Pedometers help exercise regimens stay on track

Who doesn’t enjoy a new gadget? Especially if it helps you lose weight.

Researchers at Stanford University wanted to find out if the use of pedometers to count steps might also serve as a motivational tool.

The Stanford team examined 26 different studies that followed more than 2,700 subjects with an average age of 49. Analysis of the studies showed that exercisers increased their physical activity by nearly 30 percent after they started using pedometers.

The average study length was 18 weeks, and over that period, pedometer use was shown to accelerate weight loss and significantly decrease systolic blood pressure.

The study also showed that motivation was helped along by two important elements: a diary and goal setting. Subjects who kept a daily step diary significantly increased the number of steps they took. But subjects who didn’t set step count goals failed to significantly increase their physical activity.

Some pedometers cost as little as $5, but an Associated Press report on the Stanford study notes that reliable models usually cost about $20.

Sources:
“Using Pedometers to Increase Physical Activity and Improve Health” Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 298, No. 19, 11/21/07, jama.ama-assn.org
“Studies: Pedometers Motivate Fitness” Associated Press, 11/21/07, ap.org