Daily step target
Hold a fixed daily step count so everyday movement does not quietly shrink on a diet
A phone or watch counts steps; you pick a number, often the level you already average, and hold it. Coaches use it because non-exercise activity tends to drop without anyone noticing when calories are cut, which blunts the deficit. Keeping the count level, and adding a short walk when it falls short, is a cheap way to keep energy expenditure honest without programming more cardio.
People on record
Sorted by strength of stance
Does it: documented as part of their own routine. Recommends: explicitly advises other people to do it. Discusses: covered it substantively without clear personal adoption; this can include criticism or disagreement.
- Daniel AmenDoes it
Psychiatrist · Change Your Brain, Change Your Life
Ten thousand steps a day is the number he says he makes an effort to hit. He told CNBC it is not only exercise, it is a brain habit.
Source: CNBC Make It: Ping pong, walks and mind exercises: Brain-boosting habits of a renowned brain doctor during self-quarantine - Oprah WinfreyDoes it
Talk show host and producer · The Oprah Winfrey Show
One summer she made a vow to log 10,000 steps a day and to get outdoors to do it, telling her own magazine she was ready for the open road and a new way of being in her body. TODAY covered the pledge in 2016.
Source: TODAY: Oprah Winfrey vows to walk 10,000 steps a day - Kelly StarrettRecommends
Doctor of physical therapy · The Ready State
Eight thousand steps is the minimum threshold he suggests, built out of ten-minute walks after meals rather than one long march. He ties it back to sleep: get the count up and people accumulate enough sleep pressure to fall asleep. Most phones are already counting, he points out.
Source: The Tim Ferriss Show: Dr. Kelly Starrett, The Magic of Movement and Mobility (#664) - Layne NortonRecommends
Nutrition scientist and powerlifter · Biolayne
His coaching team has clients hold the step count they already have, say 8,000, through a fat-loss phase. No added cardio. Spontaneous movement drops on a diet and people do not notice it going.
Source: Huberman Lab: The Science of Eating for Health, Fat Loss & Lean Muscle
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Habit entry · notes paraphrased from cited sources, quoted excerpts copied from the transcript they link to. Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed. How this works.