I need to know more about what Physical Activity is and how I can do it

Physical Activity is simply the act of moving, but it’s done in a variety of ways. For physical activity that is beneficial for health, it needs to be hard enough to make you breathe a little harder and faster than usual but still hold a conversation, make you become a little flush and maybe sweat a bit. A brisk walk can often make you feel this so it doesn’t need to be too taxing to be active. So what does physical activity really mean? It incorporates a number of terms that are all slightly different ways to be active, some are categorised in the graphic below;

These types of physical activity can include a range of things, many of which will be acceptable as moderate physical activity as described above. Some of those activities are highlighted below;

So how much Physical Activity should I be doing?

For adults, the Chief Medical Officer’s guidance is that you should be doing at least 150 minutes, or two and a half hours of moderate activity a week to gain the most health benefits. However, this guidance does suggest that you get the same benefits if you completed just 75 minutes of vigorous physical activity, half the amount of moderate activity. Vigorous activity is activity that has you sweating, breathing heavy and feeling fatigued. So one example is that by doing one bout of 60 minutes of vigorous activity and 30 minutes moderate activity, you would be meeting the guidelines. Please see more information below about the CMO guidelines for adults;

We understand that 150 minutes seems like a lot and is unachievable, especially if you’re just getting started on your active lifestyle. However, you can build up to this and in fact, research suggests that the most health gains are achieved by going from doing no activity to doing about 30 minutes a week.