Interested in using a pedometer. Any input?

I've got a great weight training program going but I'd like to more consciously add "steps" to my workday as a high school English teacher.   What should I look for in a pedometer? 

How many steps/miles is a good target for a day?  

At what point do you notice your step counts having a noticeable affect on your weight loss program? 

Does it count staircase steps?  

I'm an able-bodied, strong 45 year old woman and I know I will compete with my own self to keep those step counts at a good and/or increasing number especially if I can see it making a difference in daily burn count and weight loss.

Thanks for any pointers.

I have a Sportline pedometer watch and it is great.  10,000 steps is recommended each day for overall health/fitness.  It will measure stairs.  You have to program the pedometer with your stride length for both walking and running so it will gauge and count your stride on any terrain.

I suggest looking for them on Ebay as you can save quite a bit of money.  If you go into a regular store to get one, they can run anywhere from $65.00-$150.00.  I got mine for around $45.00.  Hope that helps.

Pedometers are a great way to motivate you to get in your daily steps!  Most people suggest 10,000 steps per day, which is a good goal.

Most pedometers are pretty good.  If you want to give one a try, you can start with an inexpensive ($4) model.  The inexpensive pedometers just count your steps, if you want to go a little more fancy, you can get ones that also measure distance and calories burned.  If you search on Amazon.com, you'll see user reviews of various models.

Yes, they count staircase steps. 

"When do you notice an affect on your weight?"  That depends on your diet and other factors.  More then anything, you'll notice an improvement in your endurance as you work toward those 10,000 steps per day, every day.

Picking up a $4 pedometer made a dramatic change in my lifestyle change.  It clearly showed me that I was not getting anywhere near the recommended 10,000 steps per day.  My first day wearing one, I was shocked that I barely got in 2,000 steps.  It was a great wake-up call.

From striving to make 10,000 steps as my goal, I've now managed to increase my exercise routine to include regular visits to the gym, riding a bike, and other great activities that I couldn't do before when I was sedentary.

Have fun!!!

EDIT:  Here is some good information from the Mayo Clinic about choosing a pedometer   http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/walking/SM00 056_D

oddfunk: where do you live?? Those prices are super expensive! The cheapest one I've purchased was about $15 and you were able to enter your stride length.  I got it at sports authority

kaufmkk,

Do you still try to hit your 10,000 steps even though you're now doing other fitness activities?

My first one was $4 from WalMart and it served me well for counting steps (steps only).  I've since advanced to an Omron for around $20.  The Omron includes distance and calories burned.

Original Post by newdays18:

kaufmkk,

Do you still try to hit your 10,000 steps even though you're now doing other fitness activities?

Absolutely!!!  My other activities focus mainly on strength training.  The walking is what I now consider just my everyday health requirement, which is just as important to me as drinking plenty of water every day.

Keep in mind, we're not talking about doing it all at once and by power-walking; it's stretched out throughout the day.  I park far away from work (unless the weather is bad), I get up from my desk whenever I can and take small walks, I take stairs instead of using the elevator, etc.  If I find I'm a little shy of the 10,000 steps when I get home, I'll take a walk to make up the difference. 

At first, I was lucky to get in 5,000 steps per day.  Now I find that when I take off my pedometer at night (I wear it from the time I get dressed in the morning), I usually have around 12,000 steps.  I find that just by wearing a pedometer, it makes me more consciience of needing to get in my steps.

Original Post by girlfighting27:

oddfunk: where do you live?? Those prices are super expensive! The cheapest one I've purchased was about $15 and you were able to enter your stride length.  I got it at sports authority

 I live in Florida and the cheapest one I could find here was $60 something bucks at Academy.  My watch isn't basic though.  It calculates steps, distance, MPH, time, cals burned and has a stop watch on it.  It also records your daily records for up to 10 days at a time.  About the only thing it doesn't do (and here's where these watches get expensive) is track heartrate.

I got a free pedometer in the box with my water purifier.  All it does is record steps.  I'm wondering if I really need it to do more than that.  I would be curious about miles.  About how many miles is 10,000 steps?

10,000 steps is roughly 5-6 miles.

Appreciate the feedback guys. Heard what I needed to hear.  Thanks!

I've actually heard that 10,000 steps is the minimum to maintain and 15,000 is the minimum if you are trying to lose weight.  If you have the extra $$ get a bodybugg, it measures steps and calories and is far more accurate than a pedometer.

Ash,

We've been looking for someone who has tried the Bodybugg.  If you've used one or know anything about them, would you mind popping onto http://caloriecount.about.com/anybody-rented- bodybugg-ft134169 to fill us in!

That would be sooooooo wonderful!!!

Thanks!

I word be weary of buying an expensive one first, start with a cheap pedometer, walmart sells basic ones for $3-5 and you can find them at the dollar tree...  I have purchased three so far, two of which were $20+ dollars and all three have broke in less then 3 weeks.  But for when they worked, they worked great.  Try a cheap one, if you like the pedometer lifestyle, then invest in a nice one.

10000 a day is great, less then 2000 a day puts you in where the majority of Americans step a day.  Anything between 5000-10000 is an active lifestyle. 10000+ is a very active, healthy, weight-loss goal.

Hope that helps. 

Original Post by oddfunk:

Original Post by girlfighting27:

oddfunk: where do you live?? Those prices are super expensive! The cheapest one I've purchased was about $15 and you were able to enter your stride length.  I got it at sports authority

 I live in Florida and the cheapest one I could find here was $60 something bucks at Academy.  My watch isn't basic though.  It calculates steps, distance, MPH, time, cals burned and has a stop watch on it.  It also records your daily records for up to 10 days at a time.  About the only thing it doesn't do (and here's where these watches get expensive) is track heartrate.

 Oh ok that would explain the price

Nice thread!  I been thinking about getting a pedometer and now I will save this to my favorites for when I make that purchase!  I just have to get my back up for the task, it is very slow to heal.  Thanks everyone!

I bought a pedometer last nigh and I am sitting here trying to figure out the stupid thing!  I paid 9.99 for it so I guess that would explain why I haven't figured things out.  I am def. challenging myself to do 10,000 steps a day so thats why I got one.  Im trying to keep moving even while at my desk at work.

what makes up 10,000 steps?

On days I work out 4-5x a week, I am either on the elliptical for 40-50 minutes OR running/jogging on the track and sometimes the treadmill.

What would the mileage be for 10,000 steps.  I know the stride has what to do with it.  Just a general understanding would help.  AND does anyone really count their steps, if they don't have a pedometer?

I could have sworn that someone replied to the number of steps in miles???  But it doesn't seem to be here.  All I know is that it takes me anywhere from 10 to 14 minutes to walk a mile and I am sort of a slow walker because of back issues, sorry I cannot help you more.  You could google your question.  Sorry!

My problem with pedometers is that I prefer to look at distance rather than steps and since I am 6 feet tall I always cover more ground than it indicates that I do. It is set for a person with shorter legs, so it is really useless to me. However it would probably be good for simply counting steps.

I just got this from a google search:  approximately 2,000 steps equal a mile.