A new study suggests that how fast a person typically walks may be linked to how long they live. Researchers tracked 4,067 adults in the United Kingdom, averaging about 69 years old, to examine whether habitual walking pace was associated with mortality risk over time. The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.
Participants completed a short walking test at their normal speed and also wore a wrist activity tracker for nine days to measure how fast they walked during everyday life. Over nearly 12 years of follow-up, those who walked faster in both the formal test and in daily life had a lower risk of death, even after researchers adjusted for other health and lifestyle factors. A total of 739 participants died during the study period.
Beth Templin, a board-certified geriatric clinical specialist and CEO of HouseFit Physical Therapy & Fitness in St. Louis, who was not involved in the research, said walking speed reflects how well multiple body systems are functioning together.
“In physical therapy, we call walking speed the ‘sixth vital sign’ because it’s a snapshot of how well many body systems are working together,” Templin told Fox News Digital.
Templin explained that brisk walking requires strong legs, a healthy heart and lungs, good balance, and a nervous system capable of coordinating all of it. A decline in walking speed, she said, can be an early warning sign that one of those systems is starting to falter.
“When walking speed starts to slip, it’s often an early warning sign that one of those systems is declining, sometimes before anything shows up on a lab test,” Templin said.
Building speed, not just steps
Templin cautioned that simply logging more steps isn’t the same as improving walking speed or fitness.
“Build the engine, not just the habit,” Templin advised. “Most people try to walk more, but speed comes from strength and balance.”
She suggested older adults work on leg strength through exercises such as standing up from a chair without using their hands and doing heel raises while holding onto a counter. She also recommended interval-style walking: after warming up, walking briskly for one minute, slowing down for two minutes, and repeating the cycle while gradually increasing the brisk intervals.
An association, not a guarantee
Experts stressed that the study shows a correlation, not proof that picking up the pace will directly extend someone’s life.
“This study shows an association, not proof that walking faster by itself adds years,” Templin said.
The researchers also noted limitations: participants in the study tended to be healthier than the broader population, and there is currently no standardized method for measuring everyday walking pace using wrist activity trackers. Further research is needed to determine whether the results hold true for other groups of people.
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