How to get active – and stay active
Being active has many benefits and helps to reduce your risk of cancer. Find ideas about how to move more and expert answers to questions such as: how much exercise should I do? What are the different sorts of activity?
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How much physical activity should I do?
Adults should aim to do 1 of the following:
- At least 150 minutes a week (or 20–25 minutes a day) of moderate-intensity activity such as brisk walking.
- 75 minutes a week (or 11 minutes a day) of vigorous-intensity activity such as jogging or a workout.
- A combination of moderate and vigorous activities.
It’s also important to strengthen your muscles at least 2 days per week with:
- squats
- press-ups
- carrying heavy shopping
- walking up the stairs
Older adults (those of us aged 65+ years or older) should also do activities that help our balance and flexibility at least 2 days a week.
Don’t let these numbers intimidate you. Any increase in your activity level can make a difference to your health – every minute counts! It’s about doing something, then a bit more.
It’s never too late to get more active. Those who are the least active have the most to gain!
In general, 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity can give similar health benefits to 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity.
Both types of activity make us fitter. They are known as cardiovascular (cardio) or aerobic exercise. They are important to keep your heart, lungs and blood vessels healthy. Any activity that raises your heart rate to a safe level for a period of time is an aerobic activity.
If you aren’t yet very active, it’s a good idea to start with moderate activities.
Moderate-intensity activities
Moderate activity will raise your heart rate and make you breathe faster. One way to tell if you’re working at a moderate intensity level is if you can talk but not sing.
- Brisk walking
- Tai chi
- Yoga
- Water aerobics
- Cycling
- Dancing
- Doubles tennis
- Pushing a lawn mower
- Hiking
- Rollerblading
- Swimming
- Household jobs such as ironing or hanging up washing
Vigorous-intensity activities
At this intensity, your breathing and heart rate are greatly increased, and you’ll have difficulty talking. You won’t be able to say more than a few words without pausing for breath.
- Running
- Fast swimming
- Fast cycling
- Walking up the stairs
- Sports such as football, rugby, netball and hockey
- Skipping
- Aerobics
- Gymnastics
- Martial arts
- Wheeling your wheelchair
- Circuit training
- HIIT workouts at the gym or online
Warming up and cooling down
Warm up and cool down at an easy pace before and after any exercise that gets your heart pumping.
Warming up
This is any gentle exercise which gradually increases your heart rate and gets your body ready for more intense activity. For example, if you’re going cycling, a warm-up could include 5 minutes of very easy or flat cycling.
Cooling down
Also known as warming down. Gentle exercise helps your body safely and gradually return to a near restful state by lowering your heart rate after more intense activity. For example, walking for 5 minutes after jogging will bring your body back to a restful state.
Do I really need to walk 10,000 steps every day?
Counting steps is a popular and useful way to measure your daily activity. Many smartphones have step counters, which makes tracking easier. And don’t forget, the time you spend ‘”stepping’” all adds up to the weekly minimum of 150 minutes of moderate activity.
But the 10,000 steps a day target isn’t an official recommendation. Some studies have shown this amount of steps improves many areas of our health, which might explain why we have stuck with this number.
While 10,000 steps may sound like a nice round number, it can be an off-putting target to many, especially those with busy lives or different levels of mobility. Recent research has shown that we get significant health benefits at a much lower number of steps.
The important thing is about gradually increasing how many steps you take. For example, if you do 4,500 steps a day, try to increase it to 5,000 a day next week.
To increase your steps, why not walk while talking or scrolling on the phone; take a 10–20 minute walk at lunchtime; get up frequently to fetch a drink; get up to speak to a colleague rather than emailing and take the stairs whenever you can.
Muscle-strengthening activities
Exercises that build your strength are just as important for your health as aerobic exercises. Looking after your muscles and bones plays a major role in your health – now and in the future.
People who do muscle-strengthening exercises frequently live longer. In one study, doing muscle-strengthening exercises just once or twice a week was associated with a 40 per cent lower risk of death.
Strengthening exercises help to:
- Counteract the effects of ageing
- Reduce the risk of various diseases
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Support joints including your knees
- Improve blood sugar control
- Manage your blood pressure and cholesterol
- Reduce the risk of osteoporosis (weak bones) and fractures
We naturally lose muscle and strength as we get older. It’s estimated that we lose around 3–8 per cent of muscle per decade after the age of 30. The decline is even higher after the age of 60.
Maintaining your muscle and strength throughout life, and importantly in later life, not only helps lower the risk of having a fall but keeps daily activities, such as climbing the stairs and carrying the shopping, from becoming too much of a challenge.
Muscle is key to living a long, healthy and independent life -– and it’s never too late to start! Research has found that older people – even those over the age of 85 – can gain strength and muscle by frequently doing muscle-strengthening activities.
Strengthening your muscles also provides important benefits if you are post-menopausal. After the menopause, women are at a greater risk of osteoporosis (weak bones). This is because xxx.
You have to lift heavy weights or go to a gym. It’s about getting your muscles working harder than they are used to. For example:
Incorporating muscle-strengthening activities in your daily routine doesn’t need to take up much time. Even 5–10 minutes a couple of times a week can be really good for you.
Examples of muscle-strengthening activities
- Carrying heavy shopping bags
- Using resistance bands
- Lifting bottles of water or tin cans
- Doing exercises that use your body weight, such as push-ups, squats and sit-ups
- High-intensity gardening, such as digging and shovelling
- Wheeling a wheelchair
- Lifting and carrying children
- Yoga, pilates and tai chi
Flexibility and balance
Keeping flexible by stretching can help to:
- Keep you supple
- Improve posture
- Release muscle tension and tightness
- Increase joint mobility
- Relieve stress
- Improve posture
- May reduce the risk of injury
Doing flexibility exercises can be a great way of adding extra movement to your day. They can also help you relax after a long day.
You could also stretch as part of your cool-down after doing vigorous activities.
When stretching:
- Take a deep breath and slowly exhale as you gently stretch the muscle to a point of tension. Breathe normally and don’t hold your breath during the stretch.
- Don’t strain or push a muscle too far. If a stretch hurts, ease up.
- Don’t bounce a stretch. Holding a stretch is more effective and there is less risk of injury.
- Hold for around 15–30 seconds.
Balance exercises are also important, especially as you get older, to reduce the risk of falls. (to include an example movement for balance, as per living an active life)
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