Why I Quit Counting Steps

Why I Quit Counting Steps

I’ve worn or carried a pedometer for somewhere near 14 years. My first one was the Oregon Scientific PE316CA. It was a pendulum counter with a belt clip on the back. I loved it! I could get my step count, distance, and the time. I monitored what I ate, got 10,000 steps most days and I lost weight.

Oregon Scientific Pedometer

Eventually I lost that one. Since then I’ve owned more pedometers than I can even remember, but the last pedometer I carried was the PED USA PE-771 Tri-Axis Multi-Function Pocket Pedometer. It’s a great unit. If you want a pedometer, I recommend this one for accuracy, size, and ease of use. You can get it on Amazon.

Recently I quit counting steps, and here’s why:

• In all these years, I have lost weight, gained weight, lost, gained, while recording millions of steps on my trustee pedometer. Thus, I have finally determined that lack of steps is not the cause of my weight problem.

For a few days I would reach for my pedometer in the morning; but then, remembering my decision to stop carrying, I would recoil. And throughout the day, I would feel my pocket, looking for the pedometer. In those moments I realized how much mental energy was wasted in carrying that little tracker. Always in the back of my mind was this question: What is my step count?

Sure. In the beginning a step counter can help a person realize just how sedentary or active they are. But to go on and on, counting steps indefinitely, produces diminishing value. I no longer reach for my pedometer, and I don’t miss it.

I am not a health professional. This is my personal experience, and not intended as guidance for others.

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