Nurses with pedometers - How far do you walk?

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Specializes in critical care.

How many steps do you walk in a busy shift and a slow shift? I just put a pedometer app in my phone. I was unsure about its accuracy, so I counted steps with it in my pocket and it's pretty good! I've had two slower shifts at 8300 steps and a moderately busy one at 9600.

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Average is 11000 steps. One really bad day I hit 14500.

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My FitBit says I average about 6 miles during my 12 hour night shift. :)

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According to my Fitbit, I usually average 5000 steps before midnight and 4-5000 after, so my average is 9-10,000 steps per 12 hour shift.

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I had a pedometer on my old iPod nano, and when that died, I cycled through a few apps on my phone (I have stuck with accupedo the longest thus far). I've been using a pedometer for about six years altogether. I like numbers and charts and data.

I think my highest 12-hour clinical shift was 16,000+ steps (several thousand of those steps may have been due to being a lost and confused student, though).

By comparison, my busier 6-hour shifts waiting tables were regularly in the 13,000 to 14,000 range, and the half-marathons I have run were nearly 29,000 steps (though that included the short-distance walk from the subway station to get to the starting line).

For the past two months, I've also been using the Human activity tracker app, which measures in terms of minutes active. I like it, and can't wait to use it at work (during this time of job hunting, there's a lot of sitting at the computer), and it's good encouragement -- I know that going to the gym will boost that number by 60-90 minutes!

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Specializes in CVICU CCRN.

I'm typically in the 9,000 - 14,500 range. Some of that includes taking stairs to and from the parking structure, etc, but a lot of it is just from my regular 8.5 hour shift in the OR. I'm considering getting a fitbit that clips to my clothing.... This is just based on the pedometer app on my phone. I can't wear anything from elbows to fingertips so I'm looking for a good one I can wear on my bra or pants. Last night was particularly busy... 8500 steps in just over 6 hours. My legs are like lead today!

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

Depends on the surgical schedule for the day. Some days, I may make several trips to transfer patients directly to ICU. Other days, all my patients go to PACU. On the higher end, I've hit 25,000 (once- normal high is around 15,000) and the lower end is around 7500. Add in all my walking to and from the parking garage and walking my dog, I average between 10-20,000 steps per day. Use a Fitbit One and love it.

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Specializes in Pediatric.

Around 8,000 on a mid to moderate 8 hour shift. Around 12,000-15,000 on a 16 hour shift. :)

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Specializes in NICU, ICU, PICU, Academia.

Slightly OT: There was a fitbit steps challenge going on at work. One clever soul took his fitbit to Walmart, and had the guy put it in the paint shaker machine. 35K in 2 minutes!

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
Slightly OT: There was a fitbit steps challenge going on at work. One clever soul took his fitbit to Walmart, and had the guy put it in the paint shaker machine. 35K in 2 minutes!

People get creative to cheat at anything, don't they?

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Specializes in NICU, ICU, PICU, Academia.
People get creative to cheat at anything, don't they?

PLUS- this guy would be lucky to put 350 steps on it in 12 hours!

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Yep, miles we walk. The kicker is.. this is not considered "exercise" by our bodies. It is the average metabolic expenditure we have achieved.

Walk on fellow nurses.

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