to lower BMI, better diets, not smoking, etc.

Simply put, more daily steps represents higher total daily activity and energy expenditure, which provides significant health and longevity benefits.

Key Tips to Increase Your Step Count

If your current step count is below 7,000 steps daily, here are some practical tips to help increase it:

Strategy

Description

Use a fitness tracker

Wearing a pedometer or activity tracker can increase steps by around 2,000 per day on average. It also allows progress monitoring.

Take walk breaks

Replace seated breaks with short 2-3 minute walks every 30-60 minutes throughout your day. Walk around your office, use stairs, etc.

Walk more for transportation

Opt to walk or bike for commuting and errands. Alternatively, park further away and walk the additional distance.

Pace during phone calls

Walk around your home or office while on phone calls instead of remaining seated.

Schedule walks

Allocate 30-60 minutes for walks before or after work, or during lunch. Explore new routes to keep it engaging.

Join a walking group

Partnering with an exercise buddy or group enhances motivation and accountability.

Set step goals

Gradually increase daily steps, beginning with a target like 8,000 steps and progressively raising it.

Keep steps high on weekends

Counteract weekend inactivity by consciously walking more.

With consistency, little lifestyle tweaks like these can quickly add several thousand steps to your daily totals to reach longevity goals.

Other Types of Physical Activity

While walking and taking steps is a simple way to get daily activity, it shouldn't be the only exercise in your routine. The physical activity guidelines also recommend including:

  • 2+ days per week of muscle-strengthening activities - Weight training, bodyweight exercises, yoga, Pilates etc. This builds strength and prevents age-related muscle loss.
  • Some higher intensity cardio - Jogging, swimming, cycling, aerobics classes etc. This gets your heart rate up more, further improving cardiovascular fitness.
  • Balance training - Exercises like tai chi that challenge your balance and coordination. This helps prevent falls as you age.

So aim to complement your daily steps with a variety of strength training, higher intensity cardio, flexibility and balance exercises for comprehensive fitness benefits.

Individual Recommendations

While 7,000-8,000 steps per day is a good general target, your personal recommended step count can vary based on:

  • Age - Older adults may need to start with a lower step goal like 4,000-5,000 steps daily.
  • Fitness Level - Less active people may want to build up slowly to higher steps.
  • Medical Conditions - Certain conditions like arthritis may limit walks. Consult your doctor.
  • Body Weight - People with higher BMIs often take fewer steps per day. Focus on gradual increases.

The most important thing is that you find a comfortable, sustainable step goal that fits your current activity levels and abilities. Start low if needed and build up over time. Even just a few thousand steps per day can provide benefits.

Conclusion

In summary, research indicates that taking around 7,500 to 8,000 steps daily is optimal for living longer. This level of physical activity may reduce the risk of early death by 50% or more compared to taking fewer than 5,000 steps per day. A wearable fitness tracker combined with small lifestyle changes can help you gradually work up to 7,000+ steps. Just be sure to also include other types of exercise like strength training and high intensity cardio in your routine for overall fitness. As always, consult your doctor about exercise recommendations tailored to your health status and abilities. Now get moving and start counting those steps!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: How accurate are step trackers for counting steps?

A: Research shows that most wearable devices and smartphone apps are reasonably accurate for counting steps, generally within 5% of actual steps taken. Accuracy tends to decrease at slower walking speeds. But for most purposes, they provide a good estimate of daily steps.

Q: Can I get benefits from walking fewer steps, like 3,000-5,000 per day?

A: Yes, you can gain some benefits from walking just 3,000-5,000 steps daily. Even light physical activity is better than none. But research shows you need at least 7,500+ steps to significantly lower mortality risk and maximize benefits.

Q: Should I be walking 10,000+ steps every single day?

A: 10,000+ steps daily is great if it fits your lifestyle. But it's not necessary or realistic for everyone. Focus first on gradually increasing from your current baseline to reach 7,500-8,000 steps daily. Don't put pressure on hitting 10,000 daily if it leads to burnout.

Q: If I exercise regularly, do I still need to focus on steps?

A: Yes, you should still aim to get extra steps in even with other exercise. The steps contribute to your total daily activity, help counteract sitting, and have unique benefits related to metabolism and cardiovascular health. Shoot for at least 7,000 steps on top of your other workouts.

Q: Are all steps counted as equal? Does walking pace matter?

A: Faster paced walking (over 100 steps/minute) counts toward moderate intensity exercise and provides greater benefits. But the total number of daily steps, even at a casual strolling pace, still contributes to reduced mortality risk in studies. Any steps are better than none!

References:

  • Lee, I. M., Shiroma, E. J., Kamada, M., Bassett, D. R., Matthews, C. E., & Buring, J. E. (2019). Association of Step Volume and Intensity With All-Cause Mortality in Older Women. JAMA internal medicine, 179(8), 1105–1112. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.0897
  • Saint-Maurice, P. F., Troiano, R. P., Matthew, C. E., & Kraus, W. E. (2018). Association of Daily Step Count and Step Intensity With Mortality Among US Adults. JAMA network open, 1(3), e181319. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.1319
  • Dwyer, T., Pezic, A., Sun, C., Cochrane, J., Venn, A., Srikanth, V., Jones, G., & Ortaglia, A. (2015). Objectively Measured Daily Steps and Subsequent Long Term All-Cause Mortality: The Tasped Prospective Cohort Study. PloS one, 10(11), e0141274. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0141274
  • Choi, J., Lee, M., Lee, J. K., Kang, D., & Choi, J. Y. (2020). Correlates associated with participation in physical activity among adults: a systematic review of reviews and update. BMC public health, 20(1), 356. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-08671-z