Get moving: Guidelines set healthy activity levels
Lauran Neergaard, Associated Press, Oct 7, 2008
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Get moving: The nation's new
exercise guidelines set a minimum sweat allotment
for good health. For most adults, that's 2 1/2 hours a week.
How much physical activity you need depends
largely on age and level of fitness.
Moderate exercise adds up for sluggish adults.
Rake leaves, take a quick walk around the block
or suit up for the neighborhood softball game.
More fit adults could pack in their week's
requirement in 75 minutes with vigorous exercise,
such as jogging, hiking uphill, a bike race or speedy laps in the pool.
Children and teens need more ? pretty brisk
activities for at least an hour a day, say the
government guidelines being released Tuesday.
Consider it the exercise version of the food
pyramid. The guidelines, from the Health and
Human Services Department, aim to end years of
confusion about how much physical activity is
enough, while making clear that there are lots of ways to achieve it.
"The easy message is get active, whatever your
way is. Get active your way," HHS Secretary
Michael Leavitt told The Associated Press.
It's OK to start slowly. Someone who's done no
exercising will start seeing benefits with as
little as 10 minutes of moderately intense
exercise a day, which is an incentive to work up
to the recommended amounts, said Rear Adm.
Penelope Royall, deputy assistant secretary for disease prevention.
"Some is better than nothing, and more is better," she said.
The guidelines come as scientists are trying to
spread the word to a nation of couch potatoes
that how active you are may be the most important
indicator of good health. Yet a quarter of U.S.
adults aren't active at all in their leisure
time, government research concludes. More than
half don't get enough of the kind of physical
activity that actually helps health ? walking
fast enough to raise your heart rate, not just
meandering, for instance. More than 60 million adults are obese.
Worse, the nation is raising a generation of
children who may be less healthy than their
parents. About a third are overweight and 16
percent are obese. And while young children are
naturally active given the chance, schools are
decreasing the amount of recess and gym time. By
high school, a recent study found, fewer than a
third of teens are getting an hour of activity a day.
To put science behind the how-much-is-enough
debate, HHS gathered an expert panel to review
all the data. The panel found that regular
physical activity can cut the risk of heart
attacks and stroke by at least 20 percent, reduce
chances of early death, and help people avoid
high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, colon and
breast cancer, fractures from age-weakening bones and depression.
The government used that scientific report to set the minimum activity levels.
The kind of exercise matters a lot, said Dr.
William Kraus, a Duke University cardiologist who
co-authored the scientific report. Runners like
Kraus can achieve the same health benefit in a
fraction of the time of a walker.
"If you do it more intense, you can do less
time," explained Kraus, who praised the
guidelines for offering that flexibility. "This
brings it back down to earth for a lot of people."
What's the right kind of exercise? The guidelines advise:
_You don't have get all the activity at once. A
walk for an hour three days a week works as well
as, say, a 30-minute exercise class on weekdays
or saving most of the activity for a two-hour Saturday bike ride.
_For aerobic activities, go at least 10 minutes
at a time to build heart rate enough to count.
_You should be able to talk while doing moderate
activities but not catch enough breath to sing.
With vigorous activities, you can say only a few
words without stopping to catch a breath.
_Children's daily hour should consist of mostly
moderate or vigorous aerobic activity, such as
skateboarding, bike riding, soccer, simple running.
_Three times a week, children and teens need to
include muscle-strengthening activities ?
sit-ups, tug-of-war ? and bone-strengthening
activities, such as jumping rope or skipping.
_Adults should do muscle-strengthening activities
? push-ups, weight training, carrying heavy loads
or heavy gardening ? at least two days a week.
_Older adults who are still physically able to
follow the guidelines should do so, with an
emphasis on activities that maintain or improve balance.
These are minimum goals, the guidelines note.
People who do more will see greater benefits.
===
HHS Announces Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans
HHS News Release, Oct 7, 2008
Adults gain substantial health benefits from two
and a half hours a week of moderate aerobic
physical activity, and children benefit from an
hour or more of physical activity a day,
according to the new Physical Activity Guidelines
for Americans. The comprehensive set of
recommendations for people of all ages and
physical conditions was released today by the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The guidelines are designed so people can easily
fit physical activity into their daily plan and
incorporate activities they enjoy.
Physical activity benefits children and
adolescents, young and middle-aged adults, older
adults, and those in every studied racial and ethnic group, the report said.
?It?s important for all Americans to be active,
and the guidelines are a roadmap to include
physical activity in their daily routine,? HHS
Secretary Mike Leavitt said. ?The evidence is
clear -- regular physical activity over months
and years produces long-term health benefits and
reduces the risk of many diseases. The more
physically active you are, the more health benefits you gain.?
Regular physical activity reduces the risk in
adults of early death; coronary heart disease,
stroke, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes,
colon and breast cancer, and depression. It can
improve thinking ability in older adults and the
ability to engage in activities needed for daily
living. The recommended amount of physical
activity in children and adolescents improves
cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness as well as
bone health, and contributes to favorable body composition.
The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans
are the most comprehensive of their kind. They
are based on the first thorough review of
scientific research about physical activity and
health in more than a decade. A 13-member
advisory committee appointed in April 2007 by
Secretary Leavitt reviewed research and produced an extensive report.
Key guidelines by group are:
Children and Adolescents -- One hour or more of
moderate or vigorous aerobic physical activity a
day, including vigorous intensity physical
activity at least three days a week. Examples of
moderate intensity aerobic activities include
hiking, skateboarding, bicycle riding and brisk
walking. Vigorous intensity aerobic activities
include bicycle riding, jumping rope, running and
sports such as soccer, basketball and ice or
field hockey. Children and adolescents should
incorporate muscle-strengthening activities, such
as rope climbing, sit-ups, and tug-of war, three
days a week. Bone-strengthening activities, such
as jumping rope, running and skipping, are recommended three days a week.
Adults -- Adults gain substantial health benefits
from two and one half hours a week of moderate
intensity aerobic physical activity, or one hour
and 15 minutes of vigorous physical activity.
Walking briskly, water aerobics, ballroom dancing
and general gardening are examples of moderate
intensity aerobic activities. Vigorous intensity
aerobic activities include racewalking, jogging
or running, swimming laps, jumping rope and
hiking uphill or with a heavy backpack. Aerobic
activity should be performed in episodes of at
least 10 minutes. For more extensive health
benefits, adults should increase their aerobic
physical activity to five hours a week
moderate-intensity or two and one half hours a
week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical
activity. Adults should incorporate muscle
strengthening activities, such as weight
training, push-ups, sit-ups and carrying heavy
loads or heavy gardening, at least two days a week.
Older adults -- Older adults should follow the
guidelines for other adults when it is within
their physical capacity. If a chronic condition
prohibits their ability to follow those
guidelines, they should be as physically active
as their abilities and conditions allow. If they
are at risk of falling, they should also do
exercises that maintain or improve balance.
Women during pregnancy -- Healthy women should
get at least two and one half hours of
moderate-intensity aerobic activity a week during
pregnancy and the time after delivery, preferably
spread through the week. Pregnant women who
habitually engage in vigorous aerobic activity or
who are highly active can continue during
pregnancy and the time after delivery, provided
they remain healthy and discuss with their health
care provider how and when activity should be adjusted over time.
Adults with disabilities -- Those who are able
should get at least two and one half hours of
moderate aerobic activity a week, or one hour and
15 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity a week.
They should incorporate muscle-strengthening
activities involving all major muscle groups two
or more days a week. When they are not able to
meet the guidelines, they should engage in
regular physical activity according to their
abilities and should avoid inactivity.
People with chronic medical conditions -- Adults
with chronic conditions get important health
benefits from regular physical activity. They
should do so with the guidance of a health care provider.
For more information about the ?Physical Activity
Guidelines for Americans,? visit
www.hhs.gov or
www.health.gov/paguidelines.
