enlargePrint defaultSize

Pedometers are not new; the remarkable mind of Leonardo DaVinci designed a prototype. The concept of step counting really appealed to the Japanese, who used the term "Man-po Kei", which literally means "10,000 step meter". I found an advertisement for a primitive pedometer on a 50's matchbook cover, which I picked up at a New York flea market. But now with the combination of a sedentary society seeking movement stimuli, combined with the availability of cheap, mass produced pedometers from Asia we are in a position to put a pedometer on every belt or waistband.

A couple of years ago, airport security used to look at my pedometer with suspicion, because they didn't know what it was. Now it's a familiar device to them and I'm often asked how many steps I do each day and "Do those little gadgets really work?"

Pedometers and Research

To be used in research, pedometers must be reliable and accurate. At Speakwell we've tested many different pedometers including ones that speak to you in an electronic voice, ones that play little tinny tunes and ones that beep at you when it is time to walk. Our primary questions in treadmill testing in the laboratory were:

1. Did the pedometer accurately record all the steps you took?
2. Were its predictions of distance walked and calories burned reliable?

You can see the write up of one such test in the Summer 2002 edition of "Well", "More Thoughts on 10,000 Steps". We discovered that the most important variable was correct assessment of stride length to be programmed into the pedometer.

Increasing numbers of researchers are now seeing the pedometer as an exciting and inexpensive tool to both record and stimulate walking activity. Currently, Speakwell is associated directly or indirectly with a number of pedometer based research projects. We are working with Dr. Lara Lauzon on a major grant proposal and also some smaller projects, one of which involves our local MLA (Member of Provincial Parliament), who is concerned about school fitness. Speakwell employee, Shane Brown, is proposing a pedometer study as part of his Master's thesis, and former Speakwell employee, Guy LeMasurier, has a big walking program underway in Arizona as part of his Ph.D. Guy used the acronym W.E.L.L. for his project. (Walk Everyday, Live Longer). Guy is being assisted by pedometer guru Dr. Catrine Tudor-Locke and his graduate advisor is Dr. Charles Corbin.

McPedometers

McDonalds are now distributing pedometers! In Houston, named "The Fattest City in America" by Men's Fitness Magazine, McDonald's is "the official restaurant sponsor" of "Get Lean Houston", a civic get fit/lose weight program. McDonald's will be distributing pedometers to their customers. I have two questions:

1. Will the pedometers be accurate? We recently tested two inexpensive promotional pedometers bearing company logos and they recorded less than half the actual steps taken. A real disincentive.
2. Will McDonalds inform customers how many steps it takes to walk off various products on their menu? I can't imagine they'll be in a hurry to tell people that, at about 20 steps/calorie, a meal featuring a large drink, supersized fries and a Big Mac might take about 35,000 steps and probably more than 6 hours to walk off.

Maybe someone could design a "fedometer", which measures calories consumed. Albert Camus once said it was the sign of a brilliant mind that could comfortably contain opposing ideas. My less than brilliant mind still struggles with McDonalds as the official sponsor of a "Get Lean" campaign.

Major Canadian Initiative

In Canada, the Canadian Institute of Health Research working with the Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes, is partnering with a cereal company to distribute 800,000 free pedometers throughout the country. With supplemental distribution we will see a million new pedometers in Canada in 2004.

When you have a product launch of this magnitude there are many concerns that have to be addressed. The primary concern, of course, is accuracy and reliability, without which the research associated with the project will be of little value. The pedometers also need to be robust and weatherproof. However, when you start putting pedometers with cereal boxes the manufacturers and sponsors have to be alert to other concerns, including whether they might be swallowed or otherwise misused by little children. From experience, I've found one of the vulnerable parts of a pedometer is the clip by which it attaches to a belt or clothing. Once this breaks, the pedometer is often discarded.

Conceptually this project is a brilliant idea, with participants throughout the country being able to record their data on a web-site to create a nation-wide 'natural experiment'. The web-site launch is slated for December 5, 2003.

In the old Meatloaf song, "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad" it says, "There ain't no Coupe de Ville hiding in the bottom of a Cracker Jack box." In Canada you might get something even better, a pedometer with your morning cereal.

Insurance companies are already convinced of the value of walking and on my recent trip to Iowa, Wellmark Blue Cross/ Blue Shield were busy handing our free pedometers.

I think one of the most useful functions of a pedometer is to enable people to visualize calories in terms of steps. Once they do that, they can look at casual eating a little differently. (E.g. "Do I have time to walk for two hours if I eat that candy?") See previous 'Well' article "Let's Have a Value Meal and then Walk for Five Hours"

Work Steps

We have recently heard from 'Well' readers about the number of steps they do on an average day. A nurse did about 10,000 steps a shift and a Phys. Ed. Teacher totaled nearly 15,000 in his active day of teaching and coaching. Robert Sweetgall lists a number of approximate stepping days for other professions. These include:

Receptionist	1120
Physician (office)	3000
Hairdresser	3700
Dental Hygienist	5000
Auto Mechanic	15,000 (this one surprises me)

Another of our readers reported that she did 8000 steps for 9 holes of golf and 19,000 for a full 18 holes. However, she did say she wasn't a good golfer, so spent time lost in the trees looking for her ball!

The Omron HJ-105 pedometer is available from Well Mart on the Speakwell web site.