Did you know an average Singaporean walks about 5,674 steps a day. That is only about half of the 10,000 steps recommended by health experts.

According to research, taking 10,000 steps a day brings about numerous health benefits, such as lowering blood pressure and blood cholesterol level, and improving glucose control, which in turn helps to reduce the risk of diabetes and other chronic diseases.

For many of us who are used to a sedentary lifestyle, taking 10,000 steps might seem like a lot, but it really is doable. All we need to do is to make little changes to our daily routine – read on to find out how!

Walk home from the MRT station/ bus interchange

Walkhome instead of taking your usual feeder bus from the MRT station or bus interchange. Take your time towalkhome and take in the surroundings of your neighbourhood – it really is quite therapeutic. You can do without the peak hour crowd and unpredictable bus timings anyway.

Take a longer route

For those of you who already have the habit ofwalking home, good for you! Consider taking an alternative, longer route to spend more time on your feet. This is a good opportunity to explore otherwise unnoticed corners of your neighbourhood.

Take the stairs instead of the lift/ escalator

The oldest trick in the book of ‘Sneaking In a Workout Into Your Daily Routine‘. Walking up one flight of stairs is roughly the same as taking 38 steps on flat ground. If you work on the 29th floor like all of us here at MyNiceHome, and there are 2 flights of stairs between every storey, taking the stairs back to the office after lunch would add about 2,204 steps to your daily step count.

Walk and talk

For those with busy schedules, walking and talking is one of the easiest ways to clock more steps without having to portion out extra time for it. Have your coffee and conversation to-go instead of sitting around in a cafe. Go on a little stroll around the neighbourhood for date nights with your partner. Check out the progress of your BTO flat while you are at it. Multi-tasking at its best!

Run errands during lunch time

Make use of your 1-hour lunch break to run as many errands as you need to. Power-walk your way to the nearest post office/ library/ money changer/ bank/ supermarket but do not forget to grab lunch on your way back too.