New Guidelines for Physical Activity

Seven Tips For Living a Healthier Lifestyle

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recently updated it’s guidelines for physical activity for the first time since 1995. The ACSM are considered by many the leading authority on health and fitness. These updated guidelines show that sometimes they get things wrong as since the last guidelines were issued the world has got fatter with more and more people considered overweight or obese.

Following are the basic recommendations for healthy adults under 65 years of age:

• Do moderately intense cardio 30 minutes a day, five days a week.

So what does this mean?

Moderate and Vigorous Intensity Activities are included as they complementary in the production of health benefits. Combining different exercise intensities will help you live a healthier lifestyle.

Moderate intensity physical activity means that you are working hard enough to raise your heart rate and break into a sweat, yet you should still be able to carry on a conversation. It should be noted that to lose weight or maintain weight loss that 60-90 minutes of physical activity may be necessary. The 30 minute recommendation is for the average healthy adult to maintain health and reduce the risk of chronic disease.

Vigorous intense activity means that you are working at a level of 7-9 if 10 was the maximum effort you could muster. You should be able to speak but only in broken sentences. Your heart rate will be up and you should be sweating more. Higher intensity cardio has also been shown to reduce fat levels faster than moderate intense cardio.

Strength Training. The inclusion of strength-training exercises recognises the benefits of resistance training including increased bone density, improved posture, increased metabolism, lower blood pressure and a decreased risk of degenerative diseases such as arthritis. Other benefits include improved posture, improved mood and enhanced self esteem.

Aerobic Exercise above Daily Activity. The guidelines also specify that the aerobic activity needed is in addition to your normal daily activities. So activities such as cleaning, shopping and casual walking or any activity carried out for less than 10 minutes at a time do not count towards your 30 minutes per day. However moderate to brisk intensity activities such briskly walking to work, gardening carried out for more than 10 minutes at a time can be counted towards your 30 minutes per day.

The new guidelines also emphasizes the important fact that “more is better” and that exceeding the recommended minimum further reduces the risk of inactivity related diseases such as heart disease and obesity.

Below are my:

1. Choose activities you enjoy. You will be more inclined to add exercise to your life if you do something that you enjoy, be that swimming, cycling, tennis or jogging with friends.

2. Mix it up. Try to find ways in which you can make exercise fun, whether that’s having a kick about on the local park with the kids or doing something that you haven’t tried before such as kayaking or surfing.

3. Do it in short bursts. By getting in ten minutes of exercise three times per day you will achieve the recommended 30 minutes per day. A ten minute body weight circuit as soon as you get out of bed, a brisk 10 minute walk a lunch time and another walk after your evening meal is just three ways to get your 30 minutes done.

4. Make exercise appointments with your self. By setting time aside in your diary for exercise you will more likely be able to keep on track. Try to make exercise part of your life.

5. Do something for charity. Pick a charity close to your heart then enter a local race. By entering a local race for charity you will have a goal to aim for. Not only will you be building a healthier body for your self you will be raising money for a worthy cause.

6. Do body weight exercises. By doing press ups, pull ups, crunches, squats and lunges in a circuit with no rest you will be able to get an intense fat burning workout in 10 to 30 minutes

7. Get help from a professional. If you are new to exercise hire a Personal Trainer to get you started. Your personal trainer will carry out a full health, fitness and nutrition assessment and will help you define your health and fitness goals. Your personal trainer will then be able to design a training program specific to you.