While the rest of us start our day sitting in traffic, Joe Garcia kicks it off at the trails.
- New step recommendation based on British study.
- People with desk jobs tend to have higher blood sugar and cholesterol levels.
"I come out here about two to three times a week,” he said. "I just like to run and sweat."
It’s habit that would make your heart proud, especially if you're aiming for the recommended 10,000 daily steps. But that's not the magic number anymore, according to British researchers. They recommend stepping it up to 15,000 steps.
Researchers followed postal workers - who delivered mail on foot - and office workers for a week and measured their vitals afterwards. They found that people who spent more time at their desk had higher blood sugar and cholesterol levels; while postal workers, who took 15,000 steps daily on average, had better numbers.
"Basically, the main risk factors for heart disease, they had almost none of them,” said St. David’s South Medical Center’s Dr. Paul Tucker, “whereas people who sat around all day and worked all day in desk jobs had worse parameters on all those things."
You don't have to run those steps, you can walk it. For every mile you walk, you burn about 100 calories; and 15,000 steps are about four miles.
"It actually is a huge difference,” said Tucker. “I tell all my patients, 'if you could just walk 30-40 minutes a day, you would have so many benefits for just doing that.'"
But that could be a challenge to people who work in an office. If that's the case for you, cardiologists say, just keep moving.
"Any activity is better than no activity. It really, really does reduce your blood pressure, your cholesterol, lower your blood sugar, lower your weight, makes you feel better," said Tucker.
If your daily count looks a little low on your Fitbit or your phone, don't fret. According to the American Medical Association, they're not as accurate as monitors placed on your waist. But if you are committed to meeting your quota, take 30-minute walks three times a day.