Ottawa Public Library-Physical Activity-Steps Per Day-Councillor-Pedometer

Councillors Track their Steps with Ottawa Public Library Pedometers

Every day, beginning with our first steps as a child, we walk. But do you know that for adults ages 18 to 64 it is recommended that you reach 10,000 steps per day? Ottawa Public Health (OPH) and the Ottawa Public Library (OPL) invite you to use a pedometer to track your steps!To mark the end of Physical Activity Month, OPH staff, Board of Health members Katherine Hobbs and Mathieu Fleury, and Councillors and OPL Board trustees Jan Harder and Shad Qadri are wearing pedometers all week. They will be tweeting their step counts and trying to reach the 10,000 a day goal. Follow #ottawawalks and #ottawamarche to see how they’re doing!Walking is a free, accessible and low impact form of physical activity that can be incorporated throughout the day. To increase your daily steps:

• Walk to work or school
• Use the stairs instead of the elevator
• Take a lunch time walk
• Walk to the movies or local grocery store

Ottawa Public Library offers a pedometer lending program at all of its branches. With a library card, residents can borrow a pedometer for three-week periods to count their steps and watch their walking increase over time.  Every step counts – put your best foot forward and try to reach the daily step goal for your age. For more information on the pedometer lending program and to view pedometer availability, please visit biblioottawalibrary.ca.Wearing a pedometer will show the number of steps taken each day and it will help to compare your current walking activity level with what is recommended for your age. Daily step goals include:

• Children (5 to 11 years): 12,000 to 16,000 steps per day
• Youth (12 to 17 years): 11,000 to 12,000 steps per day
• Adults (18 to 64 years): 10,000 steps per day
• Older adults (65+): 6,000 to 7,000 steps per day

Follow Councillor Harder @BarrhavenJan, Councillor Qadri @ShadQadri, Councillor Hobbs @Katherine_Hobbs and Councillor Fleury @MatheiuFleury and use #ottawawalks and #ottawamarche to participate and reach your goal! Let us know what you’re doing to increase your daily steps! read more..

source:ottawa.ca