Tips for Physical Activity

• Being active has many health benefits. It can help you Control your weight, Reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease, Reduce your risk for type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome, and Improve your mental health and mood.
• Moderate-intensity activity means you are working hard enough to raise your heart rate and break a sweat. Examples: walking fast, riding a bike on level ground, or with few hills and pushing a lawnmower. Examples of vigorous-intensity activity are: jogging or running, swimming laps and playing singles tennis.
• Adults need 150 minutes to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity activity each week and two or more days of muscle-strengthening activities, such as weight lifting, using resistance bands and heavy gardening each week. You do not have to do it all at one time and all activity counts. Break your activity into 10 minute blocks to reach your goal.
• Children and adolescents (ages 6-17) should get about 60 minutes of physical activity each day. Make sure your children's activities are age-appropriate, offer variety and are fun!
• Aerobic activity should make up most of your child's physical activity. It can be moderate- or vigorous-intensity.
• Keep in mind that some physical activity is better than none at all!
• Remember that everyone's fitness level is different - it depends on the shape you are in, what you are comfortable doing and your health condition.
• Did you know that if you weigh 150 pounds and you walk at two mph for 30 minutes, you can burn 83 calories?

 More Did You Know

• Raising your activity level, even just a small amount, could lower your blood pressure 4 to 9 mm Hg. That's the same reduction in blood pressure that some prescription antihypertensive medications provide.
• The oldest person to even finish a full-length marathon was 100 years old! Fauja Singh finished the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in October 2011. He was born on a farm in India in 1911 and didn't start training until the age of 89.
• Did you know that it only takes 100 extra calories each day to gain 10 pounds in a year?
• Did you know that it only takes a deficit of 500 calories a day to lose a pound a week?
• If you are not a regular exerciser, by the time you are 65 you may experience as much as an 80% decrease in muscle strength.
• Walking at a brisk pace (a 15-minute mile or 4 mph) burns almost as many calories as jogging the same distance.
• Exercising triggers endorphins, promotes relaxation and prevents anxiety and depression.