Indian monsoons have set in, and predictions claim that the rains would be ‘103 per cent of the normal’.
However, such predictions have no practical value unless they presage how the rains would be distributed across the country and over the monsoon months.
The same rationale applies to the number of steps needed daily to stay healthy. Without knowing the ‘distribution’ of strides throughout the day, that guideline has no relevance.
When a Step is More Than a Step
A few minutes of an easy walk after a meal reduces the food-induced blood glucose spike. In Indian traditional sciences, it is called ‘Shata-pavli’ – walking 100 steps.
A post-meal stroll of 500 steps (about 350 meters – a five-minute walk) is even better. It makes your muscle cells pull enough glucose from the blood to dampen its surge.
A similar 500-step saunter on an empty stomach in the morning won’t confer as much benefit.
A step after dinner is 'healthier' than one after lunch, which in turn is more beneficial than a stride early morning.
The Law of Diminishing Returns
Most physiological processes have ‘marginally reducing’ returns.
An apple a day may be healthy, but eating two apples a day? That is less than twice as good.
If 500 paces are good for you, 1,000 strides at one go may not be twice as rewarding.
Step Distribution Throughout the Day
Averages deceive. When two districts get precipitation of 103% and 103%, or 93% and 113%, the mean rainfall is the same. But, in the latter situation, the regions will face drought and floods, respectively.
“Never forget the 6-foot-tall man who drowned crossing the stream that was 5 feet deep on average.”
Howard Marks, a famous investor and billionaire
Five hundred steps an hour over 15 hours will confer more health bounty than 7,500 strides (about 5 km or 3 miles) in an hour of walking.
This is also true with daily variations. One may clock 30,000 steps on Sundays, running errands, but skip any activity on busy Mondays and Tuesdays. Such a person will average 10,000 steps a day but will be less healthy than his consistent brethren.
Clarification: Everyone’s ideal count of daily strides will vary based on age, gender, work constraint, air quality, health condition and dietary habits.
This lacuna should not be mistaken for the limitation of guidelines, which don’t capture individual variations. Even for the same individual, it is not the daily tally but the time-wise distribution of steps that decides the health outcome.
My Advice
- Identify ways to substitute activity for comfort. Walk short distances; climb stairs; stand during a phone call.
- Aim for small, gradual improvements and no massive changes at once.
- Buy a cheap wristband; what gets measured, improves. Note your current daily steps for a week.
- Add 500 strides (a 5-minute walk) a day for the next two weeks. Raise by 500 steps every two weeks, until you manage 5,000 paces a day.
- Admittedly, five thousand is an arbitrary number, but it is pragmatic – roughly one hour of activity.
- Increase further, only if time and health permit.
- Senior citizens should evaluate balance, walking or eyesight concerns and may opt for a lower value. Benefits of extra activity may not outweigh the risks of a fall or injury.
- Settle for a tally that you can reach consistently. A low count accomplished is preferable to a big target that stayed on paper.
Read on this Website: These exercises can slow down your ageing
And don’t worry about our monsoon predictions. Climate scientists use a 6 km x 6 km grid on supercomputers to forecast granular details of rainfall across the country. That single number average, 103%, is just for pulp consumption.
Conclusion
- Ignore any study that claims a certain number of steps are needed daily to stay healthy.
- The spread of steps throughout the day matters more than the final tally.
To Read More
- BBC: Fitness: Fewer than 5,000 steps a day enough to boost health – study
- Healthline: How Many Steps Do I Need a Day?
- British Heart Foundation: How many steps a day should I walk for my heart health?
- UCLA Health: How many steps do you need a day to see health benefits?
- UT Southwestern Medical Center: Focusing on 10,000 steps a day could be a misstep
- Medical News Today: How many steps should people take per day?
- Northwestern Medicine: How Many Steps a Day Should You Take to Improve Your Heart Health?
- International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity: How many steps/day are enough? for adults
- Women’s Health: How Many Steps A Day You Actually Need To Lose Weight, According To Trainers
- On this Website: Do this exercise to become 30 years younger
First Published on: 1st June 2025
Image Credit: prostooleh on Freepik