If you struggle with your fitness or staying active, getting out and getting those steps in can really be challenging. After all, 10,000 steps in miles is about 5 miles for the average walker, and sometimes getting that distance in can prove challenging.
Learning how to walk 10,000 steps a day efficiently means incorporating lots of little lifestyle tweaks to help you get on track. You can break up your mileage into more manageable chunks, actively try to incorporate more steps into your daily life, track it all on one of the best fitness trackers, and even buddy up with someone to make the process more enjoyable.
A couple of precise tech purchases could also massively elevate your step count and your overall fitness. With the Black Friday deals event just around the corner, I reckon that anyone struggling with motivation or the logistics of walking could seriously boost their well-being with just two key pieces of relatively cheap equipment.
In 2024, the benefits of walking 10,000 steps every day are well documented. Study after study indicates that walking 10,000 steps a day can help lower anxiety, depression, anger, fatigue, confusion, and total mood distress, can reduce the risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease, and can help significantly lower body weight, BMI, body fat, and waist circumference.
But thanks to Black Friday, you don’t need to worry about splashing out hundreds of dollars or pounds per year on a gym membership, or buying a top-of-the-line treadmill for your basement. Here’s how you can start walking 10,000 steps with nothing but a cheap walking pad and a humble fitness tracker.
Track your steps
Counting your steps is going to be impossible without some specialized equipment, and while your smartphone might have a step counter, even a cheap fitness tracker is going to give you much better insight into your overall activity levels and your fitness as a result.
Without spending a great deal, in the UK you can pick up a Huawei Band 9, or a Xiaomi Smart Band 9 for less than £40. The latter is our top cheap fitness tracker pick thanks to its nifty screen, accurate sensors, and comprehensive data. If you’ve got a little bit more to spend, the Google Fitbit Inspire 3 is a solid choice at around £85, but there’s no need to spend more than £50. Save your money and use it for the second gadget we’ll come to.
You won’t find Huawei in the US, but you will find Xiaomi’s Smart Band 9 for $51 on Amazon, or the older Smart Band 8 for just $45. In the US, the aforementioned Fitbit Inspire 3 is also a lot more affordable, discounted to just $69.
Of course, you could always push the boat out with an Apple Watch or a Samsung Galaxy alternative, or even a great Garmin like the Forerunner 55, but if you’re just looking for a cheap band to count steps and keep you motivated, there’s no reason to spend more than $100.
Unlock the power of the walking pad
As the owner and beneficiary of a great walking pad, and as TechRadar’s fitness and wearables staff writer, I’m a fervent advocate of the humble walking pad as one of the best fitness tools out there. Cheaper and smaller than treadmills, they can often be folded away for storage and provide the perfect walking platform to help you get your steps in at home. Also known as under-desk treadmills, you can use the best under-desk treadmills to do almost anything, be it attending work calls or meetings, watching Netflix, making or taking phone calls, listening to podcasts, and more.
You’ll find most great walking pads are less than $400/£300, and plenty are on sale around Black Friday for less. Walking pads can help you avoid inclement weather or dark winter nights, cutting out some of the key concerns that often get in the way of our best-laid fitness plans.
In the UK, we’ve had our eye on the Kitopa walking pad. Normally £189, it’s just £129 right now and has fallen as low as £99 in recent weeks.
In the US, this Cursor Fitness pad comes in as low as $85, or this highly rated SupeRun is just $125 instead of its usual $289 list price.
Choosing your walking pad wisely matters a bit more than the fitness tracker, simply because it’s a bigger cost commitment. So if you’re shopping around, make sure you look out for important metrics like the weight of the unit itself, the weight limit, speeds, and extra features such as a remote control.
You can also find more picks in our best under-desk treadmills roundup, where our top budget pick will set you back around $150 / £150, or you can splash out for a more premium model.
Regardless, Black Friday is absolutely a great time to pick up some incredible fitness tech and give you a head start on those January fitness resolutions.
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stephen.warwick@futurenet.com (Stephen Warwick)
