The Benefits of Regular Physical Activity

If physical activity came in a bottle, it would be the most widely prescribed medicine in the world. That is not hype. It is close to what public-health bodies say in more careful language: the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) calls physical activity "one of the most important things you can do for your health".

This guide sets out what regular movement does, what counts, and how much is recommended. The most encouraging finding comes first: you do not need to do very much to start benefiting.

What counts as physical activity

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines physical activity as any bodily movement produced by your muscles that uses energy. That includes sport and exercise, but also walking to the shops, cycling to work, housework, gardening, dancing and playing with children.

In other words, you do not need a gym, special clothing or a training plan. All movement counts.

The benefits you can feel straight away

Some effects of activity appear within hours. According to the CDC, a single session of moderate-to-vigorous activity can reduce short-term feelings of anxiety in adults, and regular activity helps you sleep better.

Many people also notice that they feel more alert and in a better mood after moving. These immediate rewards matter, because they are what bring you back the next day, long before any long-term benefit is visible.

The long-term benefits

Heart and circulation

Heart disease and stroke are among the leading causes of death worldwide. The CDC notes that doing at least 150 minutes a week of moderate activity can put you at lower risk of both, and that regular activity can lower blood pressure and improve cholesterol levels. Doing more lowers the risk further.

Type 2 diabetes

Regular activity reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The CDC points out that people start to benefit even at levels below 150 minutes a week.

Some cancers

The WHO lists a reduced risk of several cancers among the benefits of physical activity in adults. The NHS names bowel cancer, and breast cancer in women.

Bones, muscles and balance

Muscle-strengthening activity keeps muscles and bones strong as you age. For older adults, the WHO notes that activity reduces the risk of falls, and the NHS lists lower risks of hip fracture and osteoarthritis among people who are regularly active.

Mind and mood

Physical activity reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety and supports brain health, according to the WHO. The CDC adds that it can help keep your thinking, learning and judgement sharp as you get older. The NHS lists a lower risk of depression and of dementia among regularly active people.

Sleep

Active people tend to sleep better. Better sleep, in turn, makes it easier to be active the next day. It is a helpful loop to be in. Our guide to simple habits for better sleep covers the other half.

A longer life

The WHO states that people who are insufficiently active have a 20 to 30% higher risk of death than those who are sufficiently active. The NHS puts it the other way round: exercise can lower your risk of early death by up to 30%.

How much do you need?

The main guidelines agree closely. For adults aged roughly 18 to 64:

The WHO's range for moderate activity runs up to 300 minutes a week, because doing more brings additional benefit.

Moderate activity raises your heart rate and makes you breathe faster and feel warmer. The simple test is that you can still talk, but you cannot sing. Brisk walking, cycling on the flat, dancing and water aerobics are examples.

Vigorous activity makes you breathe hard and fast. You cannot say more than a few words without pausing for breath. Running, swimming lengths, fast cycling and many team sports are examples.

Muscle-strengthening activity includes lifting weights, using resistance bands, exercises that use your body weight such as push-ups and squats, heavy gardening, yoga and pilates.

The 150 minutes does not have to be done in long sessions. Thirty minutes on five days is one way. Shorter bouts through the day add up as well.

The most important sentence in the guidelines

It is this, from the WHO: any amount of physical activity is better than none.

The relationship between activity and health is not all-or-nothing. The steepest improvement comes at the beginning, when someone who does very little starts to do a little. If 150 minutes feels out of reach, it does not follow that there is no point in starting. Ten minutes a day is a real improvement on none.

The guidelines also ask everyone to cut down the time spent sitting, and to break up long periods of it. Standing up, stretching or walking for a couple of minutes each hour is a reasonable aim if your work keeps you at a desk.

Why so many of us fall short

Around a third of the world's adults, roughly 1.8 billion people, do not reach the recommended level of activity, according to the WHO, and the proportion has been rising.

This is not a failure of character. Modern life has quietly removed movement from the day: we travel sitting down, work sitting down and relax sitting down. Being active now takes a deliberate decision in a way it did not for earlier generations. That is worth remembering on the days when it feels like a struggle.

Getting started safely

Moderate activity is safe for most people. A few sensible precautions:

• Start below what you think you can do and build up gradually over weeks.
• Choose something you enjoy. You are far more likely to keep doing it.
• Warm up gently, and ease off if something hurts.

Where to go next

If you are starting from very little, walking is the easiest way in. And if you have started before and stopped, How to build fitness habits you will actually keep looks at why that happens and what helps.