Everyday Systems

From the New York Times: Americans Take Fewer Steps

For the (intellectually) lazy, I posted a quick overview of the article in the urban ranger forum here:

http://everydaysystems.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=6867

I should have checked Urban Ranger!

Well, all I can say is thank goodness for my dog! Without her, I wouldn't take nearly as many steps as I do!

But see, it's just THAT much easier for them to get in those steps. The towns are smaller, the shops are closer. People walk to the grocery stores every day, bringing home a little at a time.

American culture has this whole commute attitude about everything. It just makes it that much harder to get in mor steps!

Many communities here are designed so folks have to take cars. Public transport is pathetic and places aren't set up for walking. This is certainly true for much of Michigan where I live ... in large part due to the auto industry and maybe the weather too.

Thankfully, it really doesn't take a huge amount of effort to reach 10,000 steps. Even here, where I have to drive to get my kid to and from school, run any errands, etc, a 40 minute walk in addition to normal activity is enough to get me well over 10,000 steps on an average day.

I noticed the difference years ago... when my hubby and I went to Europe, I expected to gain based on the wonderful meals we ate. But we also WALKED everywhere, and I came home at the same weight, despite lots of extra food! (Plus, we snacked less...)

It is harder to walk in areas not designed for it... sigh. Not impossible, but it takes more determination.

But see, it's just THAT much easier for them to get in those steps. The towns are smaller, the shops are closer. People walk to the grocery stores every day, bringing home a little at a time.

American culture has this whole commute attitude about everything. It just makes it that much harder to get in mor steps!

It might be harder, but it's not impossible. I think this is the same line of thinking as something like, "Restaurants serve portions that are too big, and that's why Americans are fat". It's an excuse, I think, disguised as a legitimate reason. Just like no one is being forced to clean their giant platters at the Olive Garden, most people are not forced into not exercising because of inadequately planned communities. (I say most because there are some inner city areas where it's physically unsafe to walk outside, but I think that's a different issue, and certainly not one that affects the majority of Americans.)

If you can't walk to work, the bank, or the grocery store, just walk around your neighborhood--or even on a treadmill. It's just as good!

I noticed the difference years ago... when my hubby and I went to Europe, I expected to gain based on the wonderful meals we ate. But we also WALKED everywhere, and I came home at the same weight, despite lots of extra food! (Plus, we snacked less...)

Same. My husband and I went to London and Paris for our honeymoon, which meant 10 days of eating lots of really delicious food in restaurants and cafes. I thought for sure I was going to gain weight, but we walked SO much that I ended up coming home with my jeans feeling a little bit looser. Of course, it didn't take long for the fit to go back to normal once we got home =)

marygrace wrote:

But see, it's just THAT much easier for them to get in those steps. The towns are smaller, the shops are closer. People walk to the grocery stores every day, bringing home a little at a time.

American culture has this whole commute attitude about everything. It just makes it that much harder to get in mor steps!

It might be harder, but it's not impossible. I think this is the same line of thinking as something like, "Restaurants serve portions that are too big, and that's why Americans are fat". It's an excuse, I think, disguised as a legitimate reason. Just like no one is being forced to clean their giant platters at the Olive Garden, most people are not forced into not exercising because of inadequately planned communities. (I say most because there are some inner city areas where it's physically unsafe to walk outside, but I think that's a different issue, and certainly not one that affects the majority of Americans.)

If you can't walk to work, the bank, or the grocery store, just walk around your neighborhood--or even on a treadmill. It's just as good!

No, I'm not saying this as an excuse. I'm just saying that the fact that us Americans even have to THINK about it makes it a chore! Those other countries don't think to themselves "...and now I will go get my daily exercise in..." they just say, "Hey, looks like we're out of bread and eggs. I'll go run to the store," and they go outside, and they walk.

I'm not saying we shouldn't walk and all sit on our butts.

leVictoria wrote:But see, it's just THAT much easier for them to get in those steps. The towns are smaller, the shops are closer. People walk to the grocery stores every day, bringing home a little at a time.

American culture has this whole commute attitude about everything. It just makes it that much harder to get in mor steps!

It's not that towns are smaller elsewhere. Of the 100 largest cities in the world, less than 10 are in the US. And several of those are very walkable (New York, Chicago, San Francisco). People in the cities probably walk more for a variety of reasons. Goods and services are closer and in many cases, it costs too much to have a car. Elsewhere in the world, in cities large and small, people walk.

The problem is that since the end of WWII, actually, since the 1960s, everything here is built based on having a car or two or three or more. There are very few neighborhoods with shops and groceries, etc. Even smaller towns and cities, like my hometown (population 23,000 -- hasn't changed significantly in 60 years), used to have neighborhood stores and they're all gone now. I can think of a dozen mom and pop grocery stores when I was growing up. Every one of them is gone.

And honestly, we've gotten lazy. Studies have shown that most of our errands are less than a mile from home, and nearly all are done by car. I realize that in some places it's not safe to walk and sometimes inconvenient, but it's not like that in all places. Americans don't think about walking. They just jump in the car.

leVictoria wrote: No, I'm not saying this as an excuse. I'm just saying that the fact that us Americans even have to THINK about it makes it a chore! Those other countries don't think to themselves "...and now I will go get my daily exercise in..." they just say, "Hey, looks like we're out of bread and eggs. I'll go run to the store," and they go outside, and they walk.

I'm not saying we shouldn't walk and all sit on our butts.

Hmm, well, I don't know. I'm sure in many other countries they aren't consciously thinking Oooh, I gotta go workout! (though thanks Americanization, this is probably changing in some places), but I think they probably still think about the importance of exercise. They just don't see exercise as consisting of the same activities we do (i.e., slogging it out on a treadmill and lifting weights).

marygrace wrote:

leVictoria wrote: No, I'm not saying this as an excuse. I'm just saying that the fact that us Americans even have to THINK about it makes it a chore! Those other countries don't think to themselves "...and now I will go get my daily exercise in..." they just say, "Hey, looks like we're out of bread and eggs. I'll go run to the store," and they go outside, and they walk.

I'm not saying we shouldn't walk and all sit on our butts.

Hmm, well, I don't know. I'm sure in many other countries they aren't consciously thinking Oooh, I gotta go workout! (though thanks Americanization, this is probably changing in some places), but I think they probably still think about the importance of exercise. They just don't see exercise as consisting of the same activities we do (i.e., slogging it out on a treadmill and lifting weights).

I'm not sure they even think about it in terms of exercise. It's just what they do -- like we jump in the car to go get bread and eggs. They don't think about driving; we don't think about walking. And most still don't have all the conveniences we have. There's a lot more movement in their daily lives.