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The Independent
09-06-2025
- Health
- The Independent
I tried the walking method that offers ‘10 times the benefits' of walking 10,000 steps per day
Walking is an accessible form of movement with impressive health-boosting credentials; I think there is enough research available to safely make that statement. Treating 10,000 steps per day as the gold standard for a healthy lifestyle is far more contentious. The number stems from a 1960s Japanese marketing campaign for a pedometer called the Manpo-Kei, or '10,000 steps metre'. It's a nice round number, but it's not one identified by science as the holy grail for health – a 2023 study by the University of Granada suggests that, while more is better, 8,000 is sufficient 'to significantly reduce the risk of premature death'. Walking 10,000 steps also takes a fair old while. Even at a decent nick, this task is likely to take you upwards of 90 minutes each day, making it a struggle for busy folks. Recently, an alternative walking protocol – colloquially termed 'Japanese walking' due to its country of origin – has stepped into the spotlight online. It takes just 30 minutes per day, with fitness coach and content creator Eugene Teo claiming it offers '10 times the benefits' of walking 10,000 steps per day in his viral video above. As a fitness writer, I've covered walking extensively, finding it's one of the best ways to help people of all fitness levels introduce more movement into their regular routine. So, intrigued, I endeavoured to try 'Japanese walking' and find out if the impressive health claims around it held water. How to try the 'Japanese walking' method Complete the sequence below five times without any breaks: Three minutes of walking at a low intensity (40 per cent peak aerobic capacity, or a relaxed pace) Three minutes of walking at a high intensity (70 per cent peak aerobic capacity, or a brisk pace) Benefits of Japanese walking The 'Japanese walking' protocol comes from a study published in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings journal in 2007. It was designed to test whether high-intensity interval walking training (IWT) can offer greater benefits than moderate-intensity continuous walking training, in terms of improving thigh muscle strength, peak aerobic capacity (the maximum amount of oxygen you can take in and use during exercise) and blood pressure. Over five months, 60 men and 186 women with an average age of 63 were divided into three groups; no walking training, IWT and CWT (continuous walking training). The CWT group was instructed to walk at 50 per cent of their peak aerobic capacity (a fairly slow pace) and take 8,000 or more steps per day at least four times per week. The IWT group was told to complete the protocol above, four or more times per week. Among participants who met these conditions, those in the IWT group saw a 13 per cent increase in isometric knee flexion, a 17 per cent increase in isometric knee flexion, and an eight per cent increase in peak aerobic capacity for walking. This was 'significantly greater than the increases observed in the moderate-intensity continuous walking training group'. The research also found a greater reduction in resting systolic blood pressure in the IWT group, despite the fact they didn't spend as much time walking each week. The conclusion states: 'high-intensity interval walking may protect against age-associated increases in blood pressure and decreases in thigh muscle strength and peak aerobic capacity.' What happened when I tried Japanese walking I don't have a full science lab set up at home; what I do have is two legs, a Garmin watch and a lot of walking experience, so I decided to put these to good use. During my Monday lunch break, I took my dog for a 30-minute walk as normal. Then, at 1pm the following day, I tried the 'Japanese walking' method on the same looped route, setting my Garmin Vivoactive to record both sessions and taking note of any subjective changes I felt. My usual 30-minute walk saw me accrue nearly 3,000 steps, covering 2.12km at an average speed of 14min 10sec per kilometre. My heart rate averaged 85bpm, remaining fairly constant throughout, and I burned an estimated 157 calories. As anyone who has owned a dog might expect, there was a good deal of stopping and starting to inspect particularly interesting trees and bollards, and I defaulted to a fairly casual pace amid a busy work day. For the Japanese walking protocol, my numbers looked a bit different, with my fast pace falling just below 120 steps per minute and my slow pace a few shy of 100 steps per minute. I travelled significantly further, covering 2.94km and 3,500 steps at an average speed of 10min 12sec per kilometre. My average heart rate came out very similar (86bpm) but there were noticeable peaks (104bpm) and troughs in line with the high- and low-speed intervals. My estimated calorie burn was also significantly higher: 211. Benefits of the Japanese walking method The idea that walking faster, or sprinkling more intensity into your exercise, holds greater benefits is nothing new. Specialist in walking for health, Dr Elroy Aguiar, is an assistant professor at the University of Alabama's department of kinesiology. He was the lead author on a 2024 paper published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, which correlated as little as one minute of high-intensity activity with improved health outcomes. 'One of the really interesting findings from our paper was that, if you look at people's highest one minute of activity across each day, averaged across the monitoring period, that was a very strong signal for whether they had one or more metabolic syndrome risk factors [elevated waist circumference, high triglycerides, low HDL (or 'good' cholesterol), high blood pressure and high blood sugar] present,' he tells me. Another series of studies he worked on, featured in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, pointed to the fact that 'if you walk at a cadence of about 100 steps per minute, that's equivalent to what's called 'moderate-intensity', and all of the research in this area suggests that most of the benefits [of walking] accumulate at a moderate or higher intensity'. Beyond this, completing the Japanese walking method four times per week leaves you half-an-hour away from the World Health Organisation's 'global recommendations of at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week'. Add a couple of short full-body strength training sessions into the mix and you have a decent minimalist workout plan for beginners. Potential drawbacks of the Japanese Walking method All of the information above paints the Japanese walking method in a favourable light – as it should, with the protocol delivering impressive results in a non-intimidating time-span. However, if we are questioning the claim that it is 'better' than walking 10,000 steps a day, there are a few further areas to consider. Firstly, Dr Aguiar's 2024 paper supported the idea that the 'best' walking method for reducing metabolic risk factors involves a combination of high volume (number of steps) and high intensity (walking speed). 'Accumulating a high volume of walking throughout the day [8,000-plus steps], then focussing on at least 30 minutes of faster walking or jogging, would be a way to move the metrics in a positive direction and lower your metrics for each of the [metabolic syndrome] risk factors,' he says. I racked up a little over 3,500 steps when trying the Japanese Walking method – less than half of the 8,000 daily steps research has repeatedly linked to many favourable health outcomes, and short of the 5,000 mark often viewed as the threshold for a sedentary lifestyle. Using this method as part, rather than all, of your daily steps could be a better approach for achieving your health goals. However, if you only have 30 minutes per day free, it still offers dramatically more benefits than not moving at all, and improved return on investment over a regular 30-minute walk. Another area where the Japanese walking method loses out to walking 10,000 steps per day is movement regularity. While the former involves a concentrated 30-minute dose of activity, the latter can be spread throughout the day, encouraging you to abandon your office chair and sofa more often. A 10-year study of 8,000 people, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, found that those replaced 30 minutes of daily sitting with light activity had a 17 per cent lower risk of dying in that period. This even applied if they accrued these 30 minutes across short intervals throughout the day – hence why your smartwatch is constantly sending you reminders to stand up and move. Regular movement can also help maintain mobility and reduce stiffness in our joints and muscles. 'When we're dealing with an adaptation from stillness, movement is the answer, so any movement is better than just being still,' movement mechanics expert and The Training Stimulus founder Ash Grossmann summarises. The final factor to consider is enjoyment. By adding a rigid framework, Japanese walking ensures intensity. However, it also meant I was unable to stop and chat to people in the park or appreciate my surroundings to the same extent. For me, this lowered the stress-busting potential of my walk, sacrificing some of the usual mental health benefits of walking for physical ones. The Japanese walking method: the verdict In my time writing about health and fitness, the net positive effect of regular movement has been one of the most striking common denominators. For those looking for a minimum effective dose: any movement will do you a lot of good, particularly if your starting point is a sedentary lifestyle. But if you can fit one or two quick full-body strength training sessions, regular aerobic activity (like walking) and an occasional dash of more intense exercise into each week, it will stand you in very good stead. Walking is among the most accessible forms of exercise there is, lowering the barrier to entry for exercise for billions of people, which is why I'm always keen to promote it. However, in the modern world, even finding time for a quick walk can be tricky for particularly busy individuals. The Japanese walking method provides a time-savvy way to enjoy many of the benefits of a greater volume of daily walking. Sure, you could enjoy higher-intensity exercise in any number of other forms, from cycling to a HIIT workout, but walking remains the most efficient – you don't even need a change of clothes. So should you try it? Yes, especially if you're short on time and looking for a way to squeeze health-boosting movement into your day. And should you stick with it? This depends. If you enjoy this framework, or find it's something you can stick to with a good degree of regularity, that's the ticket to a sustainable movement habit and the many health benefits that come from it. If not, look for an alternative form of moderate- to high-intensity exercise that you find fun, and commit to this instead – consistency is the key to long-term results.
Medscape
13-05-2025
- Health
- Medscape
Eating in Any 8-Hour Window Daily Yields Durable Weight Loss
Restricting eating to an 8-hour window for 3 months improved weight loss in patients with overweight or obesity for at least a year, regardless of the timing of the eating window, according to preliminary results of a randomized controlled trial. The strategy, called time-restricted eating (TRE), limits when — but not what — an individual eats on a daily basis. 'A key point of this study is that the timing of the 8-hour eating window may not be as critical as previously thought, suggesting flexibility in implementation,' Jonatan Ruiz, PhD, of the University of Granada, Granada, Spain, and the Spanish Biomedical Research Centre in Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition in Madrid, Spain, told Medscape Medical News . The study, presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) 2025 in Málaga, Spain, is an extension of an earlier randomized controlled trial that showed benefits of TRE at three different schedules over the short term (12-week follow-up). 'Low-Cost and Sustainable' Ruiz and colleagues conducted the 12-month follow-up in 99 adults with overweight or obesity (50% women; average age, 49 years; average BMI, 32) from Granada. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four groups for 12 weeks: Habitual eating window of ≥ 12 hours; early TRE (8-hour eating window starting before 10:00 AM); late TRE (8-hour eating window starting after 1 PM); or self-selected TRE (allowing participants to choose their own 8-hour eating window). All groups also took part in a Mediterranean diet education program to encourage healthy eating. Researchers measured body weight and waist and hip circumferences at the start of the trial, after the 12-week intervention, and 12 months after the intervention ended. After the intervention, the habitual eating group experienced an average weight loss of –1.4 kg (–1.5%). All TRE groups achieved significantly greater weight loss: An average of –4.2 kg (–4.5%) in the early TRE group, –3.1 kg (–3.5%) in the late group, and –3.8 kg (–3.9%) in the self-selected group. In addition, the habitual eating group had a lower waist circumference (–1.1 cm) and hip circumference (–1.4 cm) after 12 weeks of intervention. In comparison, the early TRE group experienced significantly greater reductions in waist and hip circumferences (average, –4.1 and –4.6 cm, respectively). The late TRE group also achieved a significant reduction in waist circumference (average, –4.1 cm), but there was no significant reduction in hip circumference (average, –3.2 cm). The self-selected TRE group also achieved reductions in waist and hip circumferences (average, –3.7 and –3.6 cm, respectively), although the reductions were not significant. One possible explanation for the less robust response in the self-selected group, Ruiz said, 'is that allowing participants to choose their own eating window may have led to greater variability in timing, potentially reducing the consistency of the fasting window. This is just a hypothesis we plan to explore further in future studies.' At 12 months after the intervention ended, preliminary results reveal that the habitual eating group had an average body weight increase of 0.4 kg (+0.5%). By contrast, both the early TRE and the late TRE groups maintained significantly greater weight loss (average, –2.1% [−2.2 kg] and –2.0% [−2.0 kg], respectively). The self-selected TRE group also maintained greater body weight loss than the habitual eating group (average, –0.7% [−0.7 kg]), although the change was not statistically significant. Furthermore, the habitual eating group showed an increase in waist circumference of +1.8 cm at 12 months and a slight increase of +0.03 cm in hip circumference. In comparison, both waist and hip circumferences remained significantly lower in the late TRE group (average, –5.6 and –3.4 cm, respectively) than the habitual eating group. And, although not statistically significant, the early TRE group and self-selected TRE group also showed lower values in waist (average, –0.5 and –1.3 cm, respectively) and hip circumferences (average, –1.0 and –1.8 cm, respectively). 'This makes TRE a potentially attractive, low-cost, and sustainable strategy to support weight management — particularly for patients who struggle with strict calorie counting or rigid diet plans,' Ruiz said. 'However, longer and larger trials are needed to confirm these findings across different populations.' The team's next steps include combining TRE with exercise, he noted. 'We are currently finalizing the last measurements, and we are eager to see the outcomes.' Expert Reactions 'One general note of caution on TRE protocols is that altering the opportunities to eat and the potential for meal skipping may compromise the nutritional adequacy of the diet,' Adam Collins, PhD, associate professor of nutrition, University of Surrey, Surrey, England, said in expert commentary in a press release on the presentation. 'This may be an issue for those whose diet was marginally nutritionally replete to start with,' he said. 'To this end, we are midway through a study exploring the impact of TRE specifically on eating behavior and nutritional adequacy of people's diets.' Regarding the finding that the self-selected group didn't manage to keep weight off as successfully, he noted, 'It is possible that following the more regimented early and late TRE created more sustainable changes in eating behavior and dietary habits that remained after the intervention.' Maria Chondronikola, PhD, principal investigator and lead for Human Nutrition, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, England, commented, 'It is important to note this study did not include a caloric restriction group, and therefore, its results cannot be directly compared with other weight loss strategies that involve intentional caloric restriction.' 'Furthermore, additional information on participant adherence to the prescribed eating windows is crucial,' she said. 'Understanding how well participants adhered to the timing of their meals, the level of their caloric intake, and whether TRE changed any obesity-related metabolic outcomes would provide valuable insight into the true effectiveness of TRE.' Ruiz told Medscape Medical News that 'adherence was high (85%-88%)' and that 'no serious adverse events were reported.' Ruiz and Collins declared no relevant interests. Chondronikola is currently leading an intervention study on the effects of TRE on cardiometabolic health in the United Kingdom and globally.
The Independent
10-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
The best time to fast if you want to lose weight, according to the experts
Restricting your eating to an eight-hour window each day could be a key to long-term weight loss, according to new research. A study presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Malaga found that overweight and obese individuals who adopted this time-restricted eating pattern successfully lost weight and maintained their reduced weight over time. While the research is yet to be peer-reviewed, the findings suggest that this strategy could be an effective tool for those struggling with weight management. Lead author Dr Alba Camacho-Cardenosa, from the University of Granada in Spain, said: 'Our study found that restricting the eating window to eight hours at any time of the day for three months can result in significant weight loss for at least a year. 'These benefits can be attributed to the 16-hour fasting window rather than the time of eating.' A previous randomised controlled trial by the same researchers published in the journal Nature Medicine found that restricting eating to eight hours per day decreased body weight and improved cardiometabolic health. Their latest study looked at the long-term effects over 12 months for 99 people. Individuals were split into four groups for 12 weeks – eating in a 12-hour or more window; restricting eating to an eight-hour window starting before 10am; restricting eating to an eight-hour window starting after 1pm; and allowing people to select their own eight-hour window. All groups were given tips on a Mediterranean diet to help them eat healthier. The researchers measured body weight, waist and hip circumferences at the start of the trial, after the 12-week plan, and 12 months later. The study found that, while those eating over 12 hours or longer lost an average of 1.4kg, the time-restricted groups lost more, at around 3kg to 4kg. Time-restricted groups also had greater reductions in waist and hip circumferences of several centimetres, and had maintained greater weight loss after 12 months. At the one-year mark, those eating for 12 hours or more had an average body weight increase of 0.4kg, compared with around a 2kg weight loss in the early and late time restricted groups, the study concluded. Those who chose their own pattern also maintained some weight loss although this was not statistically significant. Around 85% to 88% of people restricting their eating window also found they stuck to the plan. Dr Jonatan Ruiz, study co-ordinator from the University of Granada, said: 'This kind of intermittent fasting appears feasible for adults with overweight or obesity who wish to have a relatively simple way of losing and maintaining weight loss that is less tedious and more time efficient compared with daily calorie counting, but it warrants further investigations in larger and longer-term studies.' Dr Maria Chondronikola, principal investigator and lead for human nutrition at University of Cambridge Metabolic Research Laboratories, said further studies were needed. 'Understanding how well participants adhered to the timing of their meals, the level of their caloric intake and whether time-restricted eating changed any obesity-related metabolic outcomes would provide valuable insight into the true effectiveness of time-restricted eating,' she said.
