I Doubled My Steps on Vacation and My Feet Felt Great. Here's How.

It is possible to push yourself physically without increasing your risk for injury. But there's a catch -- knowing the right movement dials for you.

I doubled my daily step count on vacation.

At home, I average around 8,500 steps a day. On this trip, I averaged closer to 17,000 (~7.5-8 miles).

That’s a 100% increase.

The 10% rule

The general rule of thumb for avoiding overuse injuries is to increase training volume gradually—often no more than about 10% per week.

(It's also best to increase by 10% per week under optimal circumstances.)

My frequency and time on my feet increased substantially and suddenly. That’s not what I typically recommend for exercise.

In my 15 years of being a physical therapist, I doubt that three months has passed without seeing a patient injured from a sudden increase in walking (miles / steps).

Avoiding Injury with Movement Dials

So why didn’t I end up with plantar fasciitis, a cranky knee, or some other overuse injury?

Because I didn’t increase everything.

And I decreased some things.

The intensity of my walking mostly dropped, and I only did a gym routine twice in 15 days (normally I would have aimed for 6-7 sessions).

Intensity is a movement dial, a way that you can modify almost any type of exercise.

How I Did It

At home, I’m a fast walker. I walk around the city with a destination in mind. I also use the treadmill at an incline, walking quickly for 30–45 minutes at a time.

If I had not been pushing myself to walk quickly and intensely in my daily life, I likely could not have increased my steps with so much success.

While walking on vacation, I stop whenever I want. I slow down to take pictures. I wander. I’m not carrying a laptop or groceries around. The heaviest thing in my bag is usually a water bottle.

My heart rate data from the trip reflects that difference: a lot more time on my feet, but fewer sustained peaks.

So yes, I doubled my steps and maybe tripled the time on my feet.

But I didn’t double the stress of every walk.

I took rests as needed. I modified.

Leave Black and White Thinking in the Past

When it comes to avoiding injuries from exercise, it is vital to understand how nearly all movement can -- and sometimes should --be dialed up or down.

The good news? There are multiple dials.

Intensity, frequency, time, and the type of exercise or movement you choose are all dials.

Reflecting on factors like your training up until that point, the amount of rest you have or will have, stress level, protein intake, quality of sleep can help you choose the appropriate movement dial for that moment.

Black and white approaches to exercise are more likely to cause harm, injuries and setbacks.

A few examples of black and white thinking:

- Aiming to always hit 10,000 daily steps for the sake of the number.

- Thinking if you missed the group fitness class, you won't get a workout in that day.

- Thinking if you go for a run it has to be at least [insert pace / mileage / length of time].

(I wrote a New Year's blog post about all or nothing thinking about exercise that adds to this topic https://wellilo.com/blog/all-o...)

Relying on immediate feedback from your body can also cause harm.

It is completely possible to move or exercise or double your daily steps, having no idea the pain you will feel the following day.

"Listen to your body" is a beloved phrase (in the yoga world especially). And it is essential wisdom. The immediate feedback from scanning and paying attention to your physical well being is imperitive.

But it is not enough. Some injuries show up later.

Endorphins from movement are excellent at masking symptoms.

So dialing up a movement - such as steps - also relies on an honest (and kind) awareness of your physical conditioning up to that moment.

The better conditioned you are, the more dials you will have to turn.

Sometimes the answer isn’t “Just Do It.”

Sometimes the answer to how to increase exercise or return to exercise is to think creatively to do what makes sense for your body under those particular circumstances.

You can aim high, push yourself and still stay as safe as possible with the right framework for movement.

This Sunday, Aug. 30th, I will be going over these ideas and more, in depth in my webinar: Exercise Without Injury. It's free. You are invited! There will be a replay link sent out. Click the image below to register.

(The only way to get the replay is to register).

This blog post was originally published Aug. 26, 2026.

Categories: : Feet, Physical Therapy