The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that adults be physically active for at least 30 minutes most days of the week. It's OK to accumulate this amount in short time periods throughout the day. Activities can include:

• Brisk walking,
• Jogging,
• Cycling,
• Swimming,
• Dancing,
• Vacuuming,
• Walking to the car, or
• Kicking a soccer ball around with your kids.

Physical activity does not need to be overly strenuous, nor do you have to go to a gym or fitness club. You can work toward a healthy lifestyle simply by moving more each day and being more active with your friends and family.

 

Keep Moving With Different Types Of Activities

To keep healthy and fit, your body needs to move in different ways. Try to include all of these different activities in your daily and weekly activities:

• Endurance activities, such as brisk walking, cycling, swimming and dancing, are good for your heart and may help you feel energized.
• Strength activities, like gardening and yard work, lifting groceries or children, and weight training, may help build strong bones and muscles and promote good posture.
• Flexibility activities, including stretching exercises, pilates, yoga, Tai Chi, golf, bowling and dancing, may help keep your body flexible, your joints mobile and your muscles relaxed.

 

It's Never Too Late To Get Active!

Small simple changes to your usual routine all count toward your total activity minutes. For example:

• Walk instead of driving to do errands.
• Use the stairs instead of the elevator.
• Park in the farthest parking space.
• Get up to change the channel.
• Play with your kids instead of just watching them.
• Take occasional stretch breaks from your desk and computer.

 

Walk Your Way To Better Health – With A Pedometer

Using a pedometer, or step counter, to keep track of the number of steps you take for a few days is a simple way to measure your activity level. This can also help you become more active. You'll not only help your heart but possibly even lose weight, if you need to.

The national initiative America On the Move recommends that you work up to 10,000 steps in total throughout the day to get the most health benefits.1 Start out by moving more and eating less by making two small daily changes:

• Take 2,000 more steps (about 1 mile, or 12-20 minutes)
• Eat 100 fewer calories (about 1/3 of a candy bar)

Research shows that walking an extra 2,000 steps and eating 100 fewer calories each day is enough for most Americans to create a balance between energy expenditure and calorie consumption –and sufficient to stop the current average rate of weight gain of one to two pounds per year.2

References:
1. "Getting Started," America on the Move, 2005.
2. Science, Feb. 7, 2003.