积跬步至千里,国外计步器引发的健身潮

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。”