Copyright timesnownews
For the longest period of time, the advice has been to walk 10,000 steps on a daily basis to keep health completely fit and fine. And this has been said to be the best way to monitor activity and stay motivated, while being seen as a symbol of good health. But a new study from Harvard University challenges that belief, revealing that it’s not the number of steps you take, but how your heart responds to them, that truly matters. Researchers from Harvard Medical School analyzed data from over 90,000 adults using wearable fitness trackers. They found that participants with a higher heart rate during everyday activities, even when walking moderate distances, faced a significantly higher risk of cardiovascular issues, regardless of how many steps they took. In contrast, those with lower resting and active heart rates tended to have healthier hearts and lower mortality risk. The findings suggest that while movement is essential, it’s the intensity and cardiovascular response to that movement that determine long-term health. Simply put, taking 10,000 steps a day doesn’t guarantee protection if your heart is constantly overworked or your body isn’t adapting efficiently. Dr. Casey Reichert, one of the lead researchers, explained that heart rate offers a more direct window into cardiovascular health than step count. “Your heart’s response to physical activity is like a fingerprint of your fitness level. A well-conditioned heart doesn’t need to beat as fast to support the same amount of activity,” she said. The study also introduced a new metric called “Heart Rate per Step,” which measures how much your heart rate rises for every step taken. Those with higher values were found to be at greater risk of hypertension, diabetes, and cardiac disease—making it a potentially valuable tool for personalized health tracking. Experts now recommend that fitness enthusiasts look beyond their step count and pay closer attention to their heart rate patterns, especially during routine activities like walking or climbing stairs. Investing in a tracker that monitors both steps and heart rate can provide a more holistic picture of health. Ultimately, the Harvard study reminds us that good health isn’t about how far we walk, but how well our hearts can handle the journey.
