{"id":244791,"date":"2025-07-07T08:22:18","date_gmt":"2025-07-07T08:22:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/244791\/"},"modified":"2025-07-07T08:22:18","modified_gmt":"2025-07-07T08:22:18","slug":"a-walking-expert-says-this-is-the-minimum-number-of-steps-you-should-take-every-day-to-stay-healthy-and-its-a-lot-lower-than-10000","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/244791\/","title":{"rendered":"A walking expert says this is the minimum number of steps you should take every day to stay healthy (and it\u2019s a lot lower than 10,000)"},"content":{"rendered":"

We all know that regular walking is good for us, but information around step count goals can sometimes be confusing. Most people have heard of the 10,000 steps a day target by now, but a 2022 meta-analysis<\/a> found that you can get significant health benefits from fewer steps a day.<\/p>\n

Which may leave you wondering, is there a lower limit?<\/p>\n

Thankfully, there are walking experts like Milica McDowell, a doctor of physical therapy, exercise physiologist, and VP of operations for Gait Happens<\/a>, who are more than happy to share their expertise.<\/p>\n

You may like<\/p>\n

McDowell outlined the figures for me and explained why you should be worried if you\u2019re walking fewer than 2,500 steps a day.<\/p>\n

McDowell\u2019s advice is based on findings from a 2023 meta-analysis<\/a> that appeared in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology. The research collected data from more than 250,000 participants over multiple years, meaning the findings can be reliably used to make informed recommendations by experts like McDowell.<\/p>\n

If this information motivates you to walk more to regularly hit that minimum, that\u2019s great, but just make sure to increase your step count safely<\/a>\u2014building up slowly over time.<\/p>\n

Why 2,500 steps?<\/p>\n

The 2023 study<\/a> mentioned above explains that you need to walk a minimum of 2,500-4,000 steps a day to see a reduction in the risk of all-cause mortality.<\/p>\n

Start your week with achievable workout ideas, health tips and wellbeing advice in your inbox.<\/p>\n

From 2,337 steps a day, the risk of cardiovascular mortality specifically begins to reduce, so McDowell rounds that up to a more memorable 2,500 steps.<\/p>\n

Cardiovascular mortality encompasses all deaths caused by diseases of the cardiovascular system\u2014your heart and blood vessels.<\/p>\n

When you\u2019re walking fewer than 2,500 steps a day, your risk of heart disease, stroke and cardiovascular events is increased. Over 2,500 steps, those risks begin to decrease.<\/p>\n

\u201c2,500 is the utter basement. If you\u2019re lower than that, you are at risk for all sorts of horrible things,\u201d says McDowell. \u201cSo, please get above 2,500. Most people take about 100 steps per minute, so 2,500 is roughly 25 minutes of walking per day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Remember that all steps count\u2014even getting something from another room\u2014and this ambient walking, as it known, quickly adds up.<\/p>\n

How many steps should you aim for?<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images \/ sdominick)<\/p>\n

3,000 to 4,000 steps<\/p>\n

\u201cIf 2,500 is the absolute basement and you increase by 500 steps per day to 3,000, your risk of dying goes down 7%,\u201d says McDowell. \u201cIf you go up 1,000 steps a day, from 2,500 to 3,500, you reduce your risk of dying by 15%.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2023 study<\/a> states that from around 3,867 steps a day, the risk of mortality from all causes begins to reduce. This includes deaths from any illness.<\/p>\n

5,000 steps<\/p>\n

Anything under 5,000 steps a day is considered sedentary, with 5,000 to 7,500 classed as low activity. Other benefits kick in at 5,000, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know that when we hit that 5,000 step mark, it\u2019s very good for managing depression symptoms,\u201d says McDowell. \u201cSo if you have a family history or if you\u2019ve struggled with those conditions in the past, there are prescriptive amounts of walking that can reduce the symptoms.\u201d<\/p>\n

A 2024 meta-analysis<\/a> in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance found that walking can be used as \u201can evidence-based intervention for reducing anxiety and depression.\u201d You might not be able to add walking to your list of medications, but a higher step count could make a difference.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s an important message because we know that anxiety, depression, and a lot of mental health disorders impact people\u2019s longevity,\u201d says McDowell.<\/p>\n

6,000 to 8,000 steps<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re older than 60, you should be aiming for between 6,000 and 8,000 steps a day for optimal health and longevity, after which the benefits stop increasing with the number of steps you walk. This recommendation is based on data from a 2022 Lancet study<\/a> exploring the benefits of walking for longevity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you hit around the 7,000 mark, it\u2019s good for reducing your risk of developing depression in the first place,\u201d says McDowell.<\/p>\n

8,000 to 10,000 steps<\/p>\n

If you are under 60 years old, the point of diminishing returns mentioned earlier is slightly higher, between 8,000 and 10,000 steps.<\/p>\n

Taking 8,000 steps at a moderate pace (about 3mph) will take you about 90 minutes to walk, depending on your stride length.<\/p>\n

Remember, you don\u2019t have to do that 90 minutes all in one go: you can break it up into smaller chunks like three 30-minute walks or three 20-minute walks and one 30-minute walk.<\/p>\n

How to walk more<\/p>\n

I asked McDowell for her top tip to squeeze more steps into a day.<\/p>\n

\u201cI encourage people to do micro walks,\u201d she says. \u201cThey can go out for five minutes because most people walk at 100 steps per minute. So even five minutes can make a significant difference. And if we get them to add 10 minutes a day consistently, we\u2019re looking at a significant impact on their longevity.\u201d<\/p>\n

If I do other cardio should I still walk for health? <\/p>\n

Many of my colleagues do other forms of exercise, and I wondered if doing more cardio exercise means you can skip hitting your steps that day.<\/p>\n

\u201cRowing, biking and swimming are all good for you, but they don\u2019t provide the specific benefits of walking<\/a>. They surely provide other benefits, but your body needs a certain number of steps per day to achieve optimal health,\u201d says McDowell.<\/p>\n

Shop walking shoes<\/p>\n

If you’re in need of a new pair of walking shoes, our guide to the best walking shoes<\/a> can help. Are are the top three picks in brief.<\/p>\n

\"BrooksBest Overall<\/p>\n

\"ColumbiaBest on a budget<\/p>\n

\"HokaBest for Concrete<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"We all know that regular walking is good for us, but information around step count goals can sometimes…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":244792,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4322],"tags":[1630,105,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-244791","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-fitness","8":"tag-fitness","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114810988350417286","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244791","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=244791"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244791\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/244792"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=244791"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=244791"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=244791"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}