If you hate going to the gym but know you need more exercise one easy way to do it is to walk more. Walking is great for your heart and muscles and will help you to stay fit and healthy and using a simple pedometer can be a big help in making sure you increase the distance you walk each day.
Pedometers keep track of the number of steps you take and, by setting goals that are realistic, you can slowly increase the distance you walk each day. Although pedometers were not very accurate in the past today they have improved considerably. There are some pedometers that you do not have to wear on your belt but can be dropped into a pocket or purse so it’s easy to take them with you everywhere.
Can using a pedometer really help you to increase your activity? There have been many trials to test this and the Journal of American Medicine have reported on twenty six trials which all showed an increase in physical activity when participants used pedometers. On average those who used a pedometer increased their activity by 25% over those who did not. This is a very large increase and the effect on the health of anyone who achieved this level of increase would be significant.
A realistic goal for your daily number of steps is important. It is better to slowly increase the number of steps you are aiming for each day until you reach the recommended 2000 steps. You can do this by simple means: park further away from the shops, take the stairs rather than the elevator etc all the ways we’ve been told to increase our activity but have perhaps ignored! With a pedometer on your person, counting your steps you will have an added incentive to do it.
As we said earlier newer models of pedometers can be simply dropped into a pocket and still keep an accurate account of your steps. Which models so this? Check out this Omron HJ-112 Digital Pocket Pedometer Review for a popular model that also keeps a history of your progress and can be used with software to transfer your data to your computer to track how you are doing over time.
Also check out Cheap Pedometers for Sale for a range of pedometers at realistic prices.