How do people average 50000 steps per day?

[Emmeli]

Who has the time to average 50,000 steps a day!? How can this be possible?

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity

[Espionage]

I was working for UPS 2 yrs ago.  Walking/jogging was a constant part of my daily job. All. Day. Long.  I was use to being on my feet, loading trucks, running back and forth to the conveyor belt.  I achieved the 50,000 step badge once.  Only once.  And let me just say, that even with alllllll the time and hours and days and steps that I was conditioned to......50,000 steps a day is NOT normal. Not even "advanced".  It is absurd.  And you literally have to be focused all day long solely on attaining steps.  It's not something someone can do with a few workouts. My feet were throbbing, and they hurt the next day.  And like I said, I was conditioned, and easily had 20,000 steps already in before most people were starting their work day (I started loading trucks at 2:30 a.m.)  If someone is "averaging" 50,000 steps a day, they must not have a job, and live on the treadmill will the sole purpose of racking up steps.  Have fun with that....

[Captain-Canuck]

"Absurd"? Maybe, practical or productive in the long run...or walk...not so much IMHO.

50,000 steps=38.1 Kms. So, almost a marathon...each and every day? I don't see ultra-marathoners signing up for that sort of grueling regimen, but hey, each to his/her own.

The bottom line is if it makes you happy, and doesn't hurt others, git at 'er! Have fun 🙂

The only reference to that kind of experience is from my dad, who as a young and ultra-fit Scottish soldier, serving in an infantry battalion, in Northern India (now Pakistan) being required on one occasion, walk 52km in one day. It was to deliver an urgent message. No horses/mules or motor vehicles for his company...back in 1936. Just really bad terrain. He was chosen because he was the fittest...and trust me, they were ALL fitter compared to the foot soldier of 2018. He told me he just soaked his feet, ate, and slept for 2 days after that ordeal. So, no, I don't see any "value-added" reason for walking 38kms a day, if it is a personal goal GO for it :-))

[Bullitt2518]

My husband works for UPS - he's a driver. 50,000 steps a day was very common for him when he had a Fitbit. 10-12 hours a day of walking through the truck, walking back and forth to houses and businesses, up and down the steps for the truck, up and down steps to houses, in office buildings & apartment complexes... he's literally on the move the entire day. His average was about 35-40k a day over a 7 day week (he was lucky if he hit 10k on a weekend) 15-20 miles and 150 or more flights of stairs. He actually killed 2 Fitbits just from the wear & tear from everyday use. So, it is completely possible to get that number of steps just while you're working.  

[Espionage]

That's exactly what I'm saying. You have to have a job (like UPS) where your work requires you to do this much walking.  50,000 steps a day on average for a person who doesn't work at that type of job is stretching it.  You definitely validated my point.  Most people have a daily schedule where they don't walk NEAR as much as a UPS employee, so if hubby was AVERAGING 35,000 to 40,000....then 50,000 for the average person is a ridiculous goal.  You said it, it's completely possible to get that many steps while your working. As long as you're working at UPS! lol.  Heck with wearing out the FitBit, I went thru $200.00 work boots like water.

Well I guess if you look at it that way! I suppose it's not absurd if one is running marathons several times a week.  Cuz that's what I found absurd about it.  The word "average" was used in the original post.  "Average" 50,000 steps a day.  50,000 definitely can be done (a marathon).  I did it, and hurt the next day (even tho I was condition by my job at UPS to walk and be more active that most) But even extremely fit Marathoners have to re-cooperate their bodies, and take down time in between. In my eyes, a weekly average of 50,000 steps a day is absurd. Someone is insane! lol  You'd literally have to do nothing else but walk/run.

Moderator edit: merged reply

[AmySterling]

I hadn't heard of the fake Boston Marathon "winner" before - what a story! Here's my 2 cents to this conversation: I understand why she wanted to cheat and get credit for winning the Marathon and the article I read about her pointed out she'd cheated to qualify too by taking the subway and telling people she'd twisted her ankle. I don't get (as a brand new Fitbit Christmas gift user) why someone would want to cheat on their steps. This is a device for our own health, not getting a prize from a marathon race.  I guess maybe they do it for attention if they somehow do it?

[Bullitt2518]

Oh... he wears out his boots as well! Used to go through 4 or 5 pairs a year. We found some really good ones and now he's only going through two a year! LOL

[brunoray]

I do not understand why people would cheat either; there may be people who can occasionally do this many steps; but what matters is what WE do as individuals for out health.  Four miles a day is a LOT and that's only 10k..

[MihaiMVP]

@Maltie 

I think many in the group feel the same - hence the incentive to take a lot of steps.

[Conker]

It baffles me,I have a very physical job on my feet all day and usually get between 16000-18000 steps.

Hi, just curious about how many steps your watch reads per run, my 5k runs are under 5000 steps, which I complete in under 25 mins so just estimating an hours running would get me under 10000 steps so even if I ran  30 k I’d be nowhere near some of the steps people are getting. Maybe my watch settings are wrong and I’m doing more than it’s saying.

Moderator edit: merged reply

[Dsedy]

I never even thought about it

[Corney]

Conker: I average 6,000 steps per hour so it would take me 8 hours and 20
minutes of continuous walking 7 days per week to average 50,000 a day. It
should not baffle you or anyone else. TRUTH IS DEAD IS AMERICA!

[shipo]

@Conker, your settings are spot on; most faster runners can easily rack up 10,000 steps in an hour of running.

[MihaiMVP]

It would be nice to also have badges for reaching a certain number of steps in a week. Like 100 k, 200 k, 300 k and so on ... A mailman with a FitBit will probably enjoy the extra trophies :).

[Greekron]

ITS A BUG. FitBit says I average 50,341 steps per day and that is not even close.  I average around 8000 per day and only hit 30,000 one time due to my 1/2 marathon run then walking around town all day.  

[Patrick]

@Greekronyour Fitbit is most likely telling you that you average 50K per week.

[AmySterling]

I keep following this topic and my goal is 70K + per WEEK. I can see how a mail carrier would get lots and lots of steps and I have talked to people who work in big stores who routinely do 20K+ per day. But our mail carrier is also a little bit "chunky" so steps isn't the whole equation!

[Greekron]

Your analysis would make sense Patrick; however, the FitBit app on my phone under Account - View Your Profile, clearly reads “Averages 50,341 steps per day” - which is clearly inaccurate.

[Patrick]

Walking doesn't appear to help me. When I was averaging 10 to 13K a day my weight did not change.

Recently I dropped to walking less. averaging 7K a day, and lost 7 pounds. I don't know what else changed.

Works for some; does not for me.

[burns_erin]

Fascinating. 5 years and this just keeps coming up. For the more recent who aren't digging through the pages, I seem to remember that others have done the math. I can't remember what exact values they used. But for myself I can quite easily get 100 steps per minute. That means 8.3 hours of sustained walking. When I was competing in leap4life I would hit 50,000-60,000 steps in a day. This required me to walk 30 minutes of every hour I was awake. It was doable and not even unpleasant if it was my goal. So I don't really see the issue. Some people like to take hiking seriously.

[Patrick]

@Greekron 

--the FitBit app on my phone under Account - View Your Profile, clearly reads “Averages 50,341 steps per day”--

Yeah, occasionally mine does that as well. I've heard it happens to others.

I generally just take a read from the computer and do not bother with the phone.

EDIT; but as a rule when it is incorrect like that? Everyone seems to discover the error is that it is posting a full week of activity instead of an average day.