39 miles per day?

[fishlovindog]

I belong to a few of the activity groups and i'm averaging about 15-16k steps per day which is about 8 miles. In some of the groups I have seen averages of up to 80k steps per day or 39 miles per day. Is that even possible? That's a marathon and a half every single day. Any thoughts? Are people actually able to achieve that?

[Dominique · Accepted solution]

It doesn’t make any sense to me, but as I said the other day, why not ignore these people and focus on improving our own health and fitness, regardless of what others are doing?

[fishlovindog]

I agree with you Dominique. I was more curious as to how it would be possible for them to get their Fitbit register so many steps. From reading other feeds it would seem that they may be attaching it to a bike while cycling, If they are actually hitting that many steps, good for them, if they are cheating, then they're only cheating themselves.

[awood08]

I have a Fitbit friend who does not have any transportation and walks every day to work and on his lunch break walks to get lunch. He averages 30+ miles a day.

[Dominique]

Assuming your friends walks at 4 miles per hour (which would qualify as brisk walking), he would need 7.5 hours to commute. That’s almost like a full-day job. Not saying it can’t be done, but if he has a 9-to-5 job, he would need to leave home at 5.15am (provided he doesn’t need to take a shower after this long walk)  and would be back from work at 8.45pm. Doesn’t leave much time for other activities.

[Dominique]

OK, if he has a very active job (waiter, works at an Amazon warehouse etc.) as opposed to a deskjob, the commuting may be reduced to "only" 2 x 2.5 hours, but that’s still very challenging.

[fishlovindog]

I agree with you Dominique.  When I walk the track at the gym, I'm walking at a 4mph pace and as you said, that's a pretty fast pace.  It would be hard to maintain that for hours on end, day in and day out.

[awood08]

I have not witnessed this, just from what information he has given me about himself and his average steps per day. I agree with both of you, it's seems a little over the top for that much distance in a day

[lazybumswife]

Is it possible that they are using one of those desk type treadmills and actually walking all day while working?

[fishlovindog]

Yea, I suppose it's possible, but I think it would take a toll on your hips and feet if you were doing that 7 days a week.

[Heybales · Accepted solution]

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@fishlovindog wrote:
Yea, I suppose it's possible, but I think it would take a toll on your hips and feet if you were doing that 7 days a week.

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And I've never seen anyone doing that walk desk at fast pace like the discussed 4 mph, too much motion.

I think someone tweaked their stride length to longer than reality to get their longer distance given.

Then just take shorter but more frequent steps.

[SebringDon · Accepted solution]

I think it might be fun to belong to an activity group, but I've taken a look at several, and I don't believe the leaderboards on most of them at all. Some that are set up by companies for their employees look legit, but most of the others are simply ridiculous. It's kept me from bothering to join any of the groups. I wonder how many others get discouraged for the same reason and just don't bother to participate?

[FitinNWPA · Accepted solution]

I quit a group where the top 2 competitors averaged over 30 miles per day, 7 days per week....every month. Over 1.5 million steps per month. I have a family & a job. At my age with my obligations, millions of steps per month is not possible. That group didn't inspire me. I found 3 other groups where the members had a believable number of steps per month. These 3 groups I have found inspiring since I have a chance of keeping up with the leaders.

[Dominique · Accepted solution]

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@FitinNWPA wrote:
I quit a group where the top 2 competitors averaged over 30 miles per day, 7 days per week....every month. Over 1.5 million steps per month.

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I normally accept all friend requests, but friends who consistently have 400k+ steps per week get automatically kicked out of my list, for the same precise reason.

[SunsetRunner]

I've joined several groups that have a few "high steppers". I just ignore those people and watch my position in the group. For most groups my goal is to be in the top 10% overall.

[SunsetRunner]

which is the main reason why I initially got a Zip and then the One

so that I can hang it off the collar or belt

if worn on the wrist of a person who is constantly moving their hand/arm, for example a cook, will continue to register as steps, maybe even active steps

[Stinkyfish97]

Is 39 miles per day even healthy? You can excersise to much. Your body needs time to repair itself. Its not always about working harder but working smarter. My knees start aching after I get to around 15k steps. It may be that I am carrying too much excess weight, it may be that I need new shoes. I do know is repetative tasks even walking or running can lead to arthritus or wear on your joints. Therefore I have not yet found a good reason to step up my weekly goals. I try to stick around 80k a week. Again its not how hard you work but how smart you work. 

I choose walking because its lower impact that running. I choose to walk in the grass even though there is a paved path. Again the grass is like extra cushion. At first it is tougher on your muscles to walk in the grass but after a week youll start noticing just how hard other surfaces you walk on are, like a bike path, road or sidewalk. Swimming is probably the ultimate low impact. 

But 39 miles a day? I just do not see the point of putting my body through that kind of strain daily. More power to you if you can do that. I just cannot justify it. 

[breakingblue · Accepted solution]

My husband is an active hiker and server. His top day was 30 miles and that included a 10 hour hike. I don't think its generally possible to get 30 miles a day EVERY day.

[SunsetRunner]

39 miles is alot of walking.  I'm planning to walk from South Beach to Sunny Isles which is 24 miles and will take 8 hours.   

[SunsetRunner]

The stride length may have been set wrong or not at all

I ignore the distance and only the amount of steps