Walking is a magical way to transform health. If incorporated with milestones, it does wonders. Recently, a golden 20000 steps a day challenge has been accepted by fitness freaks who interestingly accept challenges and willingly pave their way to better health and enhanced consistency.
But, many wonder how to calculate 20k steps to miles, and how long it takes to achieve this. This article simplifies the calculations and answers queries with detailed explanations.
The Basics of Steps and Miles
Before proceeding with the calculations, it’s important to understand a few fundamental measurements. Besides, a step is a basic unit of walking that consists of one full stride. A stride starts from one foot to the other. The average step length of an individual is 2.5 feet, but this might depend on stride length and individual height.
Whereas, a mile is a standardized unit of distance and one mile is equivalent to 5,280 feet. To calculate how many miles are in a specific number of steps, one needs to divide the total number of steps by the average step length.
Calculating 20k Steps to Miles
The following formula to calculate how many miles is 20000 steps are:
Miles = (Steps / Steps per Mile)
Since it is found that one mile is approximately 5,280 feet, now it’s easier to calculate how many steps are in a mile:
Steps per Mile = 5,280 feet (one mile) / 2.5 feet (average step length) = 2,112 steps
Now, this information can be used to find out how many miles are in 20,000 steps:
Miles = 20,000 steps / 2,112 steps per mile ≈ 9.47 miles.
However, if someone is considering setting a goal of taking 20000 steps daily, then they have to walk approximately 9.47 miles.
20k Steps to Miles by Walking – Based on Height and Speed
From the table below, one can understand how height impacts miles and kilometers:
| Height | Miles | KMs |
| 4’10” | 7.6 | 12.2 |
| 5’0” | 8 | 12.8 |
| 6’0” | 9.5 | 15.2 |
| 4’11” | 7.9 | 12.6 |
| 5’1” | 8.1 | 13 |
| 6’1” | 9.7 | 15.5 |
| 5’2” | 8.2 | 13.1 |
| 6’2” | 9.8 | 15.7 |
| 5’3” | 8.3 | 13.3 |
| 6’3” | 10 | 16 |
| 5’4” | 8.5 | 13.6 |
| 5’5” | 8.6 | 13.8 |
| 6’5” | 10.1 | 16.2 |
| 5’6” | 8.7 | 13.9 |
| 6’6” | 10.5 | 16.8 |
| 5’7” | 8.8 | 14.1 |
| 5’8” | 9 | 14.4 |
| 5’9” | 9.1 | 14.6 |
| 5’10” | 9.2 | 14.7 |
| 5’11” | 9.4 | 15 |
Walking 20000 steps at different speeds requires:
- Walking at 4 mph – 2.5 hours to cover 20,000 steps
- Walking at 3 mph – 3.5 hours to cover 20,000 steps
- Walking at 3.5 mph – 4 hours to cover 20,000 steps
- Walking at 2.5 mph – 4.5 hours to cover 20,000 steps
20k Steps to Miles by Running – Based on Height
There are a lot of differences between walking and running. The pacing and strides required for walking and running are different. So, how long it takes to hit 20,000 steps based on height, let’s find out:
| Height | 12 min/mile | 10 min/mile | 8 min/mile | 6 min/mile |
| 5’0” | 10 miles16.1 KMs | 11.7 miles18.8 KMs | 14 miles22.5 KMs | 17.6 miles28.3 KMs |
| 6’0” | 10.8 miles17.5 KMs | 12.9 miles20.7 KMs | 15.8 miles25.2 KMs | 20.5 miles33.0 KMs |
| 5’1” | 10.1 miles16.2 KMs | 11.8 miles18.9 KMs | 14.1 miles22.8 KMs | 17.8 miles28.6 KMs |
| 6’1” | 10.9 miles17.6 KMs | 13 miles20.9 KMs | 16 miles25.8 KMs | 20.8 miles33.5 KMs |
| 5’2” | 10.1 miles16.3 KMs | 11.8 miles19.1 KMs | 14.3 miles23 KMs | 18.03 miles19.01 KMs |
| 6’2” | 11 miles17.7 KMs | 13.1 miles21.1 KMs | 16.2 miles26 KMs | 21.1 miles33.9 KMs |
| 5’3” | 10.2 miles16.4 KMs | 11.9 miles19.2 KMs | 14.4miles16 KMs | 18.2 miles29.3 KMs |
| 6’3” | 11.1miles17.9 KMs | 13.2 miles21.3 KMs | 16.3 miles26.3 KMs | 21.4 miles34.4 KMs |
| 5’4” | 10.2 miles16.5 KMs | 12.0 miles19.4 KMs | 14.6 miles23.5 KMs | 18.4 miles29.7 KMs |
| 6’4” | 11.2 miles18 KMs | 13.3 miles21.5 KMs | 16.5 miles26.6 KMs | 21.7 miles34.9 KMs |
| 5’5” | 10.3 miles16.6 KMs | 12.1 miles19.5 KMs | 14.7 miles23.7 KMs | 18.7 miles30.1 KMs |
| 5’6” | 10.4 miles16.7 KMs | 12.2 miles19.75 KMs | 14.9miles23.9 KMs | 18.9 miles30.5 KMs |
| 5’7” | 10.5 miles16.9 KMs | 12.3 miles19.9 KMs | 15 miles24.2 KMs | 19.2 miles30.9 KMs |
| 5’8” | 10.5 miles17 KMs | 12.4 miles20 KMs | 15.2 miles24.4 KMs | 19.4 miles31.3 KMs |
| 5’9” | 10.6 miles17.1 KMs | 12.5 miles20.2 KMs | 15.3 miles24.7 KMs | 19.7 miles31.7 KMs |
| 5’10” | 10.7 miles17.2 KMs | 12.6 miles20.4 KMs | 15.5 miles24.9 KMs | 19.9 miles32.1 KMs |
| 5’11” | 10.8 miles17.4 KMs | 12.8 miles20.6 KMs | 15.6 miles25.2 KMs | 20.2 miles32.6 KMs |
How long it will take to complete 20k steps at different speeds while running? Let’s find out:
- Running a 12-minute mile – Two hours to reach 20,000 steps
- Running a 10-minute mile – An hour and 57 minutes to achieve 20,000 steps
- Running an 8-minute mile – An hour and 52 minutes to cover 20,000 steps
- Running a 6-minute mile – An hour and 45.6 minutes to complete 20,000 steps
Conclusively, if someone is planning to accomplish the goal of completing 20000 steps each day then they are required to cover approximately 9.47 miles daily. However, reaching this milestone is a novel approach to becoming more healthy, consistent, and cautious.