Haydn Shaughnessy on the 10,000 steps that are changing the sedentary way of modern life
Anybody with a compulsion to read the back of a certain cereal box will have noticed recently that Kellogs is promoting a new regime - the 10,000 step diet.
The 10,000 step diet is the latest weight loss fad but whereas the run-of-the-mill diet stresses calorie reduction, the 10,000 step diet emphasises exercise. The idea is self-explanatory. To lose weight and stay healthy, we need to take 10,000 steps a day. That's about five miles.
The average person takes 700-3,000 steps a day, according to research conducted by Shape Up America, a charity that promotes healthy lifestyles.
The idea of walking 10,000 steps a day might be daunting. Even for active people it looks like a three-fold increase in daily exercise. For the extremely sedentary, it means a 14-fold increase. In terms of its contribution to health, there is a distinct possibility that what seems like a lot is really rather a little. However, 10,000 steps are nowhere near what our bodies actually need, according to some sports experts.
Loren Cordain, an expert in the genetic requirements of human bodies, is both supportive and sceptical of the movement: "Anything is better than nothing," he says, "so walking five miles a day would be a great start. Double that on a daily basis and you get into the exercise range of hunter-gatherers."
The genetic requirements of the body were set 40,000 years ago and they have not changed much since, according to scientists like Cordain who study human evolution. He claims that health advice routinely underestimates what humans need in order to be healthy.
Our long-distance ancestors would consume around 3,000 calories a day and routinely walk 10 or more miles, as well as take part in extreme bursts of energy when going for the kill, as well as dancing for hours when celebrating.
He has calculated that a person who does a 40-minute exercise period per day is probably about 12 miles short of what it takes to keep the body satisfied.
If Cordain makes the life of a hunter-gatherer seem extraordinarily laborious, the point is that these wandering party fiends represent a blueprint that today's blobbies should use as an example.
But 10,000 steps is a giant step beyond current official advice, the 40 minutes, five times a week, minimum requirement that governments across the world recommend.
The idea of 10,000 steps first took hold in Japan 40 years ago when the Japanese realised that a sedentary lifestyle contributes to health problems. It has become a fashionable pastime in the United States and is beginning to catch on in the UK.
How should people adopt the 10,000 step diet? First, buy a pedometer, the tiny clocks that count your steps. These are available from sports shops for around €25 or on the web from about half that price.
Shape Up America suggests that you use the first two weeks of your programme to measure what you now routinely do. You may find yourself in the 700-3,000 step bracket and that means you have to more than triple your activity. The change is substantial. Not only does it mean putting your body through more, it will encroach on social and family activities and despair will set in, so the 10,000 steps have to be set up as a programme.
Ways to increase activity? The usual suggestions are get off the bus or tram a few stops early, don't use the lift at work, park further away from shops But these are only going to contribute to what needs to become a heartfelt requirement to do more.
To set the agenda for the following two weeks, you should take the highest number of steps walked in the first two. Use this number as a daily target for the next two weeks. It may seem only a small change but already you are setting goals based on your maximum efforts to date. It is an important psychological step up.
For the following two weeks, add 500 steps. If you find yourself down at 2,000, go up to 2,500. The next two weeks add another 500. Continue like this until you hit 10,000.
People who get it right should never look back.