Dear LPG,

Have you noticed that, just like mobile phones, smart watches do so much more than just tell the time these days.  I can remember the first time my daughter introduced me to her smart-watch.  It was a few years ago now and we were having a cup of tea to prepare us for the second half of an exercise experience which involved discovering more interesting things to shop for, when her phone went, but instead of the usual rummage around in her back pocket or bag, she imitated James Bond and, after pressing a button on her watch and with her left wrist raised to her mouth, calmly chatted with my son for a while.  I thought I was realising a scene from a spy movie I once saw, but no, and it was not long before her wrist was thrust toward my chin and I was saying hello to her brother too.

I have seen the adverts on the telly, but I still found the reality quite astonishing as she told me what else she could do with her watch. The thing that interested me most was the step-counting aspect of the thing.

I am not sure just how many British 70-year-olds have such a device, but that was the day I was persuaded that knowing how many steps I take each day would not be a bad idea. Rather than a complete smart watch. I opted for a Fitbit wrist-device that measurers and keeps records of your pulse rate, works out how long you spend sleeping each day and can tell you quite a bit about how much exercise you are getting. 

I read somewhere on the internet that the average 70-year-old should aim to take about 6000 steps a day, but we set mine at 4000, which is quite enough for me to aim for, and I have to admit to checking and making the extra effort to get there from time to time though if I don’t, I don’t.

But for those who have one there is another advantage.   I only take mine off once a day for charging and even the cheaper ones are waterproof these days, and this said, it doesn’t take long for those who have one to work out that you don’t have to actually step to get them to register. It occurs to me that while the covid-19 arguments rage about who should or should not wear a mask, I have found the importance of reminding people about washing your hands has fallen by the current-affairs wayside. 

Perhaps I am a bit of an aggressive hand washer, but I have discovered that my hand-washing action has added incentive.  I recently discovered that, each time I wash my hands the action adds about 35 steps to my step count.

  So I did a bit of maths; every day I can add… let’s see…

Mandatory movements…

Before each of the three meals a day                                        =    105

After each of my three meals a day                                             =    105

After my average daily five trips to the loo                                =    175

After a bit of gardening                                                                 =      35

Before and after dealing with my pet dog’s food                    =      70

Before cleaning my teeth at night                                               =     35

Optional extras…

Before and after putting your Covid-19 face mask on             =     70

If you sneeze and need to use a tissue, after the event          =     35

And the missed steps…

They all need charging – just think about all those steps you lose if you, like me, put yours on charge while you are in the shower!

So, I have worked out that if I wash my hands appropriately every day I can achieve at least 525 steps doing that, and each day I manage to achieve, at the very least, 1/8^th of my daily ‘steppage’ goal without even having to move my legs.

A bit of a cheat I concede but… Incentive or what! 

KC, Orpington

LPG found some links which might be of interest…

(►►►)   (►►►)    (►►►)    (►►►)