Overview
- Women averaging at least 4,000 steps on one or two days a week had a 26% lower risk of death and a 27% lower risk of cardiovascular disease than those who never reached that level.
- Hitting 4,000 steps on three or more days was associated with about a 40% lower risk of death, while added gains at 5,000–7,000 steps were modest and cardiovascular benefits plateaued.
- When analyses accounted for average daily step volume, links tied to the number of days meeting a threshold weakened, indicating overall step count drove the benefits.
- The peer-reviewed research, published Oct. 21 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, used one week of accelerometer data collected in 2011–2015 and followed outcomes through 2024.
- Authors urge considering step-count metrics in future guidelines but caution that the study is observational, measured activity for only one week, and focused on older, mostly white U.S. women.