Manpoke

Since learning about the 10,000 steps idea, I’ve been curious about how many steps I take in a day. So I bought a pedometer. They’re called manpokei in Japanese (that’s mahn-poe-kay, not man-poke) which literally means “10,000 step measure.”
According to what I’ve read, most Americans take between 900 and 3000 steps per day. That seems so low.
I made an effort today, and managed to walk 14,235 steps. I went to the grocery store (1500 steps) and then walked to work (8,000 steps), to class (1000 steps), and home from the train station (1200 steps). The rest just sort of filled themselves in somehow. 7469 steps (63 minutes) of today’s walking was shikkari or steady walking–good aerobic exercise.
Today was an exception, but even on my relaxed days, I’m taking over 3,000 steps. How could anyone possibly walk only 900 steps in a day??