Walking is a fantastic exercise for seniors, but do seniors really need to walk 10,000 steps each day in order to get the benefits of walking? It’s recommended that adults try to walk 10,000 steps each day but some studies are showing that it might not be necessary to walk that much to get the many health benefits that come from walking. Hiring elder care providers to be their companion can help to motivate your senior for this activity.
10,000 Steps? Maybe Not
The suggestion that people would be healthier if they walked 10,000 steps per day came from a Japanese marketing campaign in the 1960s. While science does show that walking every day is excellent for good health there’s no real scientific data that says 10,000 steps per day is necessary. Studies that are being done indicate that adults can get the same benefits from walking just 8,000 steps each day. One study showed that senior women could reap the benefits of walking even if they only walk 7,500 steps a day.
Moving Is What Matters
While there is a lot of disagreement about exactly how many steps seniors should walk every day all doctors and medical experts agree that moving every day is essential for seniors, and the more seniors can move during the day the healthier they will be. So if your senior parent can’t walk 10,000 steps a day encourage them to walk just 8,000 steps a day, or 5,000 steps a day. Getting some walking in every day will immediately start to improve your senior parent’s health no matter what their step count is.
If your senior parent doesn’t seem to want to walk every day there are lots of ways that you can help them make walking fun so that they will look forward to getting out for a daily walk like:
Hiring Elder Care Providers
One of the best ways to motivate a senior parent to get out and walk is to get elder care for them. With elder care, your senior parent will have someone to go walking with every day that will encourage them to walk daily and challenge themselves so their health improves. An elder care provider can also help your senior loved one feel safe so they won’t worry about what would happen if they were on a walk alone and got hurt or tired.
Getting A Dog
Another great way to motivate your senior loved one to start walking more is to get them a dog. Having a dog to walk will give your senior loved one a reason to go on a walk at least once a way and maybe more. Your senior parent will soon find that they enjoy taking daily walks around the neighborhood and at the park when they have their dog with them for companionship. And a dog will provide safety and security if your senior parent is worried about walking alone. If you’re worried about your senior parent’s ability to take care of a dog senior home care can help with that as well.
Sources: https://www.betteraging.com/beauty-and-wellness/how-many-steps-per-day-should-seniors-average-to-maintain-health/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/05/190529180228.htm
https://www.victorchang.edu.au/blog/researchers-on-10000-steps
If you or a loved one are considering Elder Care Services in Squirrel Hill PA, please call and talk to the caring staff at Extended Family Care of Pittsburgh at (412) 693-6009. We will answer all of your questions.
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