When dealing with blind people, why do a number of people give distances in "steps"?

Frequently, if I ask where a local coffee shop, intersection or bus stop is located, the answer I get back is measured in “steps”. Try as I might, no one has been able to answer where the idea comes from that, if you can’t see, you constantly count steps to determine distance. I can sort of understand someone telling me that X “is roughly 400 feet that way” or “is the third door on your right”, but “35 paces forward” seems to leave a lot of room for mistakes. Do any of you (blind or otherwise) actually know that it is, for instance, exactly 42.7 steps from your bedroom to your bathroom? What if you’re drunk? In a hurry? Both? Carrying a load of laundry?