November 26, 2011-- From the time of Homo Erectus over 1.3 million years ago until now, walking is the easiest activity for mankind to improve many of its biomarkers, including blood pressure and cholesterol. We have had so much mechanization and automation, that there's hardly any reason to move our bodies at all. Although we know better, most of us don't have the time or inclination to get dressed and drive to the gym for a workout, but we can easily step outside and start a brisk 30 minute walk. Surgeons general have always advocated that the U.S. population get moving and use walking as the easiest way to improve overall health for all age groups. The initial 1996 Surgeon General's report recommended that persons of all ages obtain "a minimum of 30 minutes of physical activity of moderate intensity (e.g., brisk walking) on most, if not all, days of the week."

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The invention of the pedometer will go far to get America lean and healthy than any other fitness discovery.

Walking is the easiest form of exercise; using a pedometer will assure you take enough steps in your day to get the full health benefit, the ultimate goal of 10,00 steps per day.

"Walking is the biggest bang for our buck. 30 minutes a day of walking will prevent many cases of diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic diseases. Walking is the simplest, easiest way for most people," said Richard Carmona, then Surgeon General back in 2003. Walking the Talk Also at that time, Carmona's boss, Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson, 'walked the walk' by wearing a pedometer and logging 10,000 steps a day. Carmona related a story of them attending a conference and being at only 3000 steps for the day, so they sent away the government car and walked back to their hotel. They've emphasized walking because it requires no skill or practice and has the least chance of injury. Everyone already knows how to do it, and the only equipment you need is a good pair of shoes, and a basic affordable pedometer. It can be performed in all kinds of weather, outdoors or indoors. In bad weather, there are parks, trails, rails to trails, or just a city block. In bad weather there are malls and treadmills. 10,000 Step A Day Goal Today most health pundits advocate walking 10,000 steps a day for health and weight loss. The notion was popularized originally in Japan in the book Manpo-Kei: The Art and Science of Step Counting. For most people, 10,000 steps per day is around 5 miles worth of walking. Most people can achieve it by one or more sustained walks, equivalent to 30-60 minutes or more of walking per day. That equals the minimum daily exercise recommendation by the CDC. The downside to walking is that you can easily fail to do it strenuously enough to get the conditioning benefits of exercise. People tend to overestimate their exertion and distance and just don't do enough of it to get the full health benefit. The solution is to wear a basic, very affordable, pedometer and have a daily goal of walking throughout the entire day and measure your daily progress.

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