Ah yes, that 10k step goal: I'm doing ok on the new regime... 9,746 seven-day average!
Conventional wisdom sets 10,000 steps per day as a good target. The source of that number, though, is as questionable as Hippocrates’s quotation. Its origins lie not in a clinical trial, but a Japanese advertising campaign for a pedometer launched ahead of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics (10,000, in Japanese Kanji, also looks a little like a person walking). Those committed to getting their steps in should not shy away from the 10,000 mark. But in terms of scientific research, the number barely has a leg to stand on.
You kind of need a lot of imagination to make this (万) look like a guy walking. https://www.kanshudo.com/kanji/%E4%B8%87
A study published in Lancet Public Health in 2025 considered 57 papers published since 2014 to assess the connection between different daily step counts and various health outcomes. Walking more was found to be beneficial across the board. Taking 7,000 steps a day, in contrast to 2,000, brought about a 47% lower risk of premature death, a 25% lower chance of developing cardiovascular disease and a 14% reduction in the risk of diabetes. Even a little goes a long way: going from 2,000 daily steps to 4,000 resulted in a 36% drop in mortality risk over the years tracked.
wow, extraordinary!
"Extra steps keep helping, but beyond around 7,000 per day, they are scarcely worth the effort. The jump from 7,000 daily steps to 10,000, for example, led to only a 2% further reduction in mortality risk."
Any reasonable amount of walking is better than none. But for those unable to walk much, upping the pace might be a way to increase the benefits.
...and how neat:
“And if you don’t have enough opportunities,” says Dr Stamatakis, “create them.” Rather than parking right outside the supermarket, for example, stop around the block and do a walking sprint in.
is 10k steps the new 2% inflation target?
Yes.
Made up on the spot, no intrinsic scientific meaning
No kidding. It’s obviously a guy doing karate.