Oh, good!

We can kill another maxim that has not a drop of scientific proof behind it.

The first one we killed was the 10,000 hours of practice to make one an expert.  While Malcolm Gladwell can tell you a good story, he plays fast and loose with his facts.  I hit the roof when my son told me about this rule because it made zero sense to me.

Even Anders Ericsson had problems with this citation.  (Unfortunately, Dr. Ericsson [Florida State University] died yesterday, at the age of 72.)  Which is a real problem since it was his research that was the foundation for Gladwell’s averral.  (Ericsson iwas, indeed, pretty sure the hourly requirement is 7400 to become a proficient violinist.  But, 7400 lacks the cache of 10,000!)

But, the real issue is how GOOD that practice is. We all know folks (who, me?) who literally phoned in their practice.  Sure, I theoretically “spent 1 hour practicing my accordion today, mom…”  but, I was also reading a book while making the accordion squawk.

The nail in the coffin to that fake 10,000 hour rule was the research of Drs. Brooke McNamara, David Moreau, and David Hambrick.  Their analysis of the prowess of chess masters, musicians, and sports athletes demonstrated that practice was not the instrument of their success. (It was related to the success of some 26% for chess masters, 21% for those into music, and 18% for sports prowess.)

Now, it’s time to bury the other 10,000.  Which is perfect timing, since I’m betting most of us have NOT managed to get those 10,000 steps during our quarantine periods.

Let us not forget that this 10,000 step rule was invented by the Japanese firm (Yamasa Clock)  that wanted to sell pedometers!  And, their pedometer’s name was Manpo-kei- which means 10,000 steps meter.

Since then countless fitness fanatics adopted this fake rule.  From fitness monitors to smart phones, this malarkey has become universal.

Drs. I-Min Lee and Julie Buring (Harvard), along with Drs. Eric Shiroma (National Institute of Aging), Masamitsu Kamada (University of Tokyo), David Bassett (Tennessee), Charles Matthews(National Cancer Institute) published their results in JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association, Internal Medicine).   Their study involved some 16741 women, ranging in age form 62 to 101, whose activity was monitored for about 10 h a day for 4-7 days (2011 through 2015).

It turns out 4400 steps a day reduces mortality by 41% (compared to 2700 steps).  Increasing the step count to 7500 yielded a 65% reduction. And, here’s the key fact- we Americans already beat that lower threshold, averaging some 4800 steps a day. Japanese total some 7K steps, and the Amish amass 14K to 18 a day.

 

Dr. Lee’s cohorts continued the research.   Bassett, Shiroma, and Matthews added Drs. Pedro Saint-Maurice and  Richard Troiano (National Cancer Institute), Susan Carlson and Janet Fulton (Centers for Disease Control) for their new publication in JAMA.   This study involved adults of age 40 and above. Sure, 10000 steps was good- but walking less was also good.  This data used the 4000 steps a day as a reference point- which found that mortality was reduced by 51% at 8000 steps a day.

The key point is their research found the data I have presented often here is more critical.  We need 150 to 300 minutes a week of moderate exercise. Or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous exercise.  (I’ve also presented data that the vigorous exercise rule works for weekend warriors- no need to have the time spread out over the week.)

Now, I think you should all consider a new 10000 rule.  That you can achieve eternal happiness, simply by remitting $10000 to me.  😆

Of course, that has the same scientific basis as these other two 10000 rules.

 

 

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