Wearing a Pedometer Motivates People to Walk More

If you want to get more exercise, you may be wise to wear a pedometer. In a recent press release, researchers announced that a recent study showed that people who wear pedometers walk more than those who do not wear one. They also found differences in the way that people responded to goal setting.

Researchers from the University of Michigan and the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System worked in collaboration on this study. Their study focused on patients who were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes because getting more exercise is very important for all diabetes patients.

They determined that people are more likely to stick with a walking program when every step that they take is counted towards their daily total number of steps.

However, most people who increased how many steps they took every day did not make this increase by making more trips to the car, mailbox, visiting a coworker down the hall, or other routine activities. They increased their steps by going for more 15 - 30 minute walks during the day.

About the study
All of the participants wore a pedometer. The pedometers used in this study has a built in USB port. At the end of the day, participants simply connected their pedometer to their computers and the data was automatically sent to a special website that had been designed for this study.

The participants could view the number of steps that they were taking, and set goals based on this information. They were also given motivational messages that were tailored for them, along with tips on how to get more steps every day. Each participant also had personalized home page for the duration of this study.

The group was split in half, with half of the participants receiving "lifestyle goals," that is, every step that they took during the day counted towards their daily step count.

The other half of the participants were given "structured goals." This meant that the only time that steps counted is when they were taking long walks of 10 minutes duration or more. Since the only steps that counted were when they were taking long walks, their daily goal was a smaller number of steps that those who participated in the lifestyle group.

Researchers determined that even though both groups of people walked more during the study, participants who could count every step they took during the day were more satisfied with the program overall. This group was also more likely to stick with the program when compared to those in the "structured goal" group who only counted their steps when they took long walks.

The debate
One area that exercise experts are debating is when steps should be counted, and when they should not. Some of the experts say that walking is only beneficial, and steps should only be counted, when someone is involved in a long period of activity.

Others exercise specialists have said that anything that increases the number of steps that a person takes every day are beneficial. People can benefit by making small, incremental advances that fit their lifestyle.

This study indicates that people will be more satisfied and stick with a program longer when short bursts of activity are rewarded.

Source:
http://www.med.umich.edu/opm/newspage/2007/pedometer.htm