“哇，今天微信运动的榜首是我爸，他走了两万多步！”

图源：视觉中国

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你是不是也沉迷于“刷步数”，无论是用手机软件、运动手环还是智能手表，一定要看到步数过万才觉得打卡成功？然而，每天真的要走一万步（约5公里）吗？

“一万步”的起源

近几十年来，尽管“每天走一万步”成为健身新口号，但其实这个目标对健康和减重并没有科学依据。

Despite the recommendations of pedometers everywhere, there"s nothing scientific to the goal of walking 10,000 steps a day, for health or for weight loss.

每天走一万步保持健康的概念并不是源自科学，而是营销噱头。

The concept of taking 10,000 steps a day to maintain health is rooted not in science but in marketing gimmick.

在20世纪60年代，日本的一家公司发明了早期计步器。因为日语中的“万”字看起来像一个人在走路，所以该公司将其设备称为“万步计”。

In the 1960s a company in Japan invented an early pedometer. Because the Japanese character for "10,000" looks like a person walking, the company called its device the 10,000-step meter.

“这只是一种朗朗上口的措词。”哈佛医学院流行病学家李逸民（I-Min Lee，音译）说，“如果你走了一万步，这当然不错。但其实这种标准没有任何依据。”

"It was just sort of a catchy phrase," says I-Min Lee, an epidemiologist at Harvard Medical School. "Sure, if you get 10,000 steps, it seems like a good goal. But there was not really any basis to it."

步数和年龄相关

2019年李逸民发表了首批专门研究达到一万步目标实际效果的研究之一，随后又进行了其他几项大型项目。研究结果表明，多运动一些总是好的，但实际效果会在某个峰值之后趋于平稳。

In 2019 Lee published one of the first studies specifically investigating the actual effects of meeting the 10,000-step goal. Several other large studies followed. The result? Some movement is good, and more is better, but the benefits taper at some point.

图源：视觉中国

个人运动峰值取决于年龄。60岁以下的人确实应该每天走8000到10000步，以期延长预期寿命，保护心血管健康。而60岁以上的人，则每天走6000到8000步最合适。

Your personal peak depends on your age. People younger than 60 should indeed walk 8,000 to 10,000 steps a day to get the best benefits in terms of life expectancy and cardiovascular health. People older than 60 show the most benefit between 6,000 and 8,000 steps.

图源：The Lancet Public Health

两者区别在于能量消耗。“年龄越大，走路的效率越低。”杜克大学医生、科学家威廉·克劳斯（William Kraus）说道：“每走一步，老年人消耗的能量会更多。”因此，他们只需更少的步数就可以达到同样的锻炼效果。

The difference is energy expenditure. "The older you are, the less efficient you are with your steps," says William Kraus, a physician and scientist at Duke University. "Per step, older people expend more energy." As a result, they need fewer steps to achieve the same benefits.

重要性：总数 > 速度

走路的总步数似乎比速度更重要。李逸民说：“当两个人的步数相同时，他们的速度快慢重要吗？”截至目前研究，答案是否定的。

The total number of steps you take does appear to matter more than the speed at which you take them. "When two people walk the same amount, does it matter whether their steps are accumulated at a faster rate versus a slower rate?" Lee says. The answer so far is no.

对那些无法迅速行走的人来说，每天多走几千步可能意义重大，美国马萨诸塞州立大学阿默斯特分校的流行病学家阿曼达·帕鲁赫（Amanda Paluch）说。她领导了两项元分析，发现步数与死亡和心血管疾病风险存在联系。她总结道：“最不活跃的人受益最大。”

Adding a few thousand steps a day can be especially meaningful for someone who isn"t physically able to walk briskly, says Amanda Paluch, an epidemiologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, who led two meta-analyses linking step counts with risk of death and cardiovascular disease. She concludes that “the people who are the least active have the most to gain.”meta-analyse：元分析，荟萃分析。对具有相同研究目的的多个研究结果进行统计分，定量综合的一种研究方法。

图源：《柳叶刀》

最新的研究已经超越死亡率的范畴，提出步数可能有助于预防糖尿病，或帮助控制血压和体重。毕竟，我们不仅要活得更久，更要活得健康。目前为止还没有完整的结论，李逸民的建议是：“根据你的目标和个人情况，来调整你的步数。”

Newer studies are moving beyond death rates to ask questions about the way steps may contribute to diabetes prevention or help to control blood pressure and weight. The goal, after all, is not just to live longer but to live healthier. Full results are not in yet, so Lee"s advice in the meantime is: "Tailor your steps according to what you are trying to achieve and according to who you are."

Source:中国日报双语新闻

编辑：田梦瑶 吴雨霜（实习生）