积跬步至千里,国外计步器引发的健身潮

Working out at the gym might not be enough to stay fit if you spend much of the rest of the day sitting down.

如果一天到晚老是坐着，光靠在健身房里做做运动，恐怕是难以保持良好体型的。

Americans are more sedentary than ever, government surveys show. That is a problem even among people who exercise regularly.

利用日常活动充分运动官方调查显示，美国人久坐不动的情况比以往更加普遍。哪怕是经常锻炼的人，也存在着这样的问题。

An increasingly popular way people are trying to coax more exercise into their lives is by tracking their movements using a bevy of small electronic devices from companies like Fitbit Inc., Jawbone and Nike. Some devices are pedometers, tracking steps. More sophisticated gadgets, known as accelerometers, measure the rate at which a person moves and convert this into calories expended.

现在越来越流行的一种做法是，用Fitbit Inc.、Jawbone、耐克(Nike)等公司出产的一些小型电子设备跟踪记录自己的运动量，以此鼓励自己多做运动。这其中，既包括记录步数的计步器，也包括一些更复杂的仪器，如加速计，它可以测量走路的速度，并计算出对应的卡路里消耗量。

'We've been very focused on exercise and making sure you get your half-an-hour a day of moderate and vigorous physical activity. But what we've not focused on so much is how you spend the rest of your day,' says Bonnie Spring, director of the Center for Behavior and Health at Northwestern University.

西北大学(Northwestern University)行为与健康中心(Center for Behavior and Health)主任邦尼•斯普林(Bonnie Spring)说：“一直以来我们都非常关注运动，确保自己每天能有那么半个小时做一些强度适中或较大的运动。但我们没有注意到的是，每天其余的时间我们都在干些什么。”

Americans on average take 5,117 steps a day, according to a 2010 study published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. A good daily goal, by contrast, is 10,000 steps, according to the American Heart Association and other experts. Research studies have found that such a regimen results in modest weight loss, improved glucose tolerance in people at risk of developing diabetes and other benefits, says David Bassett Jr., co-author of the 2010 study and a professor in the department of kinesiology, recreation and sport studies at the University of Tennessee.

《运动与锻炼中的医学与科学》(Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise)杂志2010年刊登的一篇研究论文指出，美国人平均每天走5117步。而美国心脏协会(American Heart Association)及一些专家表示，每天的理想走路步数应为10,000步。上述2010年研究论文的作者之一、田纳西大学(University of Tennessee)运动机能学、休闲与体育研究系教授小戴维•巴西特(David Bassett Jr.)称，研究发现，每天的步行数达到理想水平，可以帮助糖尿病患病风险高的人群适当减轻体重、改善葡萄糖耐受性，此外还有其他一些好处。

Walking a mile roughly equals 2,000 steps. Climbing a flight of stairs─roughly 10 steps─is equivalent to taking 38 steps on level ground, Dr. Bassett says.

巴西特博士指出，步行一英里（约1.6公里）需要走大约2000步。爬一层楼梯（大约10级）相当于在平地行走38步。

A study that followed more than 240,000 adults over 8½ years found that watching a large amount of television was associated with a higher risk of death, including from cardiovascular disease─even for participants who reported seven or more hours a week of moderate-to-vigorous exercise. The research, published in 2017 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, used TV viewing and overall sitting time as a proxy for sedentary behavior.

一项在八年半的时间内持续跟踪了24万多名成年人的研究发现，看电视时间长的人因罹患心血管等疾病而死亡的风险更高，哪怕是自称一周进行七个小时或更长时间中高强度锻炼的人也不例外。此项研究采用看电视时间和总计坐着的时间作为评估久坐行为的指标，研究结果于2017年发表在《美国临床营养学杂志》(American Journal of Clinical Nutrition)上。

'Our results suggest that exercise alone may not be enough to eliminate risks associated with too much sitting,' says Charles Matthews, lead author of the study and an investigator with the National Institutes of Health. He says estimates from government surveys indicate that people's sedentary time outside of work has increased by about 40% between 1965 and 2009.

该研究论文的第一作者、美国国立卫生研究院(National Institutes of Health)的研究员查尔斯•马修斯(Charles Matthews)说：“我们的研究结果表明，运动本身不足以消除因久坐而导致的（各种健康）风险。”他称，官方调查所得估计数据显示，从1965年到2009年，人们在工作之外的久坐时间上升了大约40%。

People who live in Colorado, where obesity rates are relatively low, take an average of 6,500 steps a day, a 2005 study found. By contrast, residents of Tennessee and Arkansas, where the obesity rates are much higher, take an average of 4,500 steps a day. 'We don't know that it's cause and effect obviously, but the states with lower obesity rates have the higher number of steps,' says James Hill, executive director of the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center at the University of Colorado.

2005年的一项研究发现，在肥胖率相对较低的科罗拉多州，人们平均每天步行6500步。而在肥胖率相对高得多的田纳西州和阿肯色州，人们日均步行4500步。科罗拉多大学(University of Colorado)安秀兹健康中心(Anschutz Health and Wellness Center)执行主任詹姆斯•希尔(James Hill)说：“我们不清楚这其中有什么明显的因果关系，但肥胖率较低州的居民日均步行数确实较高。”

All the movements a person does during the day─from getting up to close the garage to rocking in a chair─are non-scheduled physical activities that can make a big difference in terms of daily calorie expenditure by causing a person's metabolism to increase, says Gabriel Koepp, program manager of the Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT) laboratory at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. While walking is the main NEAT activity, other things can include washing the dishes instead of using a dish washer, making bread dough by hand rather than using a mixer, and even chewing gum, he says.

明尼苏达州罗切斯特(Rochester)的梅奥诊所(Mayo Clinic)有一个非运动性日常活动热效应(Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis, 简称NEAT)实验室，该实验室的项目经理加布里埃尔•克普(Gabriel Koepp)表示，人们的日常起居活动（从起床到结束一天的工作回家坐到椅子上）不属于既定的体育锻炼，但同样能够加速新陈代谢，因此对每日卡路里的消耗量也会产生巨大影响。他说，除了走路这种主要的NEAT活动，我们可以做的事情还包括不用洗碗机自己动手洗碗、不用和面器自己动手和面，甚至嚼口香糖（也有帮助）。

Health experts say people still need moderate to vigorous exercise, which has been shown to reduce risks of cardiovascular disease and other disorders. Dr. Bassett says a doctoral student in his department conducted a study in which 58 people watching 90 minutes of television marched in place in front of the TV during commercial breaks. 'They increased their steps by about 3,000 per day just by doing this during commercials,' says Dr. Bassett. 'That's equivalent to about 30 minutes of walking.' The study was published last year in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.

健康专家表示，人们还是需要进行一些适度或高强度的运动，事实表明这种运动有助于降低罹患心血管和其他疾病的风险。巴西特博士称，他们系一个博士生进行过一项研究，要求58名参与者看电视90分钟，中间遇到广告时就进行原地踏步运动。巴西特博士说：“通过在广告时间这么做，他们每天的步行数增加了3000步左右。这相当于大约30分钟的走路时间了。”这项研究成果已于去年发表在《国际行为营养与体力活动期刊》(International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity)上。

Pedometers have been shown, at least in the short term, to motivate some people to increase their daily activity if they chart progress toward a goal in a diary. More sophisticated accelerometers, with wireless synchronization, effectively log your progress for you.

实践表明，计步器至少可以在短期内鼓励一些人增加日常活动量，只要他们能用计步器记录自己在锻炼上每天所取得的进步。更复杂、带无线同步功能的加速计可以有效地记录使用者每天的进步情况。

In a 2007 analysis of several studies, people who used pedometers increased the number of steps taken by an average 2,491 a day and boosted overall physical activity by about 27% from previous levels, says Dena Bravata, a senior science affiliate at the Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research at Stanford University.

斯坦福大学(Stanford University)基础护理与效果研究中心(Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research)的高级研究员德娜•布拉瓦塔(Dena Bravata)介绍说，2007年一个基于几项研究的分析显示，使用计步器者可日均增加步行数2491步，总体活动量较使用计步器前水平提高约27%。

Participants' body-mass index, a common measure of healthy weight, and blood pressure also declined, she says. The analysis, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, involved a total of 2,767 participants who were followed on average for 18 weeks.

她说，参与者的体质指数(BMI，一个衡量人体体重是否健康的常用指标)和血压也均有所下降。该分析发表于《美国医学会杂志》(Journal of the American Medical Association)，共涉及2767位参与者，他们平均被跟踪研究的时长为18周。

Eric Lent, of Atlanta, says starting to use an accelerometer made him 'aware of how much time I was sitting in my office.' The device─after he lost his Nike FuelBand, he replaced it with a Jawbone UP─motivates him to regularly work out and to be less sedentary through the day, says the 44-year-old chief marketing officer for an entertainment company.

亚特兰大的埃里克•伦特(Eric Lent)表示，开始使用加速计令他“意识到自己坐在办公室的时间有多久”。他先是使用的Nike FuelBand，丢失后换成了Jawbone UP。这种仪器鼓励他定期锻炼，减少一天当中坐着的时间。伦特今年44岁，在一家娱乐公司担任首席营销长。

Mr. Lent says he makes a point of parking in the farthest spot from the entrance to work. And he sets the Jawbone UP to vibrate if he is idle for 30 minutes or more. He aims to do 10,000 steps each day.

伦特表示，他会把车停在离办公楼入口最远的车位上。他还把Jawbone UP设置成“偷懒”30分钟以上就发出振动提醒的状态。伦特的目标是每天行走10,000步。

Carrie Mundy, a stay-at-home mom and photographer in San Diego, bought her Fitbit in February. She says she is regularly hitting 15,000 steps a day and has already lost 4½ pounds. To accumulate more steps, the 36-year-old says she walks down every aisle in the grocery store and makes extra trips back and forth when folding and putting away her laundry.

圣地亚哥的卡丽•芒迪(Carrie Mundy)现年36岁，是一个居家妈妈和摄影师，她在2月份买了个Fitbit。她说自己每天定量走15,000步，已经减掉了4.5磅（约两公斤）的体重。她说，为了提高自己的步行数，她会把杂货店里的每条过道都走上一遍，还会在洗衣机前边收拾衣服边在原地颠步走。

Ms. Mundy says her Fitbit also motivates her to get out and walk. 'I'm constantly chasing these two people who I haven't caught up to,' she says, referring to two friends whose total number of steps she can view on her device's display screen.

芒迪说，Fitbit还促使她更多地出去走动。她说她可以在自己的Fitbit显示屏上看到两个朋友的步行数，“我一直在追赶这两个我还没有赶上的家伙”。

'It's like a videogame. I have such a competitive personality, so I'm going to beat these people today.'

她说：“这就像玩视频游戏。我这个人非常好强，今天我就要打败他们。”