DO YOU KNOW YOUR EXERCISE GUIDELINES FOR HEALTH?
Adults should do some type of physical activity every day to maintain general health. Exercising, even just once or twice a week, can reduce the risk of stroke or heart disease and other health conditions. But do you know how often and what type of exercise you should be doing?
Adults should aim to:
· do some kind of strengthening activity that works the legs, hips, back, abdominal area, chest, arms and shoulders at least twice a week.
· do at least 2 ½ hours of moderate intensity (getting the heart rate up and a little out of breath) or an hour and 15 minutes of vigorous intensity activity a week.
· Reduce your time spent sitting and move around at regular intervals throughout the day (breaking up long periods) with some kind of activity.
· Exercise or move every day or spread it evenly over 4-5 days a week.
Exercise doesn’t have to be in the gym or in an exercise class, it’s important to find something you enjoy doing so you will do it consistently. For cardiovascular exercise you may prefer cycling, brisk walking, swimming, and dancing. For more vigorous activities choose something like running, uphill cycling, team sports, skipping, aerobics or martial arts.
These activities will raise your heart rate and you will get out of breath, but not too much that you are unable to talk. Cardiovascular exercise will strengthen your heart muscle to maintain heart strength and avoid heart related diseases.
There are many different ways of adding your prescription of strength exercise into your weekly routine. Gyms obviously have a great selection of equipment to get your muscles strong but are not necessary. You could also increase muscle strength by carrying heavy shopping bags/items in the home, use your own body weight/resistance bands or hand weights at home, heavy gardening/DIY or lifting and carrying children. Anything that feels heavy enough, that you could repeat around 8-12 repetitions to the point of fatigue will build new muscle strength. Then rest and repeat.
It is important if you have a health condition, are pregnant or are new to exercise that you check with a health professional before you begin any kind of fitness regime. Choose a beginner’s program to start you off. If you need help and advice, find an exercise professional with the relevant qualifications to get you started and maybe prescribe a specific workout. Maybe find something that will at least keep your body moving and help your mental health like pilates or yoga.
I promise you that regular exercise will give you more energy, make you feel happier, keep your joints mobile and your muscles strong, make daily life easier, keep age related diseases at bay and help you grow old with vitality.
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