Emerging Research Shows 4,000 Steps per Week Can Lower Mortality Risk

Walking is one of the simplest everyday actions. However, as age advances, physical activity decreases, often replaced by a sedentary lifestyle, with deleterious effects on health. In this context, current recommendations – such as that of 10,000 steps daily – may seem unrealistic, even discouraging for part of the elderly population. A study by researchers at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, challenges this arbitrary standard.

By analyzing the walking habits of more than 13,500 women aged 62 and over, it demonstrates that a much more accessible goal — reaching 4,000 steps per day once or twice a week — is already enough to significantly reduce the risk of mortality and cardiovascular disease. An observation which calls into question and could transform prevention policies.

A new study on the link between walking and longevity in elderly women

The study focused on a public that is often poorly represented in studies on physical activity. Namely: women aged over 60. The objective was to identify a daily walking threshold that was truly effective in reducing the risks of mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD). But without aiming for difficult-to-achieve goals.

Data were drawn from the Women's Health Study, a US observational cohort initially designed to study chronic disease prevention. Between 2011 and 2015, 13,547 women, whose average age was 71.8 years, wore an accelerometer for 7 consecutive days. This is a scientifically validated device for measuring steps. The participants were all free of cancer or cardiovascular disease at the start of follow-up.

Mortality and CVD cases were then observed for a median period of 10.9 years, until the end of 2024. Over this period, 1,765 deaths and 781 cases of cardiovascular disease were recorded. These figures were used as a basis for analyzing correlations with weekly walking levels.

This methodological choice allowed the authors to produce a solid base of comparable data. And above all, data controlled for variables such as diet, smoking, body mass index, and general health. This rigor then gives weight to the conclusions of the study.

4000 steps are already enough to significantly reduce the risk of death and cardiovascular disease

One of the most striking results of the study concerns the threshold of 4000 steps per day, considered here as an effective minimum. Even when this threshold was reached only one or two days per week, the researchers observed a 26% reduction in the risk of death from all causes and a 27% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease.

To arrive at these results, the team used a statistical tool called the Cox model, which allows us to estimate the probability that an event (such as death or illness) will occur over time. But while taking into account other influential elements, called confounding factors (for example age, diet or smoking). The indicator used is the hazard ratio (HR): a value of 1 means no effect, while a number less than 1 indicates a reduction in risk. Here, an HR of 0.74 for mortality means a 26% reduction, and an HR of 0.73 for cardiovascular disease corresponds to a 27% reduction.

When women reached this same threshold at least three days a week, the reduction in mortality risk reached 40%. While the reduction in cardiovascular risk remained stable at 27%.

Important fact: these benefits appeared regardless of walking pace, duration or time of day. So there is no need to walk quickly or for a long time every day. This observation calls into question the widely disseminated recommendation of 10,000 steps daily, which is often unsuitable for older people. As researcher Jane Kirby points out at Guardianwhat matters above all is “the total volume of steps, even if it is distributed irregularly throughout the week”.

A revealing dose-response relationship and a plateau effect for certain pathologies

Study data highlight a curvilinear dose-response relationship between step count and reduced mortality risk. In other words, the more you walk, the more the risk decreases, but in a non-linear way. The biggest gains occur at the first thresholds, then the curve flattens.

Thus, women reaching 5,000 to 7,000 steps per day, several days per week, see their risk of death decrease further, but more modestly. From 7000 daily steps, the gain in terms of longevity is around 32% (compared to those who never walk as much). But the cardiovascular benefit reaches a ceiling of around 16%, without significant progression beyond that.

These data suggest that for cardiovascular diseases, a low threshold of 4000 to 5000 steps seems sufficient to optimize protection. On the other hand, for all-cause mortality, the beneficial effects continue to increase up to around 7000 steps per day.

The researchers also carried out so-called sensitivity analyses, excluding deaths that occurred in the first two years of follow-up, or women who reported poor initial health. The results remained consistent, reinforcing the reliability of the conclusions. An additional adjustment for the average number of daily steps showed that the total volume of walking explains the benefits, more than the frequency.

This curvilinear model is crucial for the development of public health recommendations based on realistic data. It makes it possible to identify a point of diminishing returns beyond which walking more no longer provides notable cardiovascular benefits.

Towards new, more inclusive and applicable recommendations for older people

The implications of this study are major for public health policies. By highlighting the protective effects of a low step threshold, it offers a realistic and motivating approach for older people, who are often excluded from overly demanding recommendations. Researchers are calling for step-based benchmarks to be included in future official guidelines, expected in the United States in 2028.

As Dr. I-Min Lee explains, “ data shows that there is no ideal model for walking. What matters is achieving sufficient overall volume, no matter how it is distributed throughout the week “. This means that efforts concentrated over one or two days are as valid as those spread out daily.

This flexibility remains essential to encourage physical activity in a context of loss of autonomy, chronic pain or lack of time. Especially since the measurements are easy to follow. A simple pedometer or smartphone now allows you to count your steps precisely.

Dr Tara Narula, interviewed by ABC Newsemphasizes the importance of integrating walking into daily life: “ Taking the stairs, walking during phone calls, or adopting a dog are all concrete ways to move more without constraint “.

In summary, this study lays the foundations for a paradigm shift in the promotion of physical activity among seniors. Rather than aiming for arbitrary objectives, it is now a matter of promoting each step as an accessible, measurable and effective act of prevention.

Source: Hamaya R., et al., “Association between frequency of meeting daily step thresholds and all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease in older women“. British Journal of Sports Medicine Published Online First: 21 October 2025. doi: 10.1136/bjsports-2025-110311