The number stems from a 1960s Japanese marketing campaign for a pedometer called the Manpo-Kei, or \u201c10,000 steps metre\u201d. It\u2019s a nice round number, but it\u2019s not one identified by science as the holy grail for health \u2013 a 2023 study by the University of Granada<\/a> suggests that, while more is better, 8,000 is sufficient \u201cto significantly reduce the risk of premature death\u201d\u200b\u200b. <\/p>\n Walking<\/a> 10,000 steps also takes a fair old while. Even at a decent nick, this task is likely to take you upwards of 90 minutes each day, making it a struggle for busy folks. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n Recently, an alternative walking protocol \u2013\u00a0colloquially termed \u201cJapanese walking\u201d due to its country of origin \u2013 has stepped into the spotlight online. It takes just 30 minutes per day, with fitness coach and content creator Eugene Teo<\/a> claiming it offers \u201c10 times the benefits\u201d of walking 10,000 steps per day in his viral video above. <\/p>\n As a fitness writer, I\u2019ve covered walking extensively, finding it\u2019s one of the best ways to help people of all fitness levels introduce more movement into their regular routine. So, intrigued, I endeavoured to try \u201cJapanese walking\u201d and find out if the impressive health claims around it held water.<\/p>\n How to try the \u2018Japanese walking\u2019 method<\/p>\n Complete the sequence below five times without any breaks:<\/p>\n Three minutes of walking at a low intensity (40 per cent peak aerobic capacity, or a relaxed pace) Three minutes of walking at a high intensity (70 per cent peak aerobic capacity, or a brisk pace) <\/p>\n Benefits of Japanese walking<\/p>\n The \u201cJapanese walking\u201d protocol comes from a study published in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings<\/a> journal in 2007. It was designed to test whether high-intensity interval walking training (IWT) can offer greater benefits than moderate-intensity continuous walking training, in terms of improving thigh muscle strength, peak aerobic capacity (the maximum amount of oxygen you can take in and use during exercise) and blood pressure. <\/p>\n Over five months, 60 men and 186 women with an average age of 63 were divided into three groups; no walking training, IWT and CWT (continuous walking training). The CWT group was instructed to walk at 50 per cent of their peak aerobic capacity (a fairly slow pace) and take 8,000 or more steps per day at least four times per week. The IWT group was told to complete the protocol above, four or more times per week. <\/p>\n Among participants who met these conditions, those in the IWT group saw a 13 per cent increase in isometric knee flexion, a 17 per cent increase in isometric knee flexion, and an eight per cent increase in peak aerobic capacity for walking. This was \u201csignificantly greater than the increases observed in the moderate-intensity continuous walking training group\u201d.<\/p>\n The research also found a greater reduction in resting systolic blood pressure in the IWT group, despite the fact they didn\u2019t spend as much time walking each week. <\/p>\n The conclusion states: \u201chigh-intensity interval walking may protect against age-associated increases in blood pressure and decreases in thigh muscle strength and peak aerobic capacity.\u201d<\/p>\n Read more: The latest walking trend that could help burn more calories and lower blood pressure<\/a><\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Walking is one of the most accessible forms of movement, offering impressive health benefits (David Lovelady)<\/p>\n What happened when I tried Japanese walking<\/p>\n I don\u2019t have a full science lab set up at home; what I do have is two legs, a Garmin watch<\/a> and a lot of walking experience, so I decided to put these to good use. <\/p>\n During my Monday lunch break, I took my dog for a 30-minute walk as normal. Then, at 1pm the following day, I tried the \u201cJapanese walking\u201d method on the same looped route, setting my Garmin Vivoactive to record both sessions and taking note of any subjective changes I felt. <\/p>\n My usual 30-minute walk saw me accrue nearly 3,000 steps, covering 2.12km at an average speed of 14min 10sec per kilometre. My heart rate averaged 85bpm, remaining fairly constant throughout, and I burned an estimated 157 calories. <\/p>\n As anyone who has owned a dog might expect, there was a good deal of stopping and starting to inspect particularly interesting trees and bollards, and I defaulted to a fairly casual pace amid a busy work day. <\/p>\n For the Japanese walking protocol, my numbers looked a bit different, with my fast pace falling just below 120 steps per minute and my slow pace a few shy of 100 steps per minute. <\/p>\n I travelled significantly further, covering 2.94km and 3,500 steps at an average speed of 10min 12sec per kilometre. My average heart rate came out very similar (86bpm) but there were noticeable peaks (104bpm) and troughs in line with the high- and low-speed intervals. My estimated calorie burn was also significantly higher: 211. <\/p>\n Read more: How many steps to take each day to slash your risk of cancer<\/a><\/p>\n Benefits of the Japanese walking method<\/p>\n The idea that walking faster, or sprinkling more intensity into your exercise, holds greater benefits is nothing new. <\/p>\n Specialist in walking for health, Dr Elroy Aguiar<\/a>, is an assistant professor at the University of Alabama\u2019s department of kinesiology. He was the lead author on a 2024 paper published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports<\/a>, which correlated as little as one minute of high-intensity activity with improved health outcomes.<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the really interesting findings from our paper was that, if you look at people\u2019s highest one minute of activity across each day, averaged across the monitoring period, that was a very strong signal for whether they had one or more metabolic syndrome risk factors [elevated waist circumference, high triglycerides, low HDL (or \u201cgood\u201d cholesterol), high blood pressure and high blood sugar] present,\u201d he tells me. <\/p>\n Another series of studies he worked on, featured in the British Journal of Sports Medicine<\/a>, pointed to the fact that \u201cif you walk at a cadence of about 100 steps per minute, that\u2019s equivalent to what\u2019s called \u2018moderate-intensity\u2019, and all of the research in this area suggests that most of the benefits [of walking] accumulate at a moderate or higher intensity\u201d.<\/p>\n Beyond this, completing the Japanese walking method four times per week leaves you half-an-hour away from the World Health Organisation\u2019s<\/a> \u201cglobal recommendations of at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week\u201d. Add a couple of short full-body strength training<\/a> sessions into the mix and you have a decent minimalist workout plan<\/a> for beginners. <\/p>\n Read more: How your step count became the ultimate modern humblebrag<\/a><\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Completing the \u2018Japanese walking\u2019 method a few times each week sets you well on your way to hitting the World Health Organisation\u2019s weekly physical activity guidelines (Harry Bullmore\/The Independent)<\/p>\n Potential drawbacks of the Japanese Walking method<\/p>\n All of the information above paints the Japanese walking method in a favourable light \u2013 as it should, with the protocol delivering impressive results in a non-intimidating time-span. However, if we are questioning the claim that it is \u201cbetter\u201d than walking 10,000 steps a day, there are a few further areas to consider. <\/p>\n Firstly, Dr Aguiar\u2019s 2024 paper supported the idea that the \u201cbest\u201d walking method for reducing metabolic risk factors involves a combination of high volume (number of steps) and high intensity (walking speed). <\/p>\n \u201cAccumulating a high volume of walking throughout the day [8,000-plus steps], then focussing on at least 30 minutes of faster walking or jogging, would be a way to move the metrics in a positive direction and lower your metrics for each of the [metabolic syndrome] risk factors,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n I racked up a little over 3,500 steps when trying the Japanese Walking method \u2013 less than half of the 8,000 daily steps research has repeatedly linked to many favourable health outcomes, and short of the 5,000 mark often viewed as the threshold for a sedentary lifestyle. <\/p>\n Using this method as part, rather than all, of your daily steps could be a better approach for achieving your health goals. However, if you only have 30 minutes per day free, it still offers dramatically more benefits than not moving at all, and improved return on investment over a regular 30-minute walk. <\/p>\n Another area where the Japanese walking method loses out to walking 10,000 steps per day is movement regularity. While the former involves a concentrated 30-minute dose of activity, the latter can be spread throughout the day, encouraging you to abandon your office chair and sofa more often. <\/p>\n A 10-year study of 8,000 people, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology<\/a>, found that those replaced 30 minutes of daily sitting with light activity had a 17 per cent lower risk of dying in that period. This even applied if they accrued these 30 minutes across short intervals throughout the day \u2013 hence why your smartwatch is constantly sending you reminders to stand up and move. <\/p>\n Regular movement can also help maintain mobility and reduce stiffness in our joints and muscles. <\/p>\n \u201cWhen we\u2019re dealing with an adaptation from stillness, movement is the answer, so any movement is better than just being still,\u201d movement mechanics expert and The Training Stimulus<\/a> founder Ash Grossmann summarises. <\/p>\n The final factor to consider is enjoyment. By adding a rigid framework, Japanese walking ensures intensity. However, it also meant I was unable to stop and chat to people in the park or appreciate my surroundings to the same extent. For me, this lowered the stress-busting potential of my walk, sacrificing some of the usual mental health benefits of walking for physical ones. <\/p>\n![\"Walking](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Walking-is-one-of-the-most-accessible-forms-of-movement-offering-impressive-health-benefits.jpeg\")
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