The following
program presents principles
00:00:01.98\00:00:02.95
designed to
promote good health and is
00:00:02.96\00:00:04.65
not intended to
take the place of
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personalized professional care.
00:00:06.25\00:00:08.09
The opinions and
ideas expressed are those
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of the speaker.
Viewers are encouraged
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to draw their own conclusions
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about the information presented.
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Hello and welcome
to Wonderfully Made.
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My name is Don
Morgan, and I'm an exercise
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physiologist and
professor in the Department
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of Health and Human
Performance at Middle
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Tennessee State
University. This is the
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fourth of a series of
programs examining the
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health and spiritual
dimensions of leading a
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physically active life.
As we've noted in previous
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programs, physical
inactivity is associated
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with a number of
adverse health conditions,
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including obesity,
cardiovascular disease,
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diabetes and
certain types of cancers.
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Conversely, growing
evidence suggest that
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the accumulation of
small bits of physical
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activity each day
can lead to striking
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improvements in
physical fitness. In
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light of these
findings, we're going to be
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talking today about a
simple yet affective way
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of quantifying the
total volume of physical
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activity that you're
getting on a daily basis.
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In my hand, I'm
holding a pedometer.
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Pedometers are small,
easy to use and relatively
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inexpensive.
Although they have been around
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since the time of
Leonardo Da Vinci,
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pedometers have
experienced a resurgence
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in popularity in recent years.
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Pedometers, as many of you know,
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measure the total
number of steps that a
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person takes. Hence,
they provide an estimate
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of the overall amount
of physical activity that
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has been performed.
Pedometers operate by
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the following
principle, when you take a step,
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your hips move up and
down and this rhythmic
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movement causes a
lever in the back of this
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pedometer to deflect
or move. Each time the
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lever moves it
registers on the pedometer's
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front screen as a
step, pretty simple isn't it?
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Walking is a loco-motor
activity that has been
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shown to lower death
risks in individuals with
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diabetes and heart
disease to increase bone
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density in the legs and
the trunk and to diminish
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the risk of colon
cancer. Because of their
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ability to count
steps, the use of pedometers
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is an excellent way
of quantifying physical
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activity while
walking. It should be noted
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however that
pedometers cannot be used to
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quantify exercise
volume in activities like
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swimming or cycling
and resistance training,
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because none of
them incorporate vertical
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hip motions. Now
that doesn't mean that you
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shouldn't
perform these activities.
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Swimming and bicycling
can strengthen the heart
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and the lungs and
weight training builds muscle
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mass and stronger
bones. Later in this program,
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we'll talk about
how to account for these
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activities using something
called step equivalents.
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At this point, an
interesting question to
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ask would be how many
steps should I take per
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day to achieve and
maintain good health.
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While this question
has not been answered in
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a definitive way the
following graphic provides
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some current
guidelines relating to daily
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stepping rates to
physical activity levels.
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As you can see,
taking less than 5,000 steps
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per day places you
in a sedentary category
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between 5,000 and
7,499 steps per day puts
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you in the
low-active category, and walking
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at a rate of 7,500
to 9,999 steps per day
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places you in the
somewhat active category.
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Once you reached
10,000 or more steps per day
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you are classified as
active, and taking 12,500
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steps or more per
day means that you are
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highly active.
Based on these figures,
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accumulating 10,000
steps per day might be
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viewed as a reasonable
level of daily physical
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activity for
people to try and achieve.
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Studies have shown for
instance that individuals
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who take at least
10,000 steps per day have
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less body fat and lower
blood pressure than their
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less active counterparts.
In addition, overweight
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and hypertensive
women who increase their
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daily physical
activity level to 10,000 steps
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reduce their blood
pressure, lower their body
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weight and show
significant improvements
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in their ability to
regulate blood sugar
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levels. Conversely,
individuals with pedometer
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readings of less
than 5,000 steps per day
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were more likely to
be classified as obese.
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Now in trying to
established appropriate
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stepping guidelines,
it's important to hearken
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back to the
recommendation found in the 1996
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surgeon generals report
on physical activity and
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health. The
primary guideline from this
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report, which we discussed
in the second program in
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this series is that
people of all ages should
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engage in a minimum
of 30 minutes of moderate
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intensity physical
activity on most, if not
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all days of the week.
The length between this
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physical activity
guideline and achieving 10,000
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steps per day comes
from data indicating that
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73 percent of
participants who engaged in a
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minimum of 30
minutes of moderate physical
00:06:06.92\00:06:09.11
activity on a given
day, also achieved at least
00:06:09.18\00:06:12.86
10,000 steps on that
same day. While the 10,000
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steps per day guideline
appears to be a reasonable
00:06:19.24\00:06:21.71
goal for healthy
individuals to try and
00:06:21.79\00:06:23.83
reach, this guideline
maybe too low for children
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and maybe too high
for sedentary individuals.
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Some older adults
and persons with chronic
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health problems like
arthritis, diabetes and
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heart disease might
also think that the 10,000
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step level would be a
bit much. I know colleagues
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who have seen their
clients lose weight,
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reduced their
waist size, enhance their
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physical fitness and
lower their blood pressure
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without reaching
the magical 10,000 step
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number. Based on
these experiences,
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I believe that
the key is to adopt an
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individualized
approach to increasing your step
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number that features
an initial assessment of
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your current level
of physical activity,
00:07:07.32\00:07:09.26
and emphasizes a
gradual rise in activity level
00:07:10.09\00:07:13.44
overtime. Along
these lines research has
00:07:13.51\00:07:17.83
demonstrated that even
small increments in step
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number can yield
meaningful health gains.
00:07:20.80\00:07:24.02
What is most
important is to establish your
00:07:25.00\00:07:27.85
baseline step count
and to increase it in an
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incremental and
sustainable manner.
00:07:31.19\00:07:33.63
If you've never worn
a step pedometer before,
00:07:36.16\00:07:39.33
you might be
wondering how many steps people
00:07:40.38\00:07:42.50
take on an average
day? To help answer this
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question, I've put
together a graphic that's based
00:07:46.11\00:07:49.83
on results from a
number of studies conducted
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on a variety of
people. As you can see,
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daily step count
values can range quite a bit,
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varying from 12,000 to
16,000 steps for 8 to 10
00:07:59.12\00:08:03.42
year old children
between 7,000 and 13,000 steps
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for relatively
healthy and younger adults,
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between 6,000 to 8,500
steps for healthy older
00:08:11.54\00:08:15.48
adults and between
3,500 and 5,500 steps for
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adults living with
disabilities and chronic
00:08:20.67\00:08:22.62
illnesses. The
next graphic shows how
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occupational and
leisure time status can
00:08:26.50\00:08:28.67
influence the number
of steps that people take.
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If you work
primarily involves sitting,
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for example, if you're
a telephone operator or an
00:08:35.89\00:08:38.69
office worker you may
take somewhere between
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4,000 and 5,000 steps
per day, if you are on
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your feet all day, but
you're not walking around
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a lot like a pharmacist
or a hairstylist you might
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get 5,500 to 6,500
steps per day. If your job
00:08:53.50\00:08:58.48
involves a lot of
walking for example,
00:08:58.49\00:09:01.28
if you're a nurse or a
waiter or a waitress your
00:09:01.68\00:09:05.12
daily step activity can
vary from 8,000 to 20,000
00:09:05.13\00:09:09.00
steps per day, and if
you're just relaxing or
00:09:09.01\00:09:12.60
lazing around in the
weekend you might only get
00:09:12.73\00:09:15.32
2,000 to 3,000 steps
per day, and if you're sick
00:09:15.44\00:09:20.23
your daily step
activity might not even exceed
00:09:20.81\00:09:23.31
500 steps. Conversely,
if you're sightseeing in a
00:09:23.41\00:09:28.12
city or a foreign
country you might accumulate
00:09:28.20\00:09:31.03
upto 30,000 steps
per day. Besides being
00:09:31.18\00:09:35.28
informative having a
sense of typical daily step
00:09:35.35\00:09:38.51
rates across a wide
range of occupations and
00:09:38.61\00:09:40.90
lifestyle situations
can really be a help and can
00:09:40.93\00:09:45.11
help you to
anticipate what your step count
00:09:45.20\00:09:47.47
might be when you
start to wear a pedometer.
00:09:47.52\00:09:50.43
One important topic that
we haven't discussed yet,
00:09:52.25\00:09:55.10
is what to look
for in a pedometer.
00:09:55.84\00:09:57.39
Let me highlight some
of the characteristics that
00:09:58.59\00:10:01.25
might be healthful in
selecting a pedometer,
00:10:01.27\00:10:04.09
which you can
purchase at sporting good
00:10:04.60\00:10:06.40
stores or camping and
outfitting establishments.
00:10:06.46\00:10:09.18
First, it should be
light weight and have an
00:10:09.86\00:10:12.84
extended battery
life or at least the same
00:10:13.03\00:10:15.77
battery life as a
watch. Since both use the
00:10:15.83\00:10:19.12
same type of battery.
Second, the display on
00:10:19.15\00:10:23.80
the pedometer
should be easy to read.
00:10:23.81\00:10:25.83
Third, your pedometer
should have a clip that
00:10:26.77\00:10:30.35
attaches snugly to
the waistband of your
00:10:30.42\00:10:32.43
clothing or to your
undergarments if you're
00:10:32.52\00:10:35.15
wearing overalls or
clothing that does not
00:10:35.21\00:10:37.91
have a waistband.
If you don't have a
00:10:38.10\00:10:41.15
secure attachment
clip, you maybe doing a lot
00:10:41.16\00:10:44.14
of bending over to
pick up your pedometer
00:10:44.22\00:10:45.99
when it falls. Now to
prevent your pedometer
00:10:46.14\00:10:50.18
from becoming
detached, you might consider
00:10:50.19\00:10:52.98
tying a string to the
pedometer clip and sliding
00:10:53.09\00:10:56.28
a safety pin through
the free end of the string
00:10:56.33\00:10:58.91
and then pinning
it to your waistband.
00:10:59.80\00:11:01.41
This will help to
secure the pedometer just
00:11:02.64\00:11:05.09
in case it comes
lose from your clothes.
00:11:05.14\00:11:07.16
Simplicity is another
factor that you want to
00:11:08.76\00:11:11.71
look for when
you buy a pedometer.
00:11:11.80\00:11:13.35
Some pedometers offer
all sorts of bells and
00:11:14.62\00:11:16.82
whistle for example
some claim to measure the
00:11:16.88\00:11:19.94
amount of distance
traveled or the number of
00:11:20.00\00:11:22.19
calories that you've
expanded, but all you
00:11:22.20\00:11:24.85
really need is a
button to zero the pedometer
00:11:24.86\00:11:27.94
prior to beginning a
new day of accumulating
00:11:28.00\00:11:30.55
steps. If available,
you might want to consider
00:11:30.61\00:11:35.36
purchasing a
pedometer with a plastic cover
00:11:35.41\00:11:37.46
on it, to protect
the reset button from
00:11:37.54\00:11:40.35
setting itself back to
zero. Something that can
00:11:40.87\00:11:43.98
happen for
instance when you put a seat
00:11:44.11\00:11:46.20
belt on or
accidentally bump up against the
00:11:46.35\00:11:48.83
door. It's also very
important that you have
00:11:48.87\00:11:53.40
an accurate
pedometer, in other words when
00:11:53.45\00:11:56.95
your pedometer
says that you walked a
00:11:57.00\00:11:58.62
100 steps, you want
to be confident that you
00:11:58.68\00:12:01.58
have in fact walked
100 steps for something
00:12:01.63\00:12:04.54
very close to 100
steps. One way to check out
00:12:04.61\00:12:09.24
the accuracy of your
pedometer is to put it on
00:12:09.36\00:12:12.12
in the store, so just
clip it to your clothing
00:12:12.13\00:12:14.77
at your waist that
centered right over your
00:12:14.83\00:12:17.16
dominant foot and
walk at a comfortable pace
00:12:17.30\00:12:20.76
for 20 steps, with each
foot striking the ground
00:12:20.84\00:12:24.32
counting as a step,
if your pedometer reads
00:12:24.72\00:12:28.15
20 steps you can
feel pretty confident that
00:12:28.21\00:12:31.26
you have an accurate pedometer.
00:12:31.28\00:12:32.60
However, if that
count doesn't read 20 steps
00:12:33.62\00:12:36.69
then you can be a
little suspicious,
00:12:37.62\00:12:39.15
but don't give up
yet, because it's possible
00:12:40.17\00:12:42.93
that something simple
like the fact that the
00:12:43.04\00:12:44.84
pedometer somehow
rolled onto its side may
00:12:45.00\00:12:48.11
have caused an
inaccurate step count reading.
00:12:48.13\00:12:50.85
Once you verify
that the pedometer is
00:12:52.05\00:12:54.06
positioned correctly
walk another 20 steps
00:12:54.15\00:12:57.52
and look at the display
panel. If you still don't
00:12:58.25\00:13:01.52
see a 20 step
reading adjust the pedometer
00:13:01.60\00:13:04.77
once again if it's
necessary and then repeat
00:13:04.83\00:13:08.25
the walking test one
last time. If this count is
00:13:08.28\00:13:12.36
off by a large
amount then you can move on
00:13:12.40\00:13:15.47
and test another
model. With regard to cost,
00:13:15.48\00:13:19.40
you should expect to
pay somewhere between
00:13:20.19\00:13:21.97
$20 and $60 for
a decent pedometer.
00:13:22.07\00:13:24.37
However, if you're
trying to choose between a
00:13:25.58\00:13:28.05
$20 model and a $60
model and both met the
00:13:28.14\00:13:32.11
criteria mentioned
earlier then go cheap
00:13:32.16\00:13:35.14
and buy the $20
model. And, here is one last
00:13:35.55\00:13:39.61
thing, while it's
not absolutely necessary,
00:13:39.62\00:13:42.98
buying a good pair of
walking or running shoes
00:13:43.62\00:13:46.02
will enable you to
move about comfortably
00:13:46.64\00:13:48.66
when you have
the opportunity to be
00:13:49.30\00:13:50.69
physically active. Now
once you have purchased
00:13:50.76\00:13:54.42
a pedometer, the
next thing to do is to
00:13:54.43\00:13:57.55
determine what your
baseline step count is
00:13:57.62\00:13:59.76
over a week, to do
this wear the pedometer
00:13:59.81\00:14:03.60
during your awaking
hours, of course take it
00:14:03.62\00:14:05.94
off when you bathe
or swim and record the
00:14:06.06\00:14:08.64
step number at the end
of the day right before
00:14:08.66\00:14:10.89
you go to bed. Make
sure that during the seven
00:14:10.90\00:14:14.18
day period that you
live your life as normally
00:14:14.21\00:14:16.75
as possible, once the
week is completed you'll be
00:14:16.81\00:14:20.59
able to start increasing
your level of physical
00:14:20.65\00:14:22.61
activity, but don't
change anything quite yet,
00:14:22.69\00:14:25.49
when you awaken
the next day reset the
00:14:26.66\00:14:29.21
pedometer to zero
before you start the
00:14:29.25\00:14:31.53
accumulation of a
new days worth of steps.
00:14:31.55\00:14:34.35
Write down the end of
the day step recording
00:14:35.32\00:14:37.74
for each day of the
week then add together
00:14:37.87\00:14:41.06
all the daily step
counts and divide by seven
00:14:41.21\00:14:44.82
to arrive at your
baseline step count.
00:14:45.36\00:14:47.79
The following
graphic shows an example of
00:14:49.21\00:14:51.29
what I've just
described. As you can see,
00:14:51.40\00:14:54.21
I've listed a series
of step counts over a 7
00:14:54.73\00:14:57.17
day span. Added them
all up to arrive at a
00:14:57.29\00:15:00.76
total of 36,988
steps and then divided this
00:15:00.91\00:15:06.05
number by seven days
to obtain a baseline step
00:15:06.10\00:15:09.32
count of 5,284 steps per day.
00:15:09.34\00:15:13.81
Now, once this
baseline step count has been
00:15:15.51\00:15:17.49
established, the
challenge is to determine how
00:15:17.59\00:15:20.49
much of a step
increase you should strive for.
00:15:20.57\00:15:23.05
Here is one way to do
this, set your pedometer
00:15:24.06\00:15:27.26
to zero and just
walk at your normal phase
00:15:27.35\00:15:29.93
for 10 minutes, at
the end of this 10 minute
00:15:29.98\00:15:32.91
period record how
many steps you took,
00:15:32.95\00:15:35.55
then remembering
that each of us should be
00:15:36.51\00:15:39.16
accumulating at least
30 minutes of moderate
00:15:39.25\00:15:41.40
physical activity
everyday multiply your 10
00:15:41.45\00:15:44.91
minute step number by
3 to find out how many
00:15:45.01\00:15:47.70
steps you would take if
you walk for 30 minutes.
00:15:47.71\00:15:50.60
Then, add this
number to your baseline step
00:15:51.45\00:15:55.13
count to determine
your initial step goal.
00:15:55.21\00:15:58.49
I know I just threw
out a lot of numbers in
00:16:00.18\00:16:02.00
calculations just then,
so let's look at the next
00:16:02.03\00:16:05.02
graphic as we do
an example together.
00:16:05.09\00:16:07.10
First, we start with
our baseline step count,
00:16:07.95\00:16:11.07
which in the previous
example was 52,084 steps.
00:16:11.43\00:16:15.71
Next, let's say that
walking at a normal phase
00:16:16.42\00:16:19.65
for 10 minutes results
in 900 steps being taken,
00:16:19.70\00:16:23.51
what you do next then
is you multiply 900 by 3
00:16:24.79\00:16:27.86
to give you 2,700
steps. Now, all you have to
00:16:28.33\00:16:33.07
do is add 2,700
steps to your baseline step
00:16:33.08\00:16:37.12
count of 5,284 steps to
generate an initial step
00:16:37.16\00:16:42.65
goal of 7900 and 84 steps.
00:16:42.69\00:16:46.54
Once this step goal
has been established,
00:16:48.24\00:16:50.38
you need to feel
fairly confident that you can
00:16:51.32\00:16:53.80
attain it on a daily
basis for one whole week.
00:16:53.87\00:16:57.02
If you feel confident
about reaching this goal
00:16:58.13\00:17:00.58
then go for it.
On the other hand,
00:17:01.26\00:17:04.03
if you believe this
goal is a bit too ambitious
00:17:04.63\00:17:07.29
you can lower it to a
more comfortable level.
00:17:07.86\00:17:10.21
Now that you have
your initial step goal,
00:17:12.35\00:17:14.47
the thing you want to
do now is to begin looking
00:17:14.90\00:17:17.06
for ways to increase
the number of steps that
00:17:17.12\00:17:19.18
you take each day.
In an earlier program,
00:17:19.21\00:17:22.49
we identified a variety
of practical ways to add
00:17:22.98\00:17:25.88
more physical
activity to your life.
00:17:25.95\00:17:27.74
As you may recall,
some of these included
00:17:28.87\00:17:31.30
parking farther away
from your bank or from
00:17:31.66\00:17:34.29
the office, getting on
or off the bus or trains
00:17:34.32\00:17:37.92
several blocks from
your final destination.
00:17:37.98\00:17:40.05
Using the stairs rather
than taking the elevator,
00:17:40.94\00:17:43.65
walking to lunch,
taking the dog for a walk,
00:17:44.49\00:17:47.86
playing with your
kids or grand kids at home
00:17:48.72\00:17:50.71
or at the local park or
walking with your spouse
00:17:50.77\00:17:54.36
or a friend in the
evening. There are certainly
00:17:54.38\00:17:58.00
other approaches you
can take to supplement
00:17:58.06\00:18:00.01
an active lifestyle
such as beginning a more
00:18:00.02\00:18:02.64
formalized walking
program. Along with upping
00:18:02.74\00:18:06.38
your overall level of
physical activity you'll
00:18:06.50\00:18:09.34
also want to avoid
steps dealers like using
00:18:09.47\00:18:12.60
drive through windows
when you're at the bank
00:18:12.76\00:18:14.76
or using the
elevator when you can take the
00:18:15.19\00:18:17.20
stairs. And you
should aim to reduce long
00:18:17.28\00:18:20.48
periods of
inactivity like watching TV or
00:18:20.55\00:18:24.06
Internet surfing that
can rob your chances to
00:18:24.08\00:18:27.08
be physically
active. Once you know your
00:18:27.10\00:18:30.50
initial step goal and
you've chosen a strategy
00:18:30.53\00:18:33.68
or strategies to
attend this goal,
00:18:34.29\00:18:36.75
start tracking and
recording the number of
00:18:37.53\00:18:39.72
steps you take
each day for a week.
00:18:39.76\00:18:41.84
In following this
plan remember that if you
00:18:43.08\00:18:45.63
have a day where your
step count is not high you
00:18:45.68\00:18:48.77
can start fresh the
next day with a clean slate.
00:18:48.87\00:18:51.23
At the end of this
first week of trying to
00:18:52.40\00:18:54.48
reach your initial
step goal add the total
00:18:54.51\00:18:57.73
number of steps you
took over the seven day
00:18:57.81\00:18:59.78
period and divide
this number by seven just
00:18:59.89\00:19:03.37
like we did before
to determine your daily
00:19:03.39\00:19:06.18
step count. Once
you've done this,
00:19:06.32\00:19:09.17
compare your current
daily step activity to your
00:19:09.87\00:19:13.03
step goal. Did you
reach or exceed your step
00:19:13.11\00:19:16.90
goal during this
first week of increased
00:19:17.00\00:19:18.51
physical activity or
did you take more steps
00:19:18.64\00:19:21.44
than your baseline
step count but not quite
00:19:21.48\00:19:24.04
reach your step goal.
If you didn't meet your
00:19:24.07\00:19:27.36
step goal, but you did
increase your step count
00:19:27.53\00:19:30.47
take heart in the
fact that you are able to
00:19:31.21\00:19:33.53
raise your level
of physical activity.
00:19:33.62\00:19:35.43
In other words, you
took more steps each
00:19:35.82\00:19:37.53
day than before and
consider reducing your
00:19:37.60\00:19:40.52
step goal downward
just a bit. On the other
00:19:40.59\00:19:43.71
hand, if you've
exceeded your initial step
00:19:43.86\00:19:46.35
goal you maybe
capable of achieving more
00:19:46.46\00:19:49.19
steps per day than you
initially thought possible.
00:19:49.29\00:19:51.62
Given the Surgeon
General's recommendation
00:19:52.17\00:19:54.27
to be active on most
or all days of the week,
00:19:54.32\00:19:57.26
you also want to be
aware of whether or not
00:19:58.16\00:20:00.34
you reach your step
goal at least 5 out of 7
00:20:00.87\00:20:03.26
days, if you did not
reach your goal on at least
00:20:03.32\00:20:06.75
five days then I
would suggest that you lower
00:20:06.82\00:20:09.72
your step goal to a
more realistic level,
00:20:09.73\00:20:11.99
at least for the
time being. Alternatively,
00:20:12.53\00:20:16.01
if you met your step
goal at least five days a
00:20:16.68\00:20:18.89
week perhaps you
need to readjust your step
00:20:18.99\00:20:21.59
goal upwards a bit.
Once you've addressed
00:20:21.70\00:20:25.58
these points it's time
for you to select a new
00:20:25.59\00:20:28.14
step goal for you
second week increased
00:20:28.35\00:20:30.34
physical activity,
chose a step increment and
00:20:30.39\00:20:34.00
add it to your
current daily step count to
00:20:34.12\00:20:36.52
establish a new
step goal. Once you've
00:20:36.56\00:20:39.44
determined this new
goal make sure that you
00:20:39.55\00:20:42.42
feel pretty confident
that it is one that you
00:20:42.44\00:20:44.72
can reach on
most days of the week,
00:20:44.74\00:20:46.91
then begin your
second week of increased
00:20:47.80\00:20:50.59
physical activity.
When this second week has
00:20:50.62\00:20:53.77
ended, go through all
the steps that we've just
00:20:53.80\00:20:56.73
discussed so that
you can evaluate your
00:20:56.84\00:20:59.06
progress. Now I don't
want you to think that
00:20:59.17\00:21:02.53
you've got to keep
increasing your step goal
00:21:02.58\00:21:04.66
each and every week
for the rest of your life
00:21:04.72\00:21:06.44
because you don't
have to do that, at some
00:21:06.52\00:21:09.05
point you will reach
a step goal that you're
00:21:09.19\00:21:11.56
comfortable with and
that you can sustain.
00:21:11.63\00:21:14.04
Often times this
happens within four weeks of
00:21:15.15\00:21:17.62
practice and active
monitoring of your physical
00:21:17.72\00:21:20.52
activity. In other
words, you'll eventually reach
00:21:20.57\00:21:24.29
a level of physical
activity that you're
00:21:24.38\00:21:26.12
comfortable with and
that works well for you,
00:21:26.17\00:21:28.82
and the most important
thing to realize is that
00:21:29.70\00:21:33.39
this final step level
whatever it is will be
00:21:33.44\00:21:36.85
greater than your
baseline step level,
00:21:37.00\00:21:39.09
which means that you
will be taking more steps
00:21:39.83\00:21:41.78
than you did before,
you will be expending
00:21:41.82\00:21:44.17
more calories then
you did when you started
00:21:44.22\00:21:46.23
out and you will
start reaping the positive
00:21:46.26\00:21:49.10
health outcomes that
result from following a
00:21:49.22\00:21:51.86
more physically
active lifestyle.
00:21:51.89\00:21:53.89
Early in the program,
I noted that pedometers
00:21:55.92\00:21:58.57
don't pick up certain
physical activities like
00:21:58.66\00:22:00.70
bicycling, swimming
or resistance training.
00:22:00.83\00:22:03.71
So you maybe
wondering how to account for
00:22:05.15\00:22:07.17
these activities as
part of your daily step plan.
00:22:07.18\00:22:09.79
One way to handle
this that I would recommend
00:22:10.83\00:22:13.21
is to reward
yourself with bonus points
00:22:13.68\00:22:16.52
specifically for each 10
minute period of continues
00:22:17.48\00:22:21.02
bicycling or
swimming that you complete,
00:22:21.11\00:22:22.92
add 1000 points or
steps to your daily step
00:22:23.59\00:22:26.98
total. Follow the
same approach if your
00:22:27.15\00:22:30.69
perform resistance
training for the same
00:22:30.79\00:22:32.62
length of time. During
this series of programs
00:22:32.71\00:22:37.30
I've talked about the
need to develop a physical
00:22:38.57\00:22:40.72
activity mentality
to counter the impact of
00:22:40.78\00:22:43.85
labor saving devices.
While modern technology
00:22:43.95\00:22:47.98
has improved our
lives in countless ways,
00:22:47.99\00:22:50.32
it has also eliminated
many opportunities for
00:22:51.04\00:22:53.69
us to be physically
active. While indirect
00:22:53.71\00:22:57.41
evidence suggests
that past generations led
00:22:57.43\00:23:00.04
much more active
lives. It's too bad that we
00:23:00.19\00:23:03.70
can't go back in
time and see just how
00:23:03.86\00:23:07.10
active our
ancestors were, or can we?
00:23:07.12\00:23:11.73
Last year a
colleague of mine conducted a
00:23:13.59\00:23:16.32
study in which
physical activity levels in a
00:23:16.33\00:23:19.16
Canadian Amish
farming community were
00:23:19.25\00:23:21.51
measured using
pedometers. As they have
00:23:21.70\00:23:24.30
done for centuries
the Amish continue to
00:23:24.33\00:23:27.04
follow rules that
ban the use of gasoline
00:23:27.21\00:23:29.79
powered
transportation, electricity,
00:23:29.84\00:23:32.28
and other modern
conveniences that we have
00:23:33.09\00:23:35.17
all come to rely on
as a matter of normal
00:23:35.22\00:23:37.83
course. What did
these researches find?
00:23:37.84\00:23:41.70
Out of the 96 Amish
participants the men who
00:23:43.28\00:23:47.65
comprised about
half the sample averaged
00:23:47.67\00:23:50.84
greater than
18,400 steps per day.
00:23:50.95\00:23:54.12
While the women
averaged over 14,000
00:23:55.26\00:23:57.73
steps per day.
Interestingly, the highest
00:23:57.83\00:24:02.37
one day step totals
were 51,514 steps for
00:24:02.44\00:24:07.31
men and 41,176 steps for women.
00:24:07.32\00:24:12.46
Results from
questionnaires completed
00:24:13.90\00:24:15.63
by this group
indicated that the men spent
00:24:15.64\00:24:18.40
about 10 hours per
week doing heavy work
00:24:18.52\00:24:21.59
like plowing, shoeing
horses, tossing hay bales
00:24:21.68\00:24:25.49
and logging,
while the women spent
00:24:25.54\00:24:27.87
approximately 3 ½
hours per week doing
00:24:27.94\00:24:30.68
heavy chores. The
men also spent 55 hours
00:24:30.72\00:24:35.21
a week performing
moderate physical activity
00:24:35.22\00:24:37.77
while the women
reported 45 hours a week
00:24:38.64\00:24:41.27
of moderate physical
activity like gardening
00:24:41.83\00:24:44.42
and doing laundry.
In terms of obesity,
00:24:44.84\00:24:48.12
only four percent
of the group was obese
00:24:49.09\00:24:51.18
and only 26
percent were overweight.
00:24:51.97\00:24:54.30
These percentages
are substantially less
00:24:55.43\00:24:57.73
than the 15 percent
rate of obesity and the
00:24:58.42\00:25:01.62
51 percent rate of
overweightness reported
00:25:01.71\00:25:04.48
for Canadian adults
and is much lower than
00:25:04.56\00:25:07.76
the 31 percent and 65
percent rates of obesity
00:25:07.81\00:25:11.30
and overweightness
respectively that have
00:25:11.83\00:25:14.36
been measured
in American adults.
00:25:14.38\00:25:16.36
As a final note
the healthier body
00:25:18.16\00:25:20.59
composition
reported for the Amish study
00:25:20.63\00:25:22.59
participants does
not seem to be a function
00:25:22.66\00:25:25.43
of their diet, which
is fairly similar to that
00:25:25.49\00:25:28.56
of the pre-World
War II diet in the
00:25:28.96\00:25:31.01
United States and that
it is quite high in fat
00:25:31.04\00:25:34.50
and refined sugar
and includes meat,
00:25:34.83\00:25:37.65
potatoes, gravy,
eggs, pies and cakes.
00:25:38.15\00:25:41.57
So, what should
we make all of this.
00:25:43.14\00:25:46.03
It appears that the
physical labor performed
00:25:47.38\00:25:50.21
by the Amish people
as part of their normal
00:25:50.22\00:25:52.71
lifestyle clearly
results in very large daily
00:25:52.86\00:25:56.51
step tallies, and a
lower incidence of obesity
00:25:56.55\00:26:00.22
and overweightness
compared to the general
00:26:00.33\00:26:02.80
population. So is
the answer to go back to
00:26:02.81\00:26:07.37
an agrarian
lifestyle, while a return to our
00:26:07.38\00:26:10.98
farming based society
might yield a number of
00:26:11.02\00:26:13.27
improvements on our
physical fitness and well
00:26:13.39\00:26:15.16
being. This isn't
really an option in today's
00:26:15.26\00:26:18.59
world. What I do
think we can glean from
00:26:18.65\00:26:21.62
this study is that
all of us need to look for
00:26:21.72\00:26:24.28
opportunities,
wherever and whenever they
00:26:24.40\00:26:27.37
exist each day to add
physical activity to our
00:26:27.50\00:26:30.93
lives, and the use of
a simple gadget like a
00:26:30.96\00:26:35.97
pedometer can be a
first step so to speak,
00:26:35.98\00:26:39.46
towards
motivating you to become more
00:26:40.34\00:26:42.18
active and
physically fit. God wants you to
00:26:42.26\00:26:47.15
prosper and to be
in the best of health,
00:26:47.21\00:26:49.95
so that you can meet
the challenges of daily
00:26:51.01\00:26:53.07
living with passion and
vigor. Just as a regular
00:26:53.10\00:26:57.56
program of physical
activity and exercise can
00:26:57.69\00:27:00.19
strengthen and
energize your body a daily
00:27:00.23\00:27:04.40
commitment to
communing with God and reading
00:27:04.43\00:27:07.75
his word can
strengthen your spirit and
00:27:07.85\00:27:11.85
cause you to be
drawn closer to him.
00:27:11.91\00:27:13.98
Our bodies are
wonderful and intricate
00:27:15.70\00:27:18.02
marvel of God's
creation. And it is my prayer
00:27:18.20\00:27:21.91
that each of us will
treat these spiritual
00:27:22.66\00:27:24.77
temples with care
and keep them in good
00:27:24.81\00:27:27.90
working order by
engaging in daily physical
00:27:27.98\00:27:31.10
activity. The focus of
the first four programs
00:27:31.23\00:27:35.54
in this series has
been to provide a general
00:27:35.57\00:27:38.54
introduction and
overview about the importance
00:27:38.58\00:27:41.56
of physical
activity to overall health.
00:27:41.60\00:27:43.78
And also to discuss
some of the spiritual
00:27:44.71\00:27:46.63
dimensions of
leading a physically active
00:27:46.76\00:27:48.37
lifestyle. In addition
we've tried to talk about
00:27:48.50\00:27:51.29
some of the
practical ways of increasing
00:27:51.42\00:27:53.67
your level of physical activity.
00:27:53.70\00:27:55.36
From here on out, I'm
going to be looking at
00:27:56.06\00:27:58.20
how physical
activity can impact chronic
00:27:58.29\00:28:00.32
health conditions
like obesity, diabetes and
00:28:00.37\00:28:03.70
heart disease. So, I
hope you'll watch these
00:28:03.83\00:28:07.07
upcoming programs
until next time keep moving
00:28:07.12\00:28:10.91
step by step towards
better health and fitness.
00:28:11.29\00:28:13.78