AIBU to think that many people over count their daily steps?

[SteppingMum]

I have a very sedentary job. I’m at my desk pretty much 9-5 with an hour lunch break, then 45 minute drive there and back each morning.

I struggle to naturally get in 3,000 steps a day without purposely trying to. I can get up to maybe 8-9K if i go on a walk after dinner for an hour.

My colleague has a very similar lifestyle to me and often expresses her shock at how little I move and she easily accumulates 10-15k a day. She doesn’t go to the gym or have small children or a dog that needs walking (neither do I).

So yesterday i did an experiment. Let’s compare steps from the moment we clock in at 8.45 until we go for lunch at 12.30.

My step count was 484 and hers was something like just under 3K.

The difference? She wears her counter on her wrist whereas I wear mine on my bra strap (I have an old fashioned clip on pedometer that only starts counting after three consecutive steps).

She drinks countless cups of tea in the morning (not getting up and making it herself - delivered by colleagues to the desk), has more phone calls to answer and typing to do than I do, and in general talks with her hands a lot.

I think a lot of people who wear their step counters on their wrist are having their daily steps over counted.

I want to challenge people today to try and move their smart watch to their trouser pocket or fasten to their waistband somehow to see if my theory is correct!

So AIBU to think that people are being lied to by their step counters when worn on their wrists? I know that I tend to use my hands more than my feet and will be wearing a wrist strap with my counter today as an experiment. Can’t wait to clock in and get 3K steps without even moving from my desk!

Also this isn’t a request for advice about how to get more steps in. I know I can get a desk stepper exercise thing or walk at lunch etc. I know what I should be doing. I’m a healthy weight and otherwise seemingly in good health etc so not too motivated just now to increase fitness but I know what I can do to increase steps when I want to.

My slight irritation is with my colleague thinking she’s so much more active than I am just because she moves her hands more than I do. 😁

Mine is on my wrist, but it doesn’t register steps when I sit and move my arms. My DD does a lot more than me when we walk together. She’s 6 inches shorter than me and has tiny legs. I’ve got a longer stride length than her.

I have one of those rings that has a step count. I clock up a huge number of steps when I knit.

I stopped trusting those little clip on ones ,when it counted over 4000 steps when i pushed a wheelbarrow along a rutted track. It was counting the judders!

I use the map my walk app when I'm actually 'going for a walk' and that's been helpful for tracking distance and walking speed.

Well I guess it will depend on what kind of device you're using - some will be more accurate than others I suppose. But when I spend the morning sitting at my desk, my apple watch doesn't give me any steps for it. Maybe if I vigorously shook my hand up and down, but not for normal movement. I'm sure it's not spot on, but I don't think it's recording thousands of steps when it should be just a few hundred.

Your colleague's tedious discussion around how she does more steps than you sounds like the issue.

That's hilarious! Otherwise, do you find it helpful? Does it track your sleep, etc?

I used to have this argument with my DH. He wore his on his wrist and, because of his job, and his hobby, he naturally had thousands of steps. Then he became ill and his mobility was severely affected. His only walking most days was getting out of bed and then a few trips to the bathroom or the kitchen. He was still notching up thousands of steps but he would be scrolling his phone or iPad all day so I can only assume it was movement of his wrist.

I think if you want to accurately count steps then you should wear something on your shoe/ankle/other body part.

I think your current sample is too small OP. It depends on the app used etc. They have varying degrees of accuracy. I log my steps on my phone so it only counts those where I have my phone on my person. I log as a minimum 20k daily and have for nearly a decade, but they don't include any steps I do around the house/office etc. so pretty sure I underestimate mine.

I do understand your point though. I noticed a big difference in running apps when I do the same route. It can be the difference between 9.4k and 10.2k. so I always use the one that's lowest as a marker to be sure and it's a sure.

Once you go over a certain threshold a couple of thousand steps here and there is nothing. Its better to track your changes in activity. Eg. Is your step count up or down this month?

Also steps are not exercise

Maybe yours undercounts

My step count goal notification alarm went off the other day while lying on the sofa stroking the cat! YANBU.

My Fitbit doesn't measure sitting down movement it buzzes when I'm at work and tells me I haven't moved enough that hour, I use my hands a fair bit

The biggest thing my Garmin clocks up false steps on is sorting/ folding laundry- but it is still movement and beneficial to the body. That compensates on lost steps doing things like pushing a supermarket trolley.

A decent sports watch has a reasonable callibration to distinguish steps from reaching for the remote and drinking a cup of tea.

Fidgeters tend to be leaner than very still people because their base rate of calorie burn is slightly elevated most of the time.

Mine counts wrist movements, I’ve had alerts that I’ve hit my target steps when I’ve been in a boxing class (so stood still punching a bag) and stuck in traffic (many, many gear changes). If I don’t wear it on my wrist I don’t think it would pick much up. Wearing it on my ankle perhaps, wearing it on my bra strap wouldn’t pick up anything.

Depending on the tracker they can count steps differently.
I had a stint at Tesco's online shopping a while back but despite walking for the entire 8 hr shifts I barely hit 5000 steps due to walking whilst pushing the trolley.which meant my hands were not moving as I walked.
Also recently I switched trackers and jumped from 6/8000 to 12/14000 a day, same job just different trackers measure differently. ( I do walk/stand most of my shift and walk to and from.work)

Depends on the device. Modern smart watches are pretty good at differentiating steps and arm movements. If anything I would think an old fashioned pedometer on a bra strap would be less accurate.
My watch only counts actual steps, although not with the pushchair annoyingly

I have a garmin watch and have found brushing my teeth and stirring pasta to be very efficient ways of getting my steps in 😄

This why most of them say you should wear them on your non dominat hand.

They are when you do lots of them in a row.

I have my phone in my pocket, so can’t imagine that’s affected by drinking tea.

My Garmin isn’t an accurate step counter. I can get loads of steps just wafting my arm about. But I don’t focus my exercise on steps. I try to get either 30 mins of exercise with my heart rate up a day, a yoga session in, or a walk of at least 2 miles every day.

i agree with a PP that the constant conversation comparing steps is the issue. As long as you’re happy with your exercise, ignore her!

i just use my iPhone. It seems pretty accurate. When I go for a bike ride it knows I am not walking and doesn’t count it. It definitely doesn’t count arm movement!

I have a smart ŵatvh and it doesn't count steps unless I am actually moving about on my feet. Stepping from one foot to the other doesn't even count. If I sit down too long (about once a week!!!) it alerts me to start moving.

I had an older Fitbit (can’t remember the make but it was a small skinny one, not waterproof or anything) and in work I had to shake things, I was hitting 18k-22k steps a day. It was a job you did on your feet so I think 10-12k definitely but the shaking definitely used to add on some extra steps. It was fairly vigorous shaking, not the same as movement at a desk.
I think it depends on the tracker you use…
I’ve stopped using a tracking watch etc and just rely on my phone for a rough estimate now

My sedentary unfit sister who works in a bank is very proud of her 20k plus a day step count. I'm a fit very active person with a dog and a big garden I maintain myself who struggles to hit 10k on my wrist step counter. I do hit 8 to 10k on myphone counter which I don't even carry half the time

The only thing I've found with my one that picks up lots of extra steps is drumming.