Despite decades of health-promoting campaigns, the statistics about physical (in)activity in the US are staggering: around 25 percent of U.S. adults are not active at all, and more than 60 percent of U.S. adults do not engage in the recommended amount of activity. Given the negative effects of physical inactivity, as covid made it clear, our nation needs to get more active to be healthier.

What are the physical activity recommendations?

In 2018, the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP), part of the US Department of Human and Health Services (HHS), updated their Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. As shown in their “Move your way” infographic, the recommendations are:

  • 150 min of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (or 75 mins of high-intensity)
  • 2 days a week of muscle-strengthening activities

The new guidelines make it clear that any amount of physical activity has some health benefits, and that physical activity can be done in short time periods, for example, a minute at a time. Science is also clear that sitting is harmful, and that we need to move more and sit less.

Seems easy, no? So why are so many people not getting enough exercise? Here come the mental barriers we erect to justify our inactivity:

  • not enough time
  • too tired
  • I don’t have the money to pay for the gym
  • it’s too cold or too hot

When we stop thinking that exercising means being an athlete, going to the gym, or running miles outside most days of the week, overcoming these barriers is not that difficult. By making small steps every day, tiny behavior changes, we can effect long-term, more extensive changes.
We need to set realistic goals for ourselves, both long and short term. For example, your long-term goal can be living a healthier lifestyle or improving your performance. Short-term goals will allow you to get there in smaller steps, and will consider the following:

  • our current level of activity. The good news is that if you are a couch potato, the bar is low, and you can only do better.
  • our constraints: chronic conditions, disabilities, economic, time, motivation or lack thereof
  • our needs: for example, older adults need to prevent falls, a significant concern as we age

How to get moving?

Make it fun and social

Being active does not have to be painful. Doing what you like with the people you love is an excellent way to be more active. For example, you could go for a walk in nature with friends. The social aspect can help overcome the lack of motivation.

Every minute of exercise counts

You do not have to do 30 minutes of exercise at once. The intensity of your activity needs to be high enough to bring your heart rate in the moderate to high zones. But you can walk or jog for 30 minutes or do a few short High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) exercises at different times of the day.

Get informed

Many resources are available on the internet to give you ideas of activities to do, starting with the ones listed in the references below. It is also very likely that there is an app for whatever activity you want to do. You can check out apps like Centr, TB12, or more specialized to teach you tai-chi, yoga, or pilates. A sport or smartwatch can help you keep track of your activity level and motivate you to move more.

How to monitor your progress?

Keep a journal

Keeping either a paper or electronic record of your activities is a good idea. It allows you to go back in time and see how much progress you have made. Depending on the details you log, you will be able to identify what works better for you, what does not. By noticing how you felt before, during, and after exercise, you will develop a sense of how activities help improve your mood, your self-image.

Cardio exercise

Cardio exercises are activities that raise your heart rate enough to qualify as moderate or high intensity. The types of activity range from daily activities like going up a few flights of stairs a day to exercises like HIIT, running, biking, swimming, rowing.
An easy way to keep track of your aerobic activity, if you are mixing moderate and high-intensity activity is to add the number of minutes like this:

  • minutes of moderate-intensity activity
  • 2 x minutes of high-intensity activity

The total number should be at least 150 minutes a week. Most sport or smartwatches do this for you.

Strength exercise

At least two days a week, do activities that make your different muscle groups work harder than usual. It has many health benefits, like strengthening your muscles and bones and improving your metabolism. Examples of activities are bodyweight exercises like pushups, resistance bands, weight lifting.

Flexibility and Balance

Flexibility and balance are helpful at any age but become more important as we grow older to help prevent falls. Example activities are Yoga, Pilates, Tai-chi. Peter Wayne, a research director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, is leading several studies related to Tai Chi.

References

  • “Physical Activity and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General”, CDC. link
  • “Adult Physical Inactivity Prevalence Maps”, CDC. link
  • “The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans”, US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). link
  • “Move You Way” campaign, US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). link
  • “Overcoming Barriers to Physical Activity”, CDC. link
  • “Top 10 Things to Know About the Second Edition of the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans”, US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). link
  • “The Harvard Medical School Guide to Tai Chi”. link
  • A unified view of health. link