Physical Activity Guidelines

The current physical activity recommendations by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) are:

Every adult should accumulate 30 min or more moderate-intensity physical activity on most, prefereable all, days of the week.

This can be accumulated in bouts of 8 to 10 min of exercise 3 times per day.  It should be noted that this is the minimal requirements for health and should not be seen as the optimal amount of activity for health. 

If you carried out a brisk walk for 30 minutes per day this would equate to an energy expenditure of about 1050 kcal per week which could have significant individual and public health benefits for coronary heart disease prevention especially in those who are initially inactive.

The Health Benefits of Physical Activity

• Increased life expectancy
• Lower risk to cardio vascular disease
• Reduced chances of colon cancer
• Lower chance of contracting diabetes
• Improved mental health and mental agility

The Physical Benefits of Physical Activity

• Increased aerobic fitness to help carry out work and leisure tasks more easily and with less effort
• Increased muscle strength and endurance
• Reduced body weight and increased muscle tone
• Improved flexibility

Examples of aerobic activities are brisk walking, jogging, running intervals, lap swimming, cycling, dancing, skating, skipping, football (soccer), basketball, volleyball, skiing, softball, racket sports such as badmington, racket ball and tennis. 

The bottom line is to carry out some sort of activity most days of the week which is going to make you slightly out of breath.  Top Tip is do something you enjoy and find a class/partner to exercise with. 

by Patricia Meira

www.MeiraFitness.com