Malaysia On Board with Pedometers

The New Straits Times Online

This English-language Malaysian newspaper is on part 2 of a five part series on getting fit.

Step 9:

A good way to make walking fun is to use a step counter or pedometer. The device counts each step a person makes. Used originally by sports and physical fitness enthusiasts, pedometers are now becoming popular. Often worn on the belt (it can be worn for the whole day) and thus calculates the kilometres the wearer has walked that day. Some pedometers can even show the wearer the amount of calories burned after a walk.

Great advice!

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GPS Pedometer for Walkers or Runners

GPS Pedometer for Walkers or Runners

You may be hearing increased talk about something called a GPS pedometer. This is actually a misnomer. There is no such thing as a GPS pedometer. However, let me explain what people mean when they talk about GPS pedometers

Read the rest of this article by clicking the link above.

Stepping up a bit peels the pounds off couch potatoes - 06 Nov 2006 - Lifestyle & Leisure

Stepping up a bit peels the pounds off couch potatoes - 06 Nov 2006 - Lifestyle & Leisure: "The study of more than 1100 Tasmanians, published in the International Journal of Obesity, is the first to prove definitively, using step pedometers, the impact exercise has on obesity, even when it is simply walking."

This short article from New Zealand talks about a recent study done in Tasmania, Australia, proving once again that taking extra steps every day has great benefits.

In this case, one of the points was that 2000 extra steps per day will have more benefits for the obese than for those already taking at least 10k steps per day.

The Daily Record - NEWS - FITNESS ON THE MENU

The Daily Record - NEWS - FITNESS ON THE MENU: "Although Sam also realised a good diet was only half the battle and she started wearing a pedometer to make sure she took the 10,000 steps necessary to work off half her daily calorie intake.

The children love the gadget as well. Sam lets them wear it out into the garden to see how quickly they can notch up the steps. She said: 'They love it and not only is it helping to keep them active, it helps teach the younger two about numbers as well.'"

Two Scottish mums (that's what they say over there) try to battle the prevalent attitudes and behaviours (that's how they spell 'behaviors' over there, too) towards health and exercise.

Too many Scottish children (and adults) are way too obese. That's not new to many countries. This comes as a result of eating poorly and not moving enough.

One of the mums got a pedometer and uses it to burn half her daily calories. Great idea. Her children like using one, too.

Not getting enough sleep can make you fat - Health - MSNBC.com

Not getting enough sleep can make you fat - Health - MSNBC.com: "Wear a pedometer and monitor your activity. Aim for 10,000 steps daily for optimal weight management. In the beginning, set a more realistic goal of at least 5,000 steps a day."

Great advice of starting lower than 10k steps. However 5000 may be just as wrong as 10,000.

As always, we advise people to get a pedometer and establish a baseline first. Wear it for at least a week and average your steps per day. Then try to increase your weekly average by 10% every one to two weeks.

Pedometers subtly urge wearers to get moving

Pedometers subtly urge wearers to get moving

This is a great article and well worth reading the entire thing. I encourage you to do so, especially if you are just getting started with pedometers. It goes over a lot of the basics of what to do and what to look for in a pedometer.

Of course, we always encourage people to get our FREE ebook about getting started with pedometers.

The author quotes Wendy Bumgardner a lot. She writes about walking for About.com. Wendy knows a lot of stuff, but I have a little bit of a beef with her information. She has not updated her "top 10" list in several years, even though I have sent her a number of great pedometers to test and use. She has some others on the list that I don't think belong there.

In this article, Wendy is quoted as saying you should look for a pedometer with an accelerometer mechanism. Those are really two different types of units. A pedometers counts your steps with generally some kind of pendulum. An accelerometer measures more physical activity than just steps. It normally costs plenty more, too.