{"id":7993,"date":"2025-03-25T11:46:07","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T10:46:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wellstep.se\/10000-steps-a-day-truth-or-myth\/"},"modified":"2025-03-25T16:08:08","modified_gmt":"2025-03-25T15:08:08","slug":"10000-steps-a-day-truth-or-myth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wellstep.se\/en\/10000-steps-a-day-truth-or-myth\/","title":{"rendered":"10,000 steps a day – truth or myth?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Back to the blog<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

Have you heard that you should walk 10 000 steps a day to stay healthy? It’s a figure that often pops up in health discussions, step competitions and fitness apps. But where does this recommendation come from and how important is it?<\/p>\n<\/div>

The story behind 10 000 steps<\/h2><\/div>

The idea that we should walk 10 000 steps a day does not actually come from research, but from a marketing campaign in Japan in the 1960s. In the run-up to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, a company wanted to promote a pedometer and launched a product called ‘manpo-kei’<\/strong>, which means ’10 000 steps meter’ in Japanese. The number 10 000 was chosen mainly because it was easy to remember and looked good in marketing – and it has lived on as a health standard ever since.<\/p>\n<\/div>

How relevant is 10,000 steps today?<\/h2><\/div>

Research has since examined whether there really is a magic threshold of 10 000 steps, and the answer is: not really. The important thing is not to reach this exact figure, but to move more than you currently do. <\/p>\n

Studies have shown that:<\/p>\n