Nurses are the largest group of employees in hospitals yet their working environment and conditions are not always optimal. Moreover, nurses may be convinced that the physical activity they perform during working hours is sufficient to maintain the healthy lifestyle.The study aimed to measure the number of steps, the distance and the energy expenditure during a 12-hour shift of ICU and nurses anesthetists in selected hospitals in Poland.Data were collected via a pedometer and socio-demographic interview. The project was multicenter, data were collected from 11.11.2013 to 04.05.2014.The median number of steps taken by nurses anesthetists within the operating room was 7404.0 (IQR 4461.0-9443.0) while in the ICU it was 7358.0 (IQR 4705.0-9101.0). During day in the operating and recovery room, both nurses anesthetists (IQR 3.90-6.26) and ICU (IQR 3.54-6.39) reached the median distance of 5.0 km. There were significant differences in the distance covered during day and night between ICU (p = 0.0003) and anaesthesia staff (p = 0.0001) as well as in number of steps (ICU p = 0.0002; ANEST p = 0.0001) and energy expenditure (ICU p = 0.0004; ANEST p = 0.0001).The professional activity of nurses alone is insufficient to meet recommendation of taking 10 000 steeps daily that aim to contribute to improving quality of life.