How much exercise is enough?

Just How much exercise is enough?

Here we examine how much physical activity the scientific research claims is necessary for health benefits to occur.

What does it mean to us? How hard should we exercise?

Are we talking about hours of physical activity?

Or, minutes...

How much exercise: Physical Activity Recommendations

The short answer is you need a minimum of 30 minutes of "moderately" intense aerobic activity on 5 days each week or, 20 minutes of "vigorously" intense aerobic activity on 3 days each week.

You also need 8 to 10 strength training exercises on 2 or more non-consecutive days each week.

Examples of moderate intensity activities include brisk walking, mowing the lawn, dancing, badminton, and playing doubles tennis.

Examples of vigorous intensity activities include hiking at steep grades, jogging, running, shovelling snow, basketball, cross-country skiing, and soccer.

Examples of strength training exercises include weight bearing calisthenics, stair climbing, a progressive weight training program such as the one a personal trainer would design for you, or any other resistance exercises that employ the major muscle groups.

This is how much exercise you need each week to improve your health and reduce your risk of inactivity-related chronic diseases.

Who says so?

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the American Heart Association (AHA).

Be mindful when searching around for the recommended physical activity requirements. Some websites still promote the old guidelines.

The most recent physical activity recommendations were updated last August, 2007.

That's the short version.

For a more complete discussion of the new guidelines, specific definitions of the terms "moderate" and "vigorous" activities using METs (metabolic equivalents), and how to find out what your favourite activities expend in terms of energy, see the ACSM Physical Activity Recommendations.


How much exercise: Canadian Guidelines

The Canadian government states it a little bit differently.

The Public Health Agency of Canada in conjunction with the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP), producers of Canada's Physical Activity Guide To Active Healthy Living, recommend that you accumulate 60 minutes of physical activity every day to stay healthy or improve your health.

How much exercise is enough: How Hard Do We Train?

They suggest the actual time spent on activity depends on the effort made.

For example, "light effort" requires 60 minutes a day and may include activities such as light walking, volleyball, easy gardening or stretching.

"Moderate effort" requires 30 to 60 minutes and may include brisk walking, biking, raking leaves, swimming, dancing and water aerobics.

"Vigorous effort" requires only 20 to 30 minutes daily and may include aerobics, jogging, hockey, basketball, fast swimming and fast dancing.

How much exercise is enough: All at Once or in Chunks?

The great news is all the agencies are in agreement that health benefits can accrue by simply adding up brief activities of at least 10 minutes each, throughout the day.

In other words, you don't need to complete all of your activities at once.

If you're a busy person or you face considerable time constraints, science is showing us that you can still achieve all the health benefits by accumulating shorter periods of activity throughout the day so long as they add up to your total activity goal.

For example, 3 shorter moderately intense sessions of 10 minutes each in the morning, afternoon and evening or, 2 sessions of 15 minutes each will help you derive the same benefits.

What could be simpler?

How much exercise is enough: The first step

Starting an exercise program is safe for most people. However, there are instances when you should check with your doctor first.

Indeed, checking with your doctor is a sensible first step because only your doctor can determine your current health status and how safe it is for you to begin exercising.

Here's how to tell when you should check with your doctor first...

How Much Exercise Is Enough Section- Table Of Contents:

Before Starting An Exercise Program
Starting an exercise program is safe for many people. However, there are instances when you should check with your doctor first. The PAR-Q is an easy, fast, and simple way to tell.

ACSM Physical Activity Recommendations
The physical activity recommendations were updated last August, 2007. Find out what the new ACSM/AHA guidelines are.

Metabolic Equivalents - METs
METs are metabolic equivalents. They are often used to determine intensity. Here is how to combine moderate with vigorous activity levels to meet the minimum physical activity requirements

Related Health Fitness Articles:

New Years Fitness Resolution - Change The Way You Die
New Years Fitness Resolution. Make this one resolution and change the way you die! Statistics reveal the strangest things. Here are a few far-from-gloomy stats to inspire you to get moving.

Go directly to your next topic: Before Starting An Exercise Program

Jump from How Much Exercise Is Enough? back to Workout From Home -home page