How Often Should I Exercise?

Longevity Exercise Physiology Drummoyne, Edgecliff, Marrickville, Castle Hill, Randwick, Pymble, Kingsgrove, Neutral Bay, and Coburg would today like to discuss how often you should be exercising.

How much exercise am I supposed to do?

Did you know, just like there are Australian dietary guidelines, there are Australian physical activity guidelines too? It can be hard to know how much time you need to make to exercise, especially when life gets busier, so following the physical activity guidelines is the perfect place to start.

The general recommendation for cardiovascular exercise for people aged between 18-64 years is 150-300 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity (to the point of breathlessness, but still able to hold a conversation). Alternatively, if you do more high intensity cardiovascular exercise, 75-150 minutes is sufficient, or an equivalent combination of the two. The recommendation for strength training is two sessions per week. 

It is important to note that this is a cumulative weekly total, so if you have busier days where it’s harder to fit in as much exercise, you can make it up on other days. The other thing to note is that it is also important to reduce sedentary behaviour – so even if you’re not able to do as much exercise some days, just making time to do a little bit, like a ten-minute walk is still important. It is also important to break up periods of sitting, even just standing and stretching for a bit every hour or so.

“…Adults should be completing 150-300 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity or 75-150 minutes of high intensity physical activity.”

What about everyone else?

For children and older adults, the recommendations are fairly similar. For older adults (65+), it is recommended to do at least moderate intensity aerobic physical activity on most days, such as taking a brisk walk. It is also important to include balance and flexibility training to help maintain mobility and reduce the risk of falls. The strength training guidelines are similar, with more functional exercises recommended two to three times per week.

For children and young adults (5-17 years), 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous intensity exercise is recommended daily. As part of this recommendation, muscle and bone strengthening exercises are recommended three days per week. Several additional hours of light physical activity is also recommended, such as walking to school, or playing outside during recess and lunch.

How can we help?

We can work with you to schedule your exercise during the week, and making sure you achieve the guidelines. During your initial consultation, we will get an understanding of your current exercise routine and develop a strategy to help you reach the guidelines. We will also help you learn what the right intensity feels like, and how you can schedule exercise in your week.

If you need help achieving the exercise guidelines, give Longevity Exercise Physiology a call on 1300 964 002 today!