subject: Include Exercise In Your Lifestyle [print this page] The NHS recommends that adults aged between 19 and 64 years of age complete 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity five days a week, or 150 minutes a week. This kind of exercise can include things such as walking fast, riding a bike on flat ground, doubles tennis, volleyball and even mowing the lawn. Its also recommended that the same age group partakes in muscle strengthening activity on a minimum of two days a week, such as strenuous gardening, yoga or weight lifting.
This kind of activity can help to improve your health overall and can give your body the assistance it needs to stave off certain health issues, such as heart disease. If you are trying to lose weight you should find that by including exercise in your lifestyle you are able to shift the weight faster than you would without it, and it will help you to feel much healthier in yourself.
However, if you dont currently get any exercise you will want to start things slowly rather than jumping in at the deep end. It is possible to overexert yourself if you arent used to working out five times a week, and this could lead to health problems further down the line. You can visit your GP to get some advice about what you can do to kick-start your exercise plan, and if you have any medical conditions you definitely shouldnt partake in any exercise until you have been given the go-ahead from your doctor.
If you are looking to slowly build up to the 150 minutes of exercise a day that the NHS recommends though, there are lots of things that you can do. For instance, if you take the bus to work every day you could get off a stop early, so that you have to walk the rest of the way. You might even want to switch to walking to work in the mornings and taking the bus at night.
You could also start taking the dog for longer walks, or doing some gardening to get your heart rate up. Activities such as digging and weeding count as exercise, so maybe it is time to do that bit of garden landscaping you have been putting off for years now?
If you decide to go out walking you should take a pedometer with you to track you steps and distance, which can help you to figure out how many calories you will have burnt. You can also find walk counter apps you can use on your smartphone.
