I tried the walking method that offers ‘10 times the benefits' of walking 10,000 steps per day
Walking is an accessible form of movement with impressive health-boosting credentials; I think there is enough research available to safely make that statement. Treating 10,000 steps per day as the gold standard for a healthy lifestyle is far more contentious.
The number stems from a 1960s Japanese marketing campaign for a pedometer called the Manpo-Kei, or '10,000 steps metre'. It's a nice round number, but it's not one identified by science as the holy grail for health – a 2023 study by the University of Granada suggests that, while more is better, 8,000 is sufficient 'to significantly reduce the risk of premature death'.
Walking 10,000 steps also takes a fair old while. Even at a decent nick, this task is likely to take you upwards of 90 minutes each day, making it a struggle for busy folks.
Recently, an alternative walking protocol – colloquially termed 'Japanese walking' due to its country of origin – has stepped into the spotlight online. It takes just 30 minutes per day, with fitness coach and content creator Eugene Teo claiming it offers '10 times the benefits' of walking 10,000 steps per day in his viral video above.
As a fitness writer, I've covered walking extensively, finding it's one of the best ways to help people of all fitness levels introduce more movement into their regular routine. So, intrigued, I endeavoured to try 'Japanese walking' and find out if the impressive health claims around it held water.
How to try the 'Japanese walking' method
Complete the sequence below five times without any breaks:
Three minutes of walking at a low intensity (40 per cent peak aerobic capacity, or a relaxed pace)
Three minutes of walking at a high intensity (70 per cent peak aerobic capacity, or a brisk pace)
Benefits of Japanese walking
The 'Japanese walking' protocol comes from a study published in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings journal in 2007. It was designed to test whether high-intensity interval walking training (IWT) can offer greater benefits than moderate-intensity continuous walking training, in terms of improving thigh muscle strength, peak aerobic capacity (the maximum amount of oxygen you can take in and use during exercise) and blood pressure.
Over five months, 60 men and 186 women with an average age of 63 were divided into three groups; no walking training, IWT and CWT (continuous walking training). The CWT group was instructed to walk at 50 per cent of their peak aerobic capacity (a fairly slow pace) and take 8,000 or more steps per day at least four times per week. The IWT group was told to complete the protocol above, four or more times per week.
Among participants who met these conditions, those in the IWT group saw a 13 per cent increase in isometric knee flexion, a 17 per cent increase in isometric knee flexion, and an eight per cent increase in peak aerobic capacity for walking. This was 'significantly greater than the increases observed in the moderate-intensity continuous walking training group'.
The research also found a greater reduction in resting systolic blood pressure in the IWT group, despite the fact they didn't spend as much time walking each week.
The conclusion states: 'high-intensity interval walking may protect against age-associated increases in blood pressure and decreases in thigh muscle strength and peak aerobic capacity.'
What happened when I tried Japanese walking
I don't have a full science lab set up at home; what I do have is two legs, a Garmin watch and a lot of walking experience, so I decided to put these to good use.
During my Monday lunch break, I took my dog for a 30-minute walk as normal. Then, at 1pm the following day, I tried the 'Japanese walking' method on the same looped route, setting my Garmin Vivoactive to record both sessions and taking note of any subjective changes I felt.
My usual 30-minute walk saw me accrue nearly 3,000 steps, covering 2.12km at an average speed of 14min 10sec per kilometre. My heart rate averaged 85bpm, remaining fairly constant throughout, and I burned an estimated 157 calories.
As anyone who has owned a dog might expect, there was a good deal of stopping and starting to inspect particularly interesting trees and bollards, and I defaulted to a fairly casual pace amid a busy work day.
For the Japanese walking protocol, my numbers looked a bit different, with my fast pace falling just below 120 steps per minute and my slow pace a few shy of 100 steps per minute.
I travelled significantly further, covering 2.94km and 3,500 steps at an average speed of 10min 12sec per kilometre. My average heart rate came out very similar (86bpm) but there were noticeable peaks (104bpm) and troughs in line with the high- and low-speed intervals. My estimated calorie burn was also significantly higher: 211.
Benefits of the Japanese walking method
The idea that walking faster, or sprinkling more intensity into your exercise, holds greater benefits is nothing new.
Specialist in walking for health, Dr Elroy Aguiar, is an assistant professor at the University of Alabama's department of kinesiology. He was the lead author on a 2024 paper published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, which correlated as little as one minute of high-intensity activity with improved health outcomes.
'One of the really interesting findings from our paper was that, if you look at people's highest one minute of activity across each day, averaged across the monitoring period, that was a very strong signal for whether they had one or more metabolic syndrome risk factors [elevated waist circumference, high triglycerides, low HDL (or 'good' cholesterol), high blood pressure and high blood sugar] present,' he tells me.
Another series of studies he worked on, featured in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, pointed to the fact that 'if you walk at a cadence of about 100 steps per minute, that's equivalent to what's called 'moderate-intensity', and all of the research in this area suggests that most of the benefits [of walking] accumulate at a moderate or higher intensity'.
Beyond this, completing the Japanese walking method four times per week leaves you half-an-hour away from the World Health Organisation's 'global recommendations of at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week'. Add a couple of short full-body strength training sessions into the mix and you have a decent minimalist workout plan for beginners.
Potential drawbacks of the Japanese Walking method
All of the information above paints the Japanese walking method in a favourable light – as it should, with the protocol delivering impressive results in a non-intimidating time-span. However, if we are questioning the claim that it is 'better' than walking 10,000 steps a day, there are a few further areas to consider.
Firstly, Dr Aguiar's 2024 paper supported the idea that the 'best' walking method for reducing metabolic risk factors involves a combination of high volume (number of steps) and high intensity (walking speed).
'Accumulating a high volume of walking throughout the day [8,000-plus steps], then focussing on at least 30 minutes of faster walking or jogging, would be a way to move the metrics in a positive direction and lower your metrics for each of the [metabolic syndrome] risk factors,' he says.
I racked up a little over 3,500 steps when trying the Japanese Walking method – less than half of the 8,000 daily steps research has repeatedly linked to many favourable health outcomes, and short of the 5,000 mark often viewed as the threshold for a sedentary lifestyle.
Using this method as part, rather than all, of your daily steps could be a better approach for achieving your health goals. However, if you only have 30 minutes per day free, it still offers dramatically more benefits than not moving at all, and improved return on investment over a regular 30-minute walk.
Another area where the Japanese walking method loses out to walking 10,000 steps per day is movement regularity. While the former involves a concentrated 30-minute dose of activity, the latter can be spread throughout the day, encouraging you to abandon your office chair and sofa more often.
A 10-year study of 8,000 people, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, found that those replaced 30 minutes of daily sitting with light activity had a 17 per cent lower risk of dying in that period. This even applied if they accrued these 30 minutes across short intervals throughout the day – hence why your smartwatch is constantly sending you reminders to stand up and move.
Regular movement can also help maintain mobility and reduce stiffness in our joints and muscles.
'When we're dealing with an adaptation from stillness, movement is the answer, so any movement is better than just being still,' movement mechanics expert and The Training Stimulus founder Ash Grossmann summarises.
The final factor to consider is enjoyment. By adding a rigid framework, Japanese walking ensures intensity. However, it also meant I was unable to stop and chat to people in the park or appreciate my surroundings to the same extent. For me, this lowered the stress-busting potential of my walk, sacrificing some of the usual mental health benefits of walking for physical ones.
The Japanese walking method: the verdict
In my time writing about health and fitness, the net positive effect of regular movement has been one of the most striking common denominators.
For those looking for a minimum effective dose: any movement will do you a lot of good, particularly if your starting point is a sedentary lifestyle. But if you can fit one or two quick full-body strength training sessions, regular aerobic activity (like walking) and an occasional dash of more intense exercise into each week, it will stand you in very good stead.
Walking is among the most accessible forms of exercise there is, lowering the barrier to entry for exercise for billions of people, which is why I'm always keen to promote it. However, in the modern world, even finding time for a quick walk can be tricky for particularly busy individuals.
The Japanese walking method provides a time-savvy way to enjoy many of the benefits of a greater volume of daily walking. Sure, you could enjoy higher-intensity exercise in any number of other forms, from cycling to a HIIT workout, but walking remains the most efficient – you don't even need a change of clothes.
So should you try it? Yes, especially if you're short on time and looking for a way to squeeze health-boosting movement into your day. And should you stick with it? This depends.
If you enjoy this framework, or find it's something you can stick to with a good degree of regularity, that's the ticket to a sustainable movement habit and the many health benefits that come from it. If not, look for an alternative form of moderate- to high-intensity exercise that you find fun, and commit to this instead – consistency is the key to long-term results.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
20 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
My symptoms of bowel cancer: I'm 32, eat healthy, rarely drink and have no family history - but in February I was handed a stage 4 diagnosis
In February, Brisbane mum Samantha Barry's world was flipped upside down with a shock diagnosis she never saw coming. At only 32 years old, the successful interior designer with a passion for creativity was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer - despite having no family history and living what she describes as a 'very healthy lifestyle'. As the rates of bowel cancer skyrocket among Australians aged 25-44, Sammy is sharing her story, symptoms and words of advice to support Bowel Cancer Awareness Month and assist in finding some form of solution. Before her shock diagnosis, Sammy was working full-time and enjoying life as a wife and mum to her 16-month-old daughter Freddie and their 'second child' - a three-year-old Australian Shepherd named Ned. 'My lifestyle is healthy. I felt healthy,' she told FEMAIL. 'I would go to Pilates every week, we eat well, I don't binge drink. I've never smoked a cigarette.' Originally from Melbourne, Sammy and her husband met on the dancefloor at an Irish pub when she was just 22, and the rest is history. After six months of dating, she followed him back to Queensland, where he's originally from, to start a life together. At only 32 years old, the successful interior designer with a passion for creativity was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer - despite having no family history and living what she describes as a 'very healthy lifestyle' He was also the first person Sammy called in a panic when she noticed 'something was wrong, really wrong.' 'I was at work, and I noticed that there was some blood in my stools,' she said. 'I hadn't noticed that ever before, or I just hadn't realised, but [it was] the first time that I'd really noticed it. 'I called my husband from the toilet cubicle in my office, and I just said to him, "I just have this terrible feeling about it".' Sammy burst into tears in front of her boss and then called to book in at her GP within the hour to find out what was going on. 'My GP is amazing. Every specialist I've seen has praised how incredible she was to take me seriously first of all and referred me straight away,' she said. Her GP warned that her one symptom could be something as serious as cancer, but it could also just be haemorrhoids - which are very common among new mums. What followed was a full colonoscopy, which Sammy said was her saving grace as surprisingly 'a lot of people don't get referred straight away, and have to really advocate for themselves'. Other symptoms of bowel cancer, like extreme tiredness, are often overlooked in young mums too. This was something Sammy had been experiencing, but put it down to sleepless nights with her daughter Freddie. Sammy's colonoscopy results were shocking - a four-centimetre tumour and a polyp were discovered in her bowel. It was February 19th, her husband's birthday. 'Before the big surgery, [the surgeon] said, "If you wake up and I'm not there, then it's all good. But, if I'm there, then it's something more serious and I'll talk to you about it",' she recalled. The experts knew Sammy's condition was serious, but until the official biopsy results came back, they still didn't have all the answers, especially knowing what stage her cancer was at. In just a few weeks, she was booked in for a lower bowel resection surgery, a major operation to remove the tumour as well as the surrounding lymph nodes. Three days later, the surgeon told Sammy that her cancer was worryingly at stage four and, after recovery from surgery, she'd face six months of chemotherapy. Twelve gruelling rounds, every two weeks. 'My cancer is quite aggressive,' Sammy said. With unwavering support from her loving husband, family, and in-laws, who have all rallied around her during this life-changing time, Sammy remains fiercely optimistic. 'Chemo is quite full-on, because I feel really crappy for seven days, and then I feel almost normal for seven days. So, I try and make the most of my good weeks,' she said. One of her biggest comforters is her dog, Ned. 'He's been really sweet throughout my treatment. He just comes and cuddles with me all day when I'm feeling sick, it's so sweet. It's like they [dogs] just know when you're not feeling well,' she said. In a bid to preserve her fertility, Sammy also went through two back-to-back rounds of egg-freezing before her chemo started. 'We wanted to grow our family this year and had to put that on hold. So we decided to do embryo freezing, which [the experts] recommended for us,' she said. Australia's bowel cancer spike: Why are so many young people being diagnosed? As of 2025, one in nine bowel cancer diagnoses in Australia is under 50 - a stark change from the 'old person's disease' it was once framed as. The rates are rising for young people globally, but in Australia it is now the deadliest cancer for those aged 25-44. Worryingly, there has also been been a 266 per cent increase in bowel cancer rates in adolescents and young adults (15-24 years) over the past three decades. There are more than 1,700 people under 50 diagnosed with bowel cancer in Australia each year; 288 people under 50 die from the disease each year. While the exact reasons aren't known, early research has pointed at a range of factors including diets of high processed foods, poor gut microbiome, increased consumption of microplastics, a lack of fibre in modern diets, too much red/processed meat, genetics, exposure to E. coli as a child and more diligence with screening tests. You can learn more about early on-set bowel cancer and its symptoms here. Once treatment is complete, Sammy plans to launch her own interior design firm and is dreaming of a family holiday to Japan to celebrate a new chapter. But more than anything, she's determined to raise awareness around the importance of early detection, especially among younger Australians. 'My diagnosis was just such a shock, because I didn't know anything about bowel cancer. I'd never even thought about it and I didn't know the symptoms, literally nothing,' she said. Bowel cancer is Australia's second deadliest cancer, yet it's highly treatable when caught early. More than 16,000 people are diagnosed each year, according to Cancer Council NSW, and rates in younger Australians are on the rise. That's why Sammy has also launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds and awareness for a charity now very close to her heart. 'I don't want people to be in a similar situation to me, so raising funds for Bowel Cancer Australia is really important to help other people,' she said. Her message is clear and urgent:
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Revealed: Areas in England most likely to use Viagra... do YOU live in one of them?
Men in Yorkshire are the most likely in England to need a bit of assistance in the bedroom, NHS data suggests. Official data shows just over nearly 3.6 per cent of men in the East Riding were prescribed an erectile dysfunction medication like Viagra, in 2024. This was followed by men in Northumberland and Dorset who came second and third for taking such drugs, at 3.4 and 3.3 per cent respectively. The north and north-east of England appears to be particularly hard-hit by impotency with many of its cities and towns featuring in the top 10 areas for such prescriptions. On the opposite end of the spectrum, men in Leicester City appeared to be the least likely to need help from the little blue pill to maintain an erection, with only 1.5 per cent taking them. Other areas In England with low similarly low prescription rates were North West London (1.7 per cent) as well as Cambridgeshire and Peterborough (1.9 per cent). For comparison, 2.4 per cent of men across all of England were prescribed an erectile dysfunction medication last year. These figures were calculated by examining NHS prescription data collected from England's 106 Clinical Commissioning Groups. In total, last year almost 770,000 men in England got nearly £5million prescriptions for the drugs, costing the NHS just under £17million. However, the data might not give a true indication of where men are most reliant on the little blue pill. Men can buy a course of drugs like sildenafil—the generic version of Viagra—over the counter for as little as £15 with similar tablets also available online for as little as £1.30 per pill. Such private purchases of the drug wouldn't be included in the NHS data. Additionally, while most famous for their libido boosting affects, many of the drugs aren't just prescribed for erectile dysfunction. Such medications also teat pulmonary hypertension, a type of high blood pressure in the arteries that supply the lungs. The same mechanism by which the drugs increase blood flow to the penis also relaxes blood vessels in the chest helping to alleviate this condition. Medics have also previously suggested that the data may not solely reflect where the drugs are needed the most by men, but also where they feel the most comfortable taking to their GP about sexual health. Impotency is no laughing matter and men suffering from the problem frequently are urged to seek advice from their GP. Not only can the problem impact their sexual and mental health, erection problems can also be potential sign of serious health problems like cardiovascular disease. However, not all men are advised to take drugs like sildenafil, for example those with heart problems are warned against taking it. About one in 100 people taking sildenafil will experience common side effects from taking sildenafil. These include headaches, nausea, hot flushes, indigestion, a stuffy nose and dizziness, according to the NHS. Those taking the pills for longer periods, such as for pulmonary hypertension, are more likely to experience these effects than those taking the pills on an 'as needed' basis for erectile dysfunction, the health service says. More serious side effects requiring urgent medical care are estimated to affect less than one in 1,000 people. These include seizures, suffering a prolonged and potentially painful erection especially for over two hours, chest pain, and in very rare cases a life-threatening allergic reaction to the medication called anaphylaxis. Last year MailOnline revealed that popular erection pills such as Viagra have been linked to more than 200 deaths in Britain. None of the fatalities—all of which have occurred since 1998—are proven to have been caused directly by the drugs. Erectile dysfunction, sometimes shortened to 'ED' is thought to effect about half of men over 40. While most cases are isolated and nothing to worry about, repeated or sustained impotency should be checked out by a GP.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
You're showering wrong! Scientist reveals why you should NEVER opt for cold water – even during the UK heatwave
There are two types of people in this world – those who enjoy cold showers and those who can think of nothing worse. Now, experts have revealed why you should never bathe in cold water, even during the UK heatwave. Adam Taylor, a Professor of Anatomy at Lancaster University, said a cold shower might actually not help us cool off at all. And it's all to do with how our blood vessels react to changes in temperature. 'Although diving into a cold bath or shower straight after being out in the heat might feel nice on your skin, it isn't doing what is needed to reduce the core temperature of the body,' Professor Taylor told The Conversation. Our body's optimal temperature is around 37°C, he explained. When our core gets too hot several mechanisms kick into place to help us cool down. One important response is our blood vessels dilating, to allow more blood to get closer to the relatively cooler surface of the skin. 'When exposed to cold [such as a cold shower] the blood vessels near the skin constrict, reducing the blood flow into these areas,' Professor Taylor said. 'So in the context of cooling the body down, jumping into a cold shower does the opposite of what needs to happen, as less blood is now flowing to the surface of the skin. 'This will hold the heat in and around your organs instead of getting rid of it. 'Basically, you're tricking your body that it doesn't need to cool down, but actually needs to conserve heat.' Sudden exposure to very cold temperatures could even trigger dangerous consequences for some people, he warned. Submerging yourself in water that is 15°C or under can trigger the cold shock response, which causes the blood vessels in the skin to constrict rapidly. This increases blood pressure and can be particularly dangerous for people with underlying heart conditions such as coronary artery disease. 'Thankfully, these events are rare,' he said, 'and probably won't happen if you're just taking a cold shower or bath in your home. 'But you might want to skip the cold plunge or avoid taking an ice bath on a hot day for this reason.' While cold showers aren't advised, hot showers also aren't the way forward on a warm day, he said. Water that is warmer than the body will transfer heat to the body, potentially increasing its core temperature. A tepid or lukewarm bath or shower, at 26-27°C, is most effective, he said. Another reason to skip a cold shower on a hot day is that it might not get you fully clean. Cold water has been shown to be less effective at removing and breaking down sebum and bacteria on the skin compared to warmer water. This means that body odour could persist, and trapped dirt within pores could lead to blackheads, whiteheads and acne. Warm or lukewarm water however, can help dissolve and loosen material in the pores. Eat spicy chilli, tikka masala, a Thai curry or soup to keep cool in the heatwave, say experts You might not think that a spicy chilli, tikka masla curry and soup would be the best things to eat to cool down during the heatwave. But it turns out that having a hot meal in the evening can actually help you stay cool by the sweat you perspire evaporating into the air and cooling the body. A chilli can also be helpful, with the capsaicin found in the food sending a signal to your brain that your body is overheated - so you will sweat more to cool down. Tucking into watermelon, turmeric and reducing the carbohydrates and protein in your diet are also good ways to beat the heat. Nutritionist Daniel O'Shaughnessy has teamed up with online delivery firm JustEat to compile a list of the best foods to eat or avoid in order to cool down. Traditionally seen as a winter dish, a bowl of soup in the evening as temperatures start to drop can actually help people stay cool, Mr O'Shaughnessy explained. He said: 'It will make you perspire more, but as the sweat evaporates, the energy is absorbed into the air, therefore cooling the body.' Mr O'Shaughnessy also believes a spicy chilli is a good choice, with the capsaicin found in the food sending a signal to your brain that your body is overheated. As a result, you will sweat more to cool down. The powerful anti-inflammatory effects of turmeric also make a tikka masala curry a good option in the heat. Curcumin, which is the active ingredient in the spice, helps promote good circulation, helping to speed up your blood flow and cool your body down. Mr O'Shaughnessy also named onions as a top pick, with the vegetable being used in Ayurvedic medicine, a traditional form of Indian medicine which is more than 3,000 years old, to treat heatstroke. Other heatwave choices recommended by the nutritionist include mint, thanks to its cooling sensation, as well as spinach, which contains the vitamins and minerals needed to help keep your blood pressure under control and keep you cool. Mr O'Shaughnessy said coconut milk, found in Thai green curry, has important nutrients to support hydration, prevent exhaustion and muscle aches in hot weather. And watermelon, which is high in water content, also contains citrulline, an amino acid which relaxes you and helps to dilate the blood vessels, meaning more blood can circulate around your body and cool you down. But there are some foods to avoid, with Mr O'Shaughnessy advising Britons to cut down on carbohydrate-rich foods, such as rice and wholegrains, and foods high in protein like chicken. He said: 'It may be harder to digest a high protein food in a heat wave. Meat is quite hard to digest and the digestion process creates heat (thermogenesis) and can make you feel hotter in yourself. 'Opting for plant-based dishes can be a good choice as less energy is needed to break vegetarian dishes down compared to meat.'
