Over 60? Here’s how walking faster can help unlock healthy ageing and increase independence

News
By last updated

Increase your cadence to reap the benefits

a photo of an older woman walking
(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Fast walking is one of the best ways to exercise as you get older, because it can help you get fitter and healthier without putting too much impact on your joints and muscles.

A new study led by researchers at the University of Chicago Medicine has also found that increasing your walking cadence — the number of steps you take per minute — by 14 can help reduce frailty and increase physical function in older adults.

What does the research say?

There were 102 participants in the study that was designed to see if increasing walking cadence could improve physical independence in older adults deemed as frail or at risk of becoming frail.

Frailty is a medical condition that makes older adults more vulnerable in general, increasing the risk of falls and decreasing independence.

The study found that those who increased their cadence by 14 steps per minute — to around 100 steps per minute — experienced clear improvements to their physical function, and were able to walk further in a standardized test.

How to put these findings into practice

A couple go for a morning walk through a sunny park.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

If you’re concerned about frailty then you can put this advice into practice by first determining your normal walking cadence.

You can measure this manually by counting the steps you take per minute, or by using an app or fitness tracker that monitors cadence.

Once you have your baseline increase your cadence to a level that feels brisk but still comfortable.

To help you maintain a faster cadence you can use an app or fitness tracker, or a simple metronome app set to the right beats per minute.

Any kind of walking can help you get fitter though, especially if you include some faster intervals in your walks, and you don’t have to push to exactly 14 extra steps per minute if that’s proving too challenging.

Follow Tom's Guide on Google News to get our up-to-date news, how-tos, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.

More from Tom's Guide

Nick Harris-Fry
Nick Harris-Fry
Senior Writer

Nick Harris-Fry is an experienced health and fitness journalist, writing professionally since 2012. He spent nine years working on the Coach magazine and website before moving to the fitness team at Tom’s Guide in 2024. Nick is a keen runner and also the founder of YouTube channel The Run Testers, which specialises in reviewing running shoes, watches, headphones and other gear.


Nick ran his first marathon in 2016 and became obsessed with the sport. He now has PBs of 2hr 25min for the marathon and 15min 30sec for 5K. Nick is also a qualified Run Leader in the UK.


Nick is an established expert in the fitness area and along with writing for many publications, including Live Science, Expert Reviews, Wareable, Coach and Get Sweat Go, he has been quoted on The Guardian and The Independent.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.