Move More, Live Longer: How Exercise Can Transform Your Health

Most of us are not getting enough exercise, and it’s putting our health at risk.According to the latest study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, adults should get 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity or 75 to 100 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity per week. Muscle strengthening should be done twice per week. For children aged 6 to 17, it is recommended to get 60 minutes of physical activity per day.However, only 26% of men, and 19% of women are meeting the weekly activity recommendations. Only 1 percent of children have ideal dietary habits and fewer than 50 percent of adolescents get the guideline-recommended amounts of physical activity.Think outside the gym when it comes to exercise. According to Dr. Patrick Green,  “Exercise is not something that you do — it’s a lifestyle.” Just about any physical activity you do throughout your day counts toward better sleep and brain health as well as lowering the risk of cancer and cardiovascular diseases. This can include simple things such as: Walking for a few minutes at lunch or with your family after dinnerDancing to your favorite songTaking the stairs instead of the elevatorParking farther away at the grocery storeGardening and household chores “Getting just 25 percent of those people to be more active would prevent almost 75,000 deaths annually in the United States,” Dr. David Rosenbaum explained.The more time we spend sedentary — sitting at an office desk or on the couch watching TV — the greater our chance of developing Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer.What are some of the health benefits of regular exercise? Improved sleep: People who meet the guidelines take less time to fall asleep, spend more time actually sleeping, have improved sleep quality, and get more deep sleepReduced anxietyImproved cognitionLower blood pressureLower risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseaseEvidence suggests that exercise lowers the risk of certain types of cancer: bladder, endometrial, kidney, stomach, esophageal and lung cancer, beyond just breast and colon cancer, Dr. Green said.Let’s get moving!Blocker, K. (2023). It is all ‘exercise.’ Guidelines say every physical activity you do throughout your day counts. Retrieved from https://www.uchealth.org/today/every-physical-activity-you-do-throughout-your-day-counts/