Published on July 06, 2022
Healthy Tips Video: How Much is Enough Physical Activity?
Hi. My name is Jason Anderson. I'm manager of Health and Fitness here at the Owensboro Health Healthpark. And I'm here to talk to you about exercise. No one today could tell you that they didn't know exercise is beneficial. We all know it's beneficial.
And we probably live in a time where there's never been more information about exercise or how to get fit. Sometimes that can be a negative thing, though, because there's so much information it becomes frustrating, leaving us to wonder, what should I really do? So one question I get a lot is, how much exercise is enough? So that's what I want to address with you today.
Several years ago, some health agencies, like the American College of Sports Medicine, the Centers for Disease Control and other groups like this, came together to answer these questions. And here's what they came up with.
How Much is Enough?
The physical activity guidelines for Americans state that for us to receive the benefits, we need to accumulate 300 minutes of moderate intensity exercise per week or 150 minutes of vigorous activity during the week.
Now, the great thing about this is I know 150 minutes or 300 minutes sounds like a lot, and it is, but you can break it up. It can be 15 minutes here, 20 minutes there. You can break it up any way you like to. And then when you define what is moderate or what is vigorous activity, think about it in this sense.
Moderate vs. Vigorous
If you went out for a walk, that would be considered moderate. Just strolling. But if you pumped your arms or maybe even ran, that would be considered vigorous. The main thing is you want to elevate your heart rate. That's what exercise is all about. Is getting past that resting state, getting your heart rate up, breathing hard.
Another good rule of thumb to follow is whenever you're exercising, whether that is outside walking or jogging or even into a fitness center, you should be exercising at a level where you could talk if you had to, but you really don't feel like talking because your exercise intensity is up there.
For more information about exercise-related tips, please contact us at the Healthpark at 270-688-5433.
About Owensboro Health
Owensboro Health is a nonprofit health system with a mission to heal the sick and to improve the health of the communities it serves in Kentucky and Indiana. The system includes Owensboro Health Regional Hospital, nationally recognized for design, architecture and engineering; Owensboro Health Muhlenberg Community Hospital; Owensboro Health Twin Lakes Medical Center; the Owensboro Health Medical Group comprised of over 350 providers at more than 30 locations; three outpatient Healthplex facilities, a certified medical fitness facility, the Healthpark; a weight management program, and the Mitchell Memorial Cancer Center.
On average each year, we have more than 19,000 inpatient admissions, deliver 2,000 babies and provide the region’s only Level III NICU. Owensboro Health physicians perform nearly 33,000 surgical procedures, including nearly 150 open-heart surgeries. Our physicians and staff have 90,000 Emergency Department visits and more than 1.25 million outpatient visits annually. Visit our home page for more information.