Physical Activity
Why it’s important?
Regular physical activity can reduce the risk of many diseases, help achieve and maintain a healthy weight and improve mental wellbeing. Modern technology provides us with much convenience which reduces our need or desire to be physically active. Eg. washing machines, cars, computer games. A trend towards more sedentary occupations has also reduced activity levels.
- On average, a more active person will spend less time in hospital than an inactive person
- 80% of adults in Liverpool do not do enough exercise to benefit their health
- Only 1 in 3 boys and 1 in 5 girls (aged 9 11yrs) are active enough
Key Messages
Physical activity should be encouraged from birth, particularly floor based play and water based activities in safe environments. All children (5 to 18) should do moderate vigorous intensity physical activity for at least 60 minutes and up to several hours every day. Children under 5 should do 180 minutes of physical activity every day.
An adult will use between 300-400 calories by walking 10,000 steps a day. Adults should be moderately active for a minimum of 30 minutes, at least 5 days a week. This can be broken down into 3 lots of 10 activity or 2 lots of 15 minutes of activity. Being moderately active describes you feeling warm and having a slightly raised heart rate, but you should still be able to have a conversation.
Top Tips
Set small achievable goals and build up your activity levels gradually. Here are some suggestions to build activity into your day:
- Find something that you, your family and friends enjoy and do it together
- Get off the bus a stop earlier and walk the rest of the way
- Use the stairs rather than the lift or escalator
- Housework and gardening are great forms of exercise
- Stuck in an office? Take a short walk every hour and a couple of lunchtime walks during the week if you can
- Use a phone, watch or pedometer to count your steps
- Park further away from the shops or supermarket or even better, walk.