An analysis of older women shows that taking 4,000 steps a day on just one or two days each week is linked to a 26% lower risk of death from any cause and a 27% lower risk of heart disease. Researchers including Harvard University colleagues led the study, which was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. The study followed 13,547 women without heart disease or cancer at the start, with an average age around 72, for almost 11 years.

Experts said the total number of daily steps matters more than how many days per week the target is hit, and there is no universal best walking pattern. For those who reached 4,000 steps on three days per week, the benefits were greater: about a 40% reduction in all-cause mortality and a 27% lower risk of heart disease.

When participants walked 5,000 to 7,000 steps, further declines appeared, but gains were smaller. In this range, death risk fell by about 32%, while cardiovascular death risk plateaued at around 16%. Over the follow-up period, 1,765 women died and 781 developed heart disease. The researchers concluded that higher daily step counts, rather than daily patterns, are linked to better health outcomes.